Trailer park in Ashkelon
צילום: צפריר אביוב
No school for Gaza kids
Only 90 Gaza families have signed up for school in the Ashkelon region, but it may not matter: A dispute between parents, principal threatens to put off opening of school year next Thursday
First no home, now no school? That's the situation facing hundreds of former Gush Katif kids, just eight days before the school year is due to begin next Thursday.
One of the two schools meant to take in the Gaza evacuees, the regional elementary school at Kibbutz Nitzanim, is embroiled in a protracted dispute between the parents' committee and principal Rachel Sabag, who resigned Tuesday after two years on the job.
Parents claim Sabag was ineffective, and have lodged formal complaints to the Knesset Education Committee and the State Comptroller's Office.
They also say that education ministry officials joined their call for the principal to quit.
David Mintzor, the head of the Ashkelon region teachers union, said the resignation would force the elementary school at Kibbutz Nitzanim, one of two schools in the area planning to take in evacuee children, to delay the opening of the school year.
As a result of the move, children slated to begin school at Nitzanim next week will remain at their trailer park at Nitzan.
Not signing up
According to statistics from the Ministry of Education, only 90 students, out of several hundred school-age evacuees, have registered for school.
Ministry officials attribute the lack of registration to parental protests against the government.
"(They are angry) at the establishment, and the Ministry of Education is part of the establishment," said Zeev Alber, the Ministry's regional inspector.
"But I can't believe parents will stop their kids from starting school. I'm confident they'll sign them up this week," he said.
