In a letter to parents this week, founder Tim Jones said the decision was made “with a heavy heart” and all deposits would be refunded in full. The K-8 school in Rockwood Park had between 50 and 70 students. The school was founded in 2012 and featured traditional subjects such as math, literacy, science, social studies, art and music in a predominantly outdoor environment. The name, Tír na nÓg, refers to a mystical land in Gaelic mythology.
“Unique” programming is threatened
Jones’ letter to parents said it was “not feasible” for the school to move forward under the early learning and child care agreement the province signed with the federal government, which aims to make child care more affordable for New Brunswickers. Tír na nÓg called the deal a “positive step” but said the school’s structure and “unique programming” did not match the terms of the deal, which will include fee caps. Forest School founder Tim Jones said the Forest School’s unique programming didn’t fit the requirements of a federal-provincial early education agreement. (Julia White/CBC) A designation under the agreement would require an increase in the teacher-student ratio that would “jeopardize the very foundation on which we built our school,” the letter said. Jones declined to speak with the CBC, saying in an email “our focus will remain on promoting and lobbying for outdoor education for all and the benefits for our children.” Tuition at Tír na nÓg ranged between $895 and $1,295 a month, according to parents. In a statement, the Department for Education said centers that do not want to participate in the setting scheme can “set their own parent fees to meet their business needs”. Non-designated learning centers have also been provided additional funding to support teacher recruitment and retention through increased salary caps, the department said.
Kids, parents shocked
Vaughn MacVicar, 11, started at Tír na nÓg Forest School in Year 3 and was due to start Year 7 in September. “It was the best,” he said. “It really brought out the best in me.” Eleven-year-old Vaughn MacVicar said building and helping with heavy outdoor work at school helped calm him down. (Submitted by Jason Steeves) McVicar, who lost his father in 2016, has ADHD that “makes learning in a public school system much more difficult,” said his stepfather, Jason Steves. “He was kind of behind his peers. By the time he finished 2nd grade, he couldn’t even write a complete sentence.” By Christmas, in his first year at Tír na nÓg, “he wasn’t just writing sentences, he was completing cartoon sketches and he had really thrived in an environment that was a little less structured,” Steeves said. Vaughn MacVicar, 11, has attended the school since he was in the 3rd grade. He wanted to thank all his teachers and classmates. (Submitted by Jason Steeves) Jenn Cyr, whose daughter and son just finished 5th and 2nd grade and whose daughter has type 1 diabetes, said the school went above and beyond to meet their children’s medical needs. “It’s easier to approach the school and the teachers,” he said. “Feedback is instant, you don’t have to set up a meeting. They’re really available. There were opportunities to explore and see the projects they were working on.” Student Becca Cyr, who has type 1 diabetes, attended the school for six years. Her mother, Jenn Cyr, says the school served the students’ learning and medical needs exceptionally well. (Submitted by Jenn Cyr ) “We were shocked, completely devastated,” said Dan Dutton, whose son Jacob, 7, was set to start Grade 1 in September. “I really don’t know what we’re going to do.” Jacob, who suffers from ADHD and autism, “really blossomed” in the school’s forest environment after struggling at public school. “I don’t know anything about homeschooling or homeschooling, and I don’t have the expertise to vet homeschool teachers,” Dutton said. “So it’s kind of a huge challenge to fall into your lap three weeks before school starts.” Jenn Cyr’s son Joey, who has attended the school for five years, climbed a tree on his last day of 2nd grade. (Submitted by Jenn Cyr)
Looking for options
Erin Schryer, president and CEO of Origins Natural Learning Childcare and Woods Early Education Corp. in Quispamsis, said about a dozen families contacted her about placements at her education centers after Tír na nÓg’s closure was announced to parents on Sunday. “The childcare is certainly inadequate and so I understand the stress it unexpectedly causes families,” she said. Schryer agreed that the Canada-New Brunswick agreement “changes the landscape of early learning and child care in New Brunswick.” When fees are cut, operators lose “the ability to generate revenue to afford the things that we think are important to our centers. It really, like a lot of things, comes down to money,” he said. Dr. Erin Schryer, president and CEO of Origins Natural Learning Childcare and Woods Early Education Corp., says she has received at least a dozen inquiries from parents since Tír na nÓg Forest School announced its decision. (Brian Chisholm/CBC News) “We have expressed concern about the pace at which things are happening, that we are concerned that there has been little to no consultation with the operators,” he said. The closure, he said, is an unintended but real consequence of “trying to impose a system without consultation, without flexibility”. Dutton reiterated that the public school system must accommodate different types of learning. That there are enough children struggling to populate an entire alternative school is “indicative of an unmet need.” MacVicar, pictured in winter at the forest school, says he is “not the type of person” to cry but will miss his friends and teachers. (Submitted by Jason Steeves) It’s the versatility that kids like Vaughn MacVicar will miss with the loss of Forest School. He has a message for the teachers and children he met in Tír na nÓg. “Thank you,” he said. “It was a good course. “I’m not the type of person who would necessarily cry or like, [be] gloomy because of him. But it’s very hard to know that I won’t be able to go there again.”
