Writings on the Wall at 100 Mile Elementary

Condemnation

I am old enough to recall two decades ago, when 100 Mile Elementary was slated to be replaced. The building, essentially having outlived it’s life span, was considered a high priority as unfit for a safe educational experience for children.

Here we are some 20 years later, children are still attending the same building for Elementary studies in 100 Mile.

Interestingly, the washrooms have received a major overhaul. With every stall being it’s own contained bathroom. The stalls are all uniform except for the colour of the door. On each and every single door on the bank of doors hangs a sign. There was also an adult helping children figure out the situation.

Now, before you throw me through the buzz saw for even posting a picture of the bathroom stall signs, let me remind you this article isn’t ABOUT the sign, the sign is just the writing on the wall.

A sign that has a toilet on it would be the same if not better for the mental well-being of children. Why create this confusion and complexity for young people who are there, in theory, for education? Just throw a toilet sign on the door and let them figure it out. Children are quite adept at learning if we let them be, and that includes letting them be themselves. All we have to do is get out of the way.

Anyhow the picture circulated on Facebook and received over 100 comments from the community. All of the comments indicated people thought the whole scene was an absurd mind game. Only one woman (who doesn’t live here or have children in school) thought that the sign was the children’s saviour and that everyone else who commented was a bigot. Everyone else generally agreed “put up a toilet symbol and let the kids figure it out”.

So why bring up the sign? What does that have to do with the fact that the building was slated to be replaced almost 20 years ago? Is the sign perhaps the “writing on the wall” that the School System has failed? What other conclusion can be made when the priority of the School District is to focus on bathroom Reno’s and Absurd signage in a building that was basically deemed unfit decades ago? My toxicity “spider senses” went off the second I stepped into the hallway and the gymnasium was especially noxious.

The School District is obsessed with feelings of safety, yet ignores the actual, real, health and safety of children.

I reached out to the School District on September 28th. I phone everyone in the Captial & Transportation Department. No answer. So I proceeded to phone everyone in the Finance Dept. No answer. I phoned the main-line. Not a single person to answer a phone call.

At time of publish we have yet to hear from the School District about the state of the Elementary building and educational priorities in 100 Mile House.

The writing is on the wall though. Is this the evidence we need to consider it thoroughly failed?