welcome to the oea section of our site.

The Opaskwayak Educational Authority is responsible for the K-12 Joe A Ross School, located on Opaskwayak Cree Nation. Further information about the school can be found on the school website, which you can visit by clicking the button above and on the 'about our school' section of this website.

Our new Director of Education, Mr. James B. Wilson, is working very hard to make sure our school maintains provincial standards and even surpasses them. We want to make sure that each one of our students is ready to move ahead successfully in their area of interest. That may mean a University degree, or graduation from Community Colleges, etc.

Mr. Wilson attended a meeting in October, with other First Nation Education Directors from across Manitoba. The main issue that came up over and over again, was the funding differences between the amounts First Nations' Educational Authorities receive to educate students and the amounts the provincial public school receive to educate their students.

It hasn't always been this way. In the 1990's the amounts received by First Nations' school and provincial schools was almost identical; today, we receive 30-40% less.

INAC continues to expect us to meet "Canadian Standards", while providing us with significantly less money to do so. Negotiations to correct this imbalance have been going on for more than ten years, but there has been NO improvement!

We are proud of the fact that while we receive less per student than our provincial counterparts, our educational outcomes are above public system outcomes for Aboriginal Students. We ARE doing more for less.

To give a very clear example of this, the Manitoba average per student is $8,950.00. Northern School Divisions are spending closer to $10,000. In Ontario, the average spending is $9,450.00.

We are spending $6,400 per pupil as our funding is based on this figure.

The Director of Education, has made it his priority to negotiate positive agreements that will provide us with funding equal to other school divisions.

In the meantime, we will continue to provide the best possible education for our students.


			OPASKWAYAK EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY
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	Opaskwayak Educational Authority Inc. 204-623-7431 Fax 204-623-2870 Site Map		James B.Wilson, Director of Education. The Opaskwayak Educational Authority is responsible for the K-12 Joe A Ross School, located on Opaskwayak Cree Nation. Further information about the school can be found on the school website, which you can visit by clicking the button above and on the 'about our school' section of this website. Our new Director of Education, Mr. James B. Wilson, is working very hard to make sure our school maintains provincial standards and even surpasses them. We want to make sure that each one of our students is ready to move ahead successfully in their area of interest. That may mean a University degree, or graduation from Community Colleges, etc. Mr. Wilson attended a meeting in October, with other First Nation Education Directors from across Manitoba. The main issue that came up over and over again, was the funding differences between the amounts First Nations' Educational Authorities receive to educate students and the amounts the provincial public school receive to educate their students. It hasn't always been this way. In the 1990's the amounts received by First Nations' school and provincial schools was almost identical; today, we receive 30-40% less. INAC continues to expect us to meet "Canadian Standards", while providing us with significantly less money to do so. Negotiations to correct this imbalance have been going on for more than ten years, but there has been NO improvement! We are proud of the fact that while we receive less per student than our provincial counterparts, our educational outcomes are above public system outcomes for Aboriginal Students. We ARE doing more for less. To give a very clear example of this, the Manitoba average per student is $8,950.00. Northern School Divisions are spending closer to $10,000. In Ontario, the average spending is $9,450.00. We are spending $6,400 per pupil as our funding is based on this figure. The Director of Education, has made it his priority to negotiate positive agreements that will provide us with funding equal to other school divisions. In the meantime, we will continue to provide the best possible education for our students.