Manitoba schools ordered by province to review safety rules after student grabbed by intruder

School divisions ordered to examine safety plans after a convicted sex offender entered a school and allegedly grabbed a student. Harrison shin reports.

Manitoba’s premier says changes will be made to protect students and staff in the wake of an incident involving an intruder at a Winnipeg school last week.

During a news conference Monday morning, Premier Wab Kinew said he is encouraging schools to implement “controlled access” to their buildings if they haven’t done so yet.

Kinew said the province will also work with communities and law enforcement to support the presence of school resource officers in schools as well as other security options that fit local needs.

“We are here with a simple message: Kids, you are safe at school,” the premier said. “Parents, it is safe to send your kids to school.”

“To school staff and teachers, we are going to protect you as well. And we do this because every child matters.”

Education and Early Childhood Learning Minister Tracy Schmidt also noted she has asked all school divisions in Manitoba to submit their emergency response plans for review, which will include how they control access to schools. She said the province is giving more than $500,000 to the Manitoba School Boards Association for the review.

“This incident has made us all, and especially school leaders, pause and evaluate their safety practices and policies,” she said.

Schmidt said she has spoken with the family of the victim and commended them for their bravery.

The news conference comes following an incident at Darwin School on Nov. 27, where a man allegedly snuck into the school, hid in a bathroom stall and grabbed a child.

Scott William George, 28, was charged with assault, forcible confinement and two counts of failure to comply with a prohibition regarding children. None of the charges have been proven in court.

In a weekend social media post, Kinew called the incident “horrifying.”

“No child should ever have to experience fear or harm where they learn,” the premier wrote. “Our government is here to work together with school communities to ensure every child in Manitoba is safe at school.”

Wayne Ewasko, the Progressive Conservative Party’s education critic, called Monday’s announcement “reactionary,” and a firm decision on locking school doors needed to be made.

“I think it should have been done a while ago, so that each school division and school came up with a plan on how exactly they were going to control those access points,” Ewasko said. “That plan could have been in place quite some time ago. It’s just unfortunate that this education minister and this premier just wants to wait until something actually happens.”

Ewasko, who served as education minister under the PC government, did not mandate locked doors, but said he communicated with school divisions and partners about policies that needed to be implemented.