Latest news with #DistrictEducationAuthority
Express Tribune
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Education CEO, cashier secure bail
A Special Anti-Corruption Court presided over by District and Sessions Judge, Khawar Rasheed, has approved the bail applications of District Education Authority's CEO, Amanullah Khan Cheehna, and education department cashier, Arshad Mehmood, who were arrested in connection with an alleged Rs80 million corruption case. The court has ordered their immediate release from Adiala Jail. The court stated that prima facie there is no evidence of corruption against the two individuals. Furthermore, the legal requirements for the arrest of a Grade-19 officer were not fulfilled, including the mandatory prior approval from the chief secretary of Punjab. The anti-corruption department also failed to clarify on whose orders the inquiry was initiated. The court noted that no one can be detained in jail merely on the basis of corruption allegations. The decision was reserved on Monday after the completion of arguments, and the court has also directed that the challan (charge sheet) should be submitted along with the scheduling of the next hearing. During the proceedings, the anti-corruption investigation team failed to answer any of the court's questions. The court had summoned the director of Anti-Corruption to appear in person for questioning, but he remained absent citing illness.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Parents call on N.W.T. education minister to remove Fort Simpson elementary school principal
Parents in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., are calling on the territorial government to permanently remove the principal of the local elementary school. The parents, some of whom are elected members of the community's District Education Authority (DEA), met with the N.W.T. education minister earlier this month to list their concerns with Łı̨́ı̨́dĺ̨ı̨́ı̨́ Kų́ę́ Elementary School principal Benjamin Adams. The concerns include a lack of communication, unreliability and an unhealthy school environment that they allege is failing their children. Adams declined an interview request due to "internal processes and confidentiality." On Wednesday, the day after the request, Adams sent an email to school staff informing them he would be on leave for the remainder of the year. Dehcho Divisional Education Council (DDEC) superintendent Donna Miller Fry wrote in an email to CBC News on June 19 that Adams is still the principal of the school, but there is an acting principal while he is away. Parents who spoke with CBC said the Fort Simpson DEA met with Education Minister Caitlin Cleveland on June 6 to discuss the issues, which is when they called for Adams' removal. Parents spoke with CBC in the days leading up to Friday's announcement from the government of sweeping investigations into the DDEC's and Dehcho DEAs' governance, finances and human resource issues. Shawna McLeod, a Fort Simpson parent and DEA member, delivered a speech to Cleveland and provided a written statement that detailed various incidents involving several parents and students. The letter says Adams' behaviour reveals "a disturbing pattern of neglect, exclusion, dishonesty and emotional harm." One example includes a neurodiverse child whose mother felt they weren't properly supported. There were also concerns about how a teacher was treating the child. The letter says Adams didn't properly address the concerns with the teacher. A former staff member and parent was also quoted in the letter as saying the education system in Fort Simpson is "crumbling." That person described a toxic work environment, with a lack of support for students and inconsistent leadership. McLeod said she decided to pull her daughter from the school and is not the only one to do so. McLeod and another parent who spoke to CBC said they think Adams has retaliated against children whose parents have spoken out about his shortcomings, by not allowing them to attend extracurricular activities. Adams' bio on the education council's website, which was removed June 18, said he is from Newfoundland and spent time working in that province, as well as in Nunavut and Manitoba. It said he worked as the Fort Simpson high school principal before moving over to the elementary school. He was listed as the elementary school principal on the school's website sometime in 2022. CBC News obtained a copy of the letter presented to the minister and reached out to McLeod to independently confirm that she had written it. CBC also reached out to some of the parents named in the letter. One parent, Mary Masuzumi, said Adams called her to the school last year after her son, who is non-verbal, demonstrated with his hands that he was hit by someone. Masuzumi said Adams told her a teacher had backhanded her son to the floor. Later, she said, he denied ever making that statement. Rylan Hardisty-Gillis and Jerri Brenton said they have a daughter who attended the school. They ended up homeschooling her due to issues with a teacher, but registered her in a couple classes. They said they were told by Adams that their daughter could still use the school facilities and receive support from the school, which is also required under territorial legislation. But over the course of the year, their daughter wasn't allowed to participate in multiple school events and extracurricular activities. The parents said when they asked Adams about why she couldn't participate, he said he didn't know anything about the rules around homeschooled students using school facilities. Another parent, Brendan Whelly, said he was emailing Adams to ask about the plan to get a permanent teacher for the school's kindergarten class. He said getting a response from Adams about the vacant position sometimes took weeks. Whelly said Adams suddenly ended their communications, writing that he sensed "a level of hostility, threat and aggression." CBC News reviewed the email thread in question and it did not appear to include any threats or aggression. CBC emailed Adams about each individual concern raised by the parents; he did not provide a response by deadline. The Dehcho Divisional Education Council superintendent, Donna Miller Fry, told CBC in an email that she couldn't speak due to privacy concerns and confidentiality regulations. CBC News was unable to reach the DDEC's trustees for comment. CBC reached out to Cleveland earlier in the week for an interview about the situation. Sameeksha Dandriyal, a spokesperson for Cleveland, responded by email that the minister "is aware of the concerns raised and, as with all concerns expressed by residents, takes them seriously." "The minister has been engaging with partners in the education system in the Dehcho region to listen and better understand the situation," Dandriyal wrote. Late Friday afternoon, Cleveland issued a media statement announcing a series of investigations into the DDEC and the Dehcho region's DEAs. An independent investigator will review those education bodies; the government has launched a financial review of them; and the Finance department will do a human resources investigation. In that statement, Cleveland referred to a range of concerns from community members about the situation. "I understand many residents want to see action, and I share that sense of urgency," Cleveland wrote. "I also recognize that for some families—particularly Indigenous families still living with the intergenerational impacts of residential schools— these situations can be especially difficult. That's why this work must be carried out with care, fairness, and respect." In Adams' email to staff on June 17, he wrote there would be an acting principal in his place. In a Facebook post to parents, he wrote he would be "working from afar and periodically at the school."
