A hectic pre-school year at Gustavia's school group

Tomorrow, Gustavia's schoolchildren will return to their classrooms. However, it's not certain that all of them will have their own teacher. In fact, at the pre-commencement meeting on Friday, the teaching staff learned that three posts remain vacant. This means that three classes are without a teacher. This news immediately triggered a wave of indignation among parents and exasperation among the teaching staff.

A mobilization has been announced for tomorrow, Monday September¹, the first day of school, at 7.50 a.m. in front of the school. At 2 p.m., an official visit to the school complex by Prefect Cyrille Le Vély and his chief of staff, Marie-Hildegarde Chauveau, accompanied by the President of the Collectivité territoriale, Xavier Lédée, has been scheduled for several days.

Yesterday, Saturday August 30, Saint-Barthélemy's senator Micheline Jacques clarified the situation. Via an online publication, the parliamentarian said she had spoken with the vice-rector, Harry Christophe, and wrote: "In the first place, particularly given the housing difficulties we are experiencing, most teachers are unwilling or unable to move to Saint-Barthélemy. In addition, the rules of the Education Nationale do not allow us to consider appointing contract teachers to positions not filled before September 1 of this year. The rector assures me that contract teachers should be appointed so that each class has a teacher from September 1 or 2.

It's clear that the rules for assignment no longer correspond to the reality and constraints of Saint-Barthélemy. I'm doing everything I can to ensure that the State adapts them. Last year, every class was covered, and everything is being done to ensure that this will be the case again this year.

At the same time, Francius Matignon, second vice-president of the Collectivité territoriale, in charge of education, also published an online statement on Saturday. Referring to the Gustavia school group, the elected official stated: "The three posts that remained unassigned will be filled for the start of the new school year. The delay is due to necessary verifications, in particular for two candidates who already hold positions in other schools. To date, the Vice-Rector confirmed to me this morning that the contracts are being drawn up and that everything necessary has been done.