Kugluktuk MLA Mila Kamingoak tabled a document with 129 signatures protesting the fact that the Kugluktuk High School principal's contract was not being renewed by the community's district education authority (DEA).
"A number of Kugluktuk community residents were very upset to note that the high school principal position was recently advertised. Many residents felt strongly that the current principal should stay in the job," Kamingoak said in the legislative assembly on May 31. "Following that, it became common knowledge that a number of teachers would be leaving the community at the end of the school year, prompting more concern."
She described it as a "sticky situation" for herself as the MLA to be "caught in the middle" of a dispute between many constituents and the DEA.
Education Minister David Joanasie said the principal position in Kugluktuk is typically a three-year term and, in this case, it is due to expire on June 9. The Kugluktuk DEA was acting within Education Act protocols to post the position for competition, Joanasie noted.
Kamingoak asked about the department's efforts to fill the teaching vacancies in Kugluktuk for the 2019-2020 school year.
Joanasie acknowledged that several teachers have decided to leave the community, including some couples who were both educators.
"These are some reasons why we are having a recruitment drive across the territory and in the south. We are making efforts to fill as many positions leading up to the next school year," said Joanasie.