Category: Daily News

Every year about 500 people enroll as students with South East Adult Education, in one of 22 classrooms throughout south east New Brunswick, including a full-time classroom based at the Sackville Curling Club.

Retired Mount Allison professor John Read has been president of the organization for about 18 years, and he stopped by CHMA studios to talk a bit about what the group does and why it matters:

There’s a “horrible statistic” that John Read says he doesn’t even like to mention, that about half the adult population of New Brunswick could do with some improvement in their literacy and numeracy skills. “This is becoming more and more important as there now are fewer jobs where you really don’t specifically need these skills,” says Read.

Students with South East Adult Education range from those looking to get their high school equivalency (which in Canada recently changed from the GED to the CAEC, Canadian Adult Education Credential), to those hoping to upgrade or refresh their skills in reading, writing, math or computers.

“Any student can come in any time, and they can come for five hours a week or 30 hours a week, just depending on their circumstances,” says Read. “My favourite word really is flexibility. So just come when you’re ready… and try and progress at your rate.”

The program needs to be flexible, because adult lives are complicated.… Continue

With the provincial election approaching this fall, CHMA called up Mount Allison political science professor Dr. Mario Levesque to talk about the new riding of Tantramar and get his take on how the vote may play out here.

To hear the full interview, click below:

Premier Blaine Higgs is expected to drop the writ on September 19, triggering an October 21 election. But Higgs could do so earlier, triggering an election about four weeks later. Levesque sounds doubtful of that happening at this point. “I don’t see any advantage at all if he was going to call it earlier,” says Levesque, unless it were early enough to hamper the student vote.

An early September election “would create confusion among students,” says Levesque, which in turn “may sway some ridings that have a university, like ours right here in Tantramar, but also David Coon’s riding in Fredericton, and there’s the one riding in Saint John.”

Though he’s doubtful there’s any advantage, he also says he would not necessarily be surprised if Premier Higgs did drop the writ early. “He’s quirky that way sometimes,” says Levesque. “So, it could happen, but if the opposition parties aren’t ready by now, they’re never going to be ready. So I don’t see any real advantage overall.”

Incumbent advantage

Levesque says that current Memramcook-Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton has a direct advantage heading into the campaign, as the twice elected incumbent, who is “well rooted” in the riding and “well versed” on the issues.… Continue

For years the Southeast Regional Service Commission, as ECO 360, has been handling the disposal of the region’s garbage, compost, and recycling. But until now, the collection of all that waste has been handled by individual municipalities.

That will change in February of next year, when the commisson will take over collection of blue, green and clear bags throughout the southeast region.

At a special meeting on August 15, Tantramar council voted to approve an agreement with the commission, to allow them to proceed with contracts for collection in 2025.

Tantramar’s public works director Jon Eppell told council that the province’s forced amalgamation of municipalities in 2023, as well as major cost increases in the garbage collection industry, precipitated the move to have the commission take on the role.

After amalgamation in January 2023, the municipality found itself with multiple waste collection contracts, and mounting costs. Last year’s budget saw a 33.6% increase in collection costs, and a similar hike was in the cards for 2025. “A regional solution was very desirable,” Eppell told council on August 15. “It was a means by which we could create more attractive packages for waste collection and thereby minimize the cost… So we approached Southeast Regional Service Commission, and they expressed a willingness to take it on.”

The commission is setting up contracts in two zones, with Tantramar part of a zone along with Shediac, Cap-Acadie, Strait Shores, and Memramcook.… Continue