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Two local school divisions are cautioning their parents over an apparent cybersecurity event with their Student Information System provider PowerSchool.
Both Mountainview and Swan Valley School Divisions say the event took place in late December and affected customers across Canada and the U.S.
They add some PowerSchool data was accessed during this cybersecurity event, and that the company is working with cybersecurity experts to resolve the situation.
The school divisions say that PowerSchool has assured them that the accessed data has been deleted and they are confident that the data was not copied or uploaded elsewhere.
They emphasized that PowerSchool, not the divisions, was the target of the incident.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
The Chief of the Manitoba First Nations Police Service has lost his home and human remains were located.
On January 8 at 4:50 a.m., Portage la Prairie RCMP responded to a report of a structure fire at a residence off of Road 30 W, in the RM of Portage la Prairie, located north of High Bluff. The residence was confirmed as belonging to Doug Palson, Chief of Police for the Manitoba First Nations Police Service.
Once the fire was extinguished, investigators discovered human remains in the home, the identity of the deceased has yet to be confirmed.
The cause of fire remains under investigation.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
Premier Wab Kinew recently sat down with newly sworn-in North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong to discuss trade and economic opportunities.
Discussions included the important role provinces and territories have in strengthening and protecting the Canada-U.S. relationship including agriculture, tourism, the addictions crisis and taking action at a local level on border security.
Kinew noted that he and Armstong first met while the governor was a congressman during a Manitoba trade mission to Washington, D.C. last spring.
North Dakota and Manitoba have had a historic relationship, working together to promote agricultural connections, trade partnerships, energy supply, tourism and business opportunities.
Two-way trade between the province and state totals more than $1.6 billion annually and supports 5,700 North Dakota jobs, making it one of the closest trade partnerships in the U.S. and one of Manitoba’s most important export destinations.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
Individuals interested in attending a pre-budget meeting for Turtle River School Division are encouraged to pre-register for the event.
It will take place January 21st at McCreary School beginning at 7:30.
Key issues affecting the school division will be presented and discussed during this meeting.
The deadline to pre-register for this meeting is Monday at noon.
You can find a QR code to register for that meeting in the Community Calendar portion of our website.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
Manitobans will soon be paying more for basic automobile insurance.
The Public Utilities Board has ordered an overall increase of 5.7 per cent for basic rates as of April 1, although the exact increase will vary by the type of vehicle, a driver's record and other factors.
The increase follows decreases that totalled more than 15 per cent over the last five years, along with rebates at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when fewer people were commuting.
MPI says this year's increase will work out to about $50 for the average passenger vehicle.
The annual cost of a driver's licence is also increasing, by $10.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
It is an annual event that updates producers with the latest info coming to Roblin tomorrow.
Yesterday, it began in Ericksdale. Today, it's in Austin.
Pam Iwanchysko, a Livestock and Forage Specialist with the Province is excited to bring Manitoba Beef and Forage Days to Roblin next!
"Yup, there's a bit of room, we've had some registrations this morning already. If you are interested, please give us a call to let us know and we can try and fit you in. I don't think we're going to turn anyone away"
The Roblin event features a few speakers specific to the location, including Greg Penner from the UofS who will discuss Optimizing Greenfeed and silage Production with Annual Crops and James Frey from Manitoba Agriculture Who Will Highlight a recent forage crop called Teff for Forage and Dual Purposes.
Iwanchysko notes that Ericksdale was a packed house, nearing standing room only. She encourages you to register ahead for the Roblin event if you plan on attending.
"show up at 10 am, we'll be starting our agenda at that time. it goes through to 3:30 I believe. Yeah, we have a jam-packed full day, we've got lots of displays coming and agri-business, and there will be lots to see and do there."
To register for the Roblin event, you can call 204 648 3965. Registration will also be available at the door.
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- Contributed by Michael Brossart
With Canada's Prime Minister Stepping down, we reached out to our local member of parliament for a chat.
Dauphin, Swan River, Neepawa MP Dan Mazier is feeling some tempered excitement. He thinks an election is nearing, but notes that prorogued parliament stretches this process.
"It stops all the legislative process. so, on the bright side, they can't introduce any spending bills, budget bills, or anything like that, extra spending. The house, what happens, it goes into a kind of "Maintenance Mode". Right now, when they prorogue, all they can do is run government."
Mazier expressed some anticipation of an election coming soon, but the lack of a liberal leader, and the mess that causes, will push that process back.
This process is slated to last until March 24th, and we'll keep in touch with MP Mazier for updates on this developing situation
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- Contributed by Michael Brossart
The Manitoba Government has established a new regulatory system for Manitoba teachers.
Proposed by the PC government this registry will allow the public to access a list showing whether teachers have had any suspensions or cancellations on their teaching certificate.
The NDP government also says a new system for investigating complaints against Manitoba teachers is now in place.
An independent commissioner leads the review process and cases can be referred to a hearing panel of teachers, public members, and representatives nominated by the Manitoba School Boards Association.
Tracy Schmidt, the minister of education and early childhood learning, says the change will ensure reviews are done reliably and transparently.
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- Contributed by Michael Brossart
The Executive Director of the Parkland Chamber of Commerce says 2024 saw their organization ramp up their work in creating more supports and systems for businesses across the Parkland region.
Stephen Chychota says that work started on a great note early in the year with the introduction of the Immigrate Parkland program.
"We really saw some tremendous results out of that, and not knowing exactly where we were going with that, you have these hopes and dreams, and I think we had some learning along the way, and now we have shown that success. And, the province has told us to run with it and do what we got to do."
Chychota adds they hope to further expand that program in 2025 and see how much further it can go.
Other highlights of the year included their Lunch & Learn series, Street Fair to kick off CNUF weekend, and their international trip to Costa Rica - which saw a larger attendance than their original international trip in 2023.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
Dauphin emergency services responded this morning to an incident at 7-11 on Main Street, after a vehicle broke the front windows.
Around 10 AM, a vehicle approached the convenience store, and broke out 2 of the Main street-facing windows.
It is currently unknown if there were any injuries.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
Prairie Mountain Health has announced that newly trained institutional safety officers have begun patrolling Brandon Regional Health Centre.
A formal ‘graduation ceremony’ for the 16 officers and one supervisor who were enrolled in the training program was held in Brandon on January 3.
A release from PMH says the ISO’s are licensed as Peace Officers and, in health-care environments, have additional training in crisis intervention and de-escalation techniques, search and investigative skills, evidence collecting and report writing.
They also have training which allows them to accept a mental health patient from the police and then secure and protect them until seen by healthcare professionals.
Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara says the BRHC ISO program, the first outside the city of Winnipeg, will enhance the health centre’s ability to keep staff, patients and visitors safe
Prairie Mountain Health CEO Treena Slate says the addition of ISOs fills a critical role in upholding the highest standards of safety and accountability within PMH facilities.
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- Contributed by Jeff Henson
