Kevin A. Menicoche

I too spoke with the provider of the course. Shakes the Dust Hope Consulting provided it, and members of the community, too, saw growth in those young students that participated.

As part of the assessment, will he be rolling this out in other regions as well? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past July and August, a total of 22 youth from the Deh Cho participated in an on-the-land pilot program that could serve as a territorial model for early intervention of alcohol and drug use among the youth. This program was delivered in two sessions. The first two weeks were geared towards youth aged 12 to 15 and the next two weeks were for youth aged 16 to 19. The camp was held at Six Mile, approximately six miles up the river from Fort Simpson. The historic site was inhabited for hundreds of years.

The pilot program was designed to build youth culture and...

To be sure, Fort Liard youth are up against an awful lot. How can we expect them to thrive without consistent, dedicated support from a school counsellor? Thank you.

I continue to reiterate that we certainly need these types of supports for kids with complex needs. Once again, our at-risk youth in all our small communities, we need a wraparound approach that involves school counsellors and teachers working closely with other mental health and social services professionals.

As an MLA who represents some of the smallest and least resourced communities, can the Minister commit to bringing this wraparound approach to Fort Liard?

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I spoke about the need for a full-time student counsellor in the community of Fort Liard. So I’d like to ask the Minister of Education, as I laid out the case clearly that there’s a need for a full-time counsellor in Fort Liard.

What formula is used by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment to determine whether a community merits a full-time school counsellor, and does the community have to meet a particular threshold?

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My statement today is about Fort Liard, which sorely needs a full-time school counsellor. The community currently receives only monthly drop-in service from a regional school counsellor. With a population exceeding 500 people, Fort Liard is large enough to warrant an RCMP detachment, nursing and basic health infrastructure, a social service office, a fire hall and schools from K-12, yet today it has no full-time school counsellor.

Fort Liard has more than its share of social problems. We can get a glimpse from the Frontier Foundation, an Aboriginal non-profit...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Just for clarity, if he’s working with the Department of Health and Social Services, as well, is he able to work with them to see if there are some resources to help with the need of filling this gap in the Fort Liard school system?

Of course, a student’s well-being is one of the Education Renewal Initiatives, and I’m pleased that the Minister brought out some other funding areas, so if the Minister can bring that document to me. Also, pooling all this money, does the Minister think that the Dehcho Education Council can translate the resources available into a full-time counsellor for the Fort Liard youth?

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I think back in the mid-‘70s when they had an RCMP detachment in Wrigley, they were talking about developing a road and pipelines. Some of those same issues are coming up again with the development that’s happening in the Sahtu.

Can they start planning and see the need to establish an RCMP detachment in Wrigley to be prepared for the development that’s going to happen? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to thank the Minister for that clarification. The needs are still there, Mr. Speaker.

What is the plan to ensure that Wrigley and Gameti RCMP detachments make it on the 20-year capital needs assessment? How can the Minister and what can the Minister do to ensure it at least makes that 20-year capital plan?