It Didn't Have to Be Like This

This is the third and possibly final instalment to a series of posts called "Striking Thoughts” which are my reflections during the Alberta Teacher Strike of 2025. (You can find the previous posts here: Stuck in the Middle and Political Miscalculations.) After writing the first two posts I re-read something I wrote five years ago which led me to ponder what might have been. What might the negotiations between the ATA and the UCP government have looked like if only someone had the courage to propose renewal of the relationship? 

Five years ago I wrote a letter to then-premier Jason Kenney. In it I made an offer to assist him in rebuilding and resetting the relationship between the Ministry of Education and the ATA. I thought he would read the letter as Mr. Kenney and I do know each other personally and, I think, would have considered each other to be friends. 

To be clear, if I were making a proposal to Premier Smith I would write something quite different. As Mr. Kenney and I are both Christians, I did make reference to scripture and sought to follow the Biblical precepts of speaking the truth in love and iron sharpening iron. I do not know if Ms. Smith has any knowledge of the Bible or if her worldview can be described as Christian, so a 2025 version of this letter would take a very different approach. 

As the letter itself sets forth, my proposal is presumptuous; perhaps preposterous. It is entirely likely that five years ago both sides would have rejected my proposal to bring peace to the relationship between the ATA and the UCP Government. Both sides would have viewed me suspiciously due to my membership in the opposing organization. The fact that I am a member of both, and know the players on both sides of the table, make me both the best and the worst person to assume the role of peacemaker. 

Mr. Kenney did not respond to my proposal. Perhaps his non-answer is an answer of sorts. Today, as we await the government action to send teachers back to work, I am left to wonder what might have been. What would our situation be like today if Mr. Kenney had taken me up on my suggestion to establish a “Premier’s Council for Public Education.”

Here is the Letter:

November 14, 2020

Dear Premier Kenney

I have a proposal to make.

During the past few months I have heard in two very different and separate churches, sermons on the second chapter of Nehemiah. Since sermons on Nehemiah tend to be a little bit rare, this fact alone got my attention.

As the passage opens, Nehemiah, the cupbearer for the king, is sad. The king notices this and asks why. Nehemiah related to the king the burden that he was carrying; that Jerusalem was in ruins. The king asked him, “What is it you want?”

After a quick prayer, Nehemiah responded with a detailed plan.

This was a gutsy move. After all, Nehemiah was just a cupbearer. It was incredibly presumptuous for him to lay out a plan before the king.

One central point of both sermons was that sometimes the burdens that you carry reveal a calling. The burden might be a divine burden. So go for it, be presumptuous, and pitch your plan to the king. In this case, I am presumptuously pitching my plan to you, the Premier of Alberta. Here it is.

The Burden

The relationship between teachers and the government lies in ruins. Perhaps the broken relationship is better described as the one between the UCP and the ATA. I happen to be a member in good standing of both. There is plenty of reason to be pessimistic about having any hope for this relationship. While neither side is likely to acknowledge hating the other, the relationship appears to be wholly adversarial.

The Hope

I presume that people in education and in politics normally enter these fields for good and noble reasons. My hope is not for some sort of kumbaya moment where we agree about everything, or anything for that matter. The goal is simply to build some respect, stop the war of words, strive to understand one another, and build a foundation for a conversation. If there is any common ground between us, we have no access to it along the paths that we are now on. I have full confidence that we can find a path toward moving our hard conversations out of the public eye in various social media, and into rooms where we can speak freely and respectfully without fomenting unrest in our separate support communities.

The Plan

I propose that you charge me with the responsibility to establish a “Premier’s Council for Public Education.” This plan will include but not be limited to the following:

• That the ATA and the Ministry of Education sit at a table with me in equal numbers 

• I suggest that the ATA determines how many representatives they would like to send, with some reasonable limit imposed, and the Ministry of Education matches that number 

• That the purposes are stated clearly 

• To restart the relationship 

• To discourage being offensive or offended 

• To understand our disagreements 

• To disagree better 

• To acknowledge the legitimacy of each other's positions 

• To set aside animosity 

• To refrain from complaining about matters which can bog down the discussion 

• To cue up future hard conversations 

• To focus on the future of the relationship 

• To state clearly the things we each hope to accomplish 

• To refrain from ultimatums, conditions, and presentation of deal-breakers 

• To refrain, for now, from proposing legislative change 

• Demonstrate that the Premier cares about this relationship 

• That my role will be 

• To act as a member in good standing of both the ATA and the UCP 

• Not partial to either stakeholder group (or partial to both) 

• To exercise the authority of the office of the Premier while in no way holding any authority of any political party 

• Promote transparency of all concerned 

• To disallow name-calling and all disrespectful discourse 

• An employee seconded from Wild Rose School Division (my employer) by the Premier to convene this council.

 

• For consideration 

• Add representation of the College of Alberta School Superintendents, Alberta School Boards Association, the Alberta School Councils Association as this becomes helpful. 

• Appoint a co-chair or special adviser who specializes in relationships and who has credibility in education circles. (I can think of a few candidates)

Admittedly, this plan will be seen as naive by stakeholders and onlookers alike. It is equally naive to ignore that there is a war of words going on, and few who can claim innocence. I believe this will be an expression of a desire to give peace a chance. And so, Mr. Kenney, I humbly request that you give this proposal your full consideration.

Sincerely,

Rob Duiker

In Conclusion 

I am not sure of the state of my relationship with Mr. Kenney today. Maybe this letter ticked him off. I also do not know of the state of my relationship with the leadership of the ATA. I suppose I have failed to be a very good soldier for either. I had hoped that Premier Smith would change things.

If she happens to see this post my offer to lead a Premier's Council for Education still stands. Somebody has to stand up courageously and declare that we have all failed, but that today we hope to seek a new start. I hope it’s not too late. It might be. There are a lot of angry teachers and conservatives out there.

However, I believe that there are a lot of teachers and a lot of conservatives who quietly contend that they want to work things out. The quiet voices have begun to become audible. Hopefully the premier will take pains to listen beyond the louder voices to hear the hearts of those who desire reasonable discourse, quiet courage, loving productive classrooms, the best education system in the world, and labour peace.