I am not a person who likes to fight my battles in public, but I feel the much promised, but never received, Montague Intermediate School expansion has never received the commitment from government it deserves.
Although we have been told numerous times over the past three years that it is a “priority”, it is still being delayed. There seems to be a great disparity between our schools in PEI. Our children at MIS should have the same advantages as the other intermediate schools within the Eastern School District.
More than 130 students participate in music at our school. Provincial Fire Codes allow for a maximum of 50, which in essence means we can never have all our band practice at the same time. As numbers grow and students transfer from other schools for instrumental music, it will become increasingly difficult to provide quality programming. The current music room is a converted “multi-purpose” room with standard ceiling height and sound panels sporadically attached to the brick walls. It provides less than an ideal space to actually play an instrument plus there are safety concerns regarding inappropriate decibel levels. 
The Industrial Arts Lab is located in a decommissioned building, the former Montague Regional High School. Locks have been changed to limit access to the building, and halls have been boarded up, but vandals continue to break in to create mischief and cause damage. Many items have also been stolen from the Industrial Arts Lab and the Alternative Education classroom located beside the lab. Many windows and doors have been covered with boards and graffiti has been spray painted on exterior walls. It was not a part of the “better education” I was promised for my child when his former “small school” was closed. The Industrial Arts teacher is also segregated from the main school, which presents a major safety concern if a situation of a serious nature were to occur for him, or any of the students under his care.
All I want is fair and equitable treatment for my child. I will not accept unsafe conditions for learning. I was told that the closure of my son’s small school and all the others, would mean better programming and enhanced educational opportunities, but all I’m seeing are compromises and excuses. This makes me feel that there is a rural/urban divide where my child is not receiving the same attention as other intermediate schools in the district, all of which by the way, are located in the Charlottetown area. 
Respectfully, 
Dianne McSweeney
Albion Road