Dorms for DFC students opening next fall

Students returning to Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School next fall will be in for some changes.
Northern Nishnawbe Education Council (NNEC) approved the development of a new accommodations unit to house students on a property adjacent to DFC. The approval was made during NNEC’S annual general meeting in Lac Seul Oct. 22-23.
“This is something that has been talked about since DFC opened its doors in 2000,” said DFC director Larry Howes. “We see a lot of benefits to this move.”
Construction of the dorm-style accommodation – which should open during the 2011-2012 school year – is only part of the change, Howes explained.
The concept, as it currently stands, is Grade 9 and 10 students will stay in the unit, which is expected to be able to accommodate 100-110 students with two in each room.
“We expected they will be grouped by families, friends and community members,” Howes said.
The Grade 11 students will return to the boarding home system.
“The boarding home (parents) have been very supportive of our students, but less people are available,” Howes said. “There are so many groups looking for homes, it is getting harder to place our students.”
That means some students can’t start school on time if a boarding home can’t be found for them. Such was the case for several of the more than 100 current DFC students.
“The Grade 12 students will be going to homes that have been very successful with students in the past,” Howes said.
In a change from the present system, the students will receive their boarding home funds ($250 biweekly for food and utility costs) and will pay their hosts directly.
“We’re hoping to build more life skills in our students,” Howes said. “This new system will allow them to learn money management and express any concerns they have (in more of a tenant situation). We’re trying to prepare the students more for a post-secondary setting and give them as many life skills as we can.”
Having the younger students living next to the school should help improve student success, Howes said.
He is hoping to break ground in the spring and depending on the building material, it is possible the unit could be ready for the start of school in September. A preliminary design has been completed and meetings with students are planned shortly to provide input into the unit.
The cost of the unit is subject to its design. It is currently pegged at $1-2 million, Howes said, adding NNEC is looking for funding partners for its construction.