Tu Nedhé-Wiilideh MLA Richard Edjericon is urging the NWT government to take action to address the housing crisis in isolated communities, which he says is driving some teachers away.
Speaking in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday, Edjericon said schools in smaller communities have long struggled to provide quality education because of the difficulty recruiting and retaining staff.
“Despite these challenges, schools in my communities continue to seek the best educators for our Indigenous children – teachers with skills and expertise to offer diverse classes and meet unique needs,” Edjericon said.
“They work hard to recruit top talent from colleges and universities across Canada, but competition with the rest of the country is tough.”
Edjericon said many teachers don’t see the North as an option due to high rent and the overall cost of living, especially when some southern communities either provide free housing or subsidize it.
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In the NWT, however, Edjericon said staff housing for teachers has been “whittled away over time, leaving the problem to [district education authorities], which lack the necessary resources all teachers can rely on.”
“Now our market rentals, which were never truly affordable, have become more expensive this year,” he explained, referring to a rent increase for some homes administered by Housing NWT in many communities.
“Our children have treaty rights to education, yet students in my communities – Fort Resolution and Łútsël K’é – cannot access the same quality of education as their peers here in Yellowknife.”
In at least one recent instance, a lack of housing was to blame for a teacher leaving one of those communities, the MLA said, adding: “Leaving classrooms without teachers is unacceptable.”
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Edjericon asked Premier RJ Simpson whether rules around funding provided to communities by the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs could be changed to allow the money to be used for staff housing.
Simpson said based on feedback from community governments, Maca is adjusting its policy to suspend restrictions related to staff housing. Communities “that have submitted staff housing in their financial reports have not been denied,” the premier said.
Edjericon asked the premier whether the territory would ensure DEAs have funding for housing subsidies and other measures to attract teachers.
“I am very familiar with this issue. I was the minister of education for four years and I heard about the issues around teachers housing quite often,” Simpson replied, noting he had instructed ministers to “work to ensure market housing is available for teachers in small communities.”
“This is not a new subject but it is one that takes some effort to get at the heart of.”
Edjericon asked the premier for a timeline by which his government might begin investing in staff housing for teachers in small communities.
Simpson instead said the GNWT is focused on replacing ageing housing and addressing a territory-wide waitlist of about 900 individuals and families.
He added that staff housing remains a live issue and the territory will work on solutions where possible.