Express Tribune
14-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Schools celebrate Punjab's culture
Punjab Culture Day was celebrated with great enthusiasm in schools and colleges across the Rawalpindi district on Sunday. Many schools presented vibrant scenes of rural life, recreating the essence of Punjab's rural villages and mansions. Students and teachers embraced the day by wearing traditional rural attire. Teachers were dressed in colourful dhotis, long kurtas, and turbans, while also bringing along the cultural specialty of Punjab the hukkah. They lit the hukkah in schools and smoked it gracefully, with some even carrying pipes. Traditional Punjabi delicacies such as green (saag), cornbread, and cold sweet lassi were also served, as teachers sat on mats to enjoy the food together, accompanied by round pillows and colourful village-style beds. Students wore traditional shalwar kameez, kurtas, and khussas, with some tying small turbans on their heads or wearing caps. Female students and teachers adorned colourful braids and traditional attire. Traditional games such as stappo, getian, pithu garam, bandar qila, gulli danda, volleyball, and kok lakh chapaki were enjoyed by the students. Quiz shows, speech competitions, and tableau performances were also part of the day's festivities. Prizes were awarded to outstanding participants. Teachers and school heads delivered lectures on Punjabi culture, and the entire event was conducted in Punjabi. Amanullah, Head of the District Education Authority, emphasised the importance of preserving Punjabi culture, noting that it is essential to promote the use of the mother tongue in homes and public spaces. Presidents of the Educators Association, Akhyan Gul and Basharat Raja, expressed their joy over the success of the day, reflecting on the memories of the past fifty years. A student, Kamil Hassan, shared his excitement about wearing a turban for the first time and playing traditional games, urging the government to promote such games once again in schools.
Express Tribune
24-02-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Public schools witness low enrolments
Private schools have once again dominated the admission process for the 2025 academic year. Despite announcements, public schools have yet to begin new admissions, and a large number of parents have already enrolled their children in nearby private schools. Smaller private institutions with fees as low as Rs1,000 have seen an influx of enrolments. Private schools are set to begin their new academic year and classes in the first week of March, while public schools are scheduled to start new classes from April 1, with new admissions beginning in March. Although banners have been put up for new admissions in government schools, the number of enrolments so far has been disappointingly low. Government schools will only begin classes for newly admitted students from April 3, which has led many parents to prefer private schools. Punjab has a total of 42,937 government schools, including 857 higher secondary schools, 8,081 high schools, 7,217 middle schools, and 26,782 primary schools. In Rawalpindi District, the number stands at 1,800. At present, around 12.1 million students are enrolled in government schools, with 700,000 children set to complete their matriculation and intermediate exams by February 28. Private schools in Punjab, numbering around 300,000, cater to nearly 20 million children, while 27 million children in the province are out of school, with many of them being street children. Efforts to bring these children into the education system have largely failed. Last year, the privatisation of government schools and the selling of 5,500 schools, along with teacher strikes and school closures, led to a decrease in student enrolment in public schools. This year, the education department's efforts to increase admissions in public schools appear to be stalling from the outset. Parents typically begin enrolling their children in February, but with the delay in public school admissions, these schools are failing to meet their targets. District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Amanullah Chhina stated that admissions in government schools have begun, and any student who applies will be admitted. He added that admissions will be conducted in two phases: the first phase will run until May 31, and the second phase will run from August 15 to October 31. Irfan Mazhar Kiani, President of the All Pakistan Private Schools and Colleges Association, shared that private schools are experiencing a surge in admissions, with annual exams already underway and new classes set to begin in March. Muhammad Shafiq Bhalwalia, General Secretary of the Punjab SES Teachers Association, stated that no serious efforts have been made to bring street children into schools, causing their numbers to grow continuously. He warned that without addressing these issues, the number of street children in Punjab could cross 30 million in the next year. He also suggested that all employees and officers from scale 1 to 20 should be made responsible for ensuring children are enrolled in government schools, or else parents will no longer consider enrolling their children in these schools within the next five years.
