Local News
Gray Academy shows increase in enrollment for second straight year
By BERNIE BELLAN For years now we’ve been tracking enrollment figures at both Gray Academy and the Brock Corydon Hebrew Bilingual program.
Enrollment at Gray Academy has shown a slight increase this school year – up from 468 last year to 474 this year (K-12). Enrollment in the Hebrew bilingual program at Brock Corydon has also held steady: 192 this year, compared with 193 last year.
And, while enrollment at both schools has remained relatively even in the past few years at both schools, it is interesting to note that, over the past 11 years there were two fairly significant drops in enrollment at Gray Academy: in 2014 and 2017.
In 2014 there was a drop of 90 students at Gray Academy. In our October 1, 2014 issue Myron Love referred to an explanation given by then Head of School Rory Paul for the quite large drop in enrollment that year. Here is what Myron wrote: “This year’s enrolment stands at just over 500, compared to just over 600 two years ago and 590 to start the year last fall. The decline actually began over the course of the year last year and continued throughout the summer, Paul reports. The school lost 20 students between September and June alone.
“ ‘Part of the decline in student numbers,’ Paul reports,’ is due to families leaving the city. That accounts for about 50 students.’ He notes that the families – both Winnipeg- born and recent immigrants – left for better jobs elsewhere. ‘In most cases, he observes, ‘the parents were middle management and moved because they were promoted to senior management positions.’ “
Compare that explanation with one given by current Head of School Lori Binder in 2021, when there was another fairly significant drop in enrollment that year – from 481 in 2020 to 458 in 2021. Readers may recall that only three short years ago we were in the midst of the Covid epidemic and Gray Academy had become the first school in the province to require all students age 12 and up to be fully vaccinated in order to attend school. Twenty out of the 485 students who had been registered to attend Gray Academy were subsequently pulled by their parents from the school.
But, added to that, I also had this in my report about enrollment at Gray Academy in the fall of 2021: “Perhaps of greater concern to the Jewish community might be the fact that the families of 20 different students have left Winnipeg since the end of the school year last June.”
Again, this year, in an email to us, Lori noted that another 20 students left the school this year when their families left the city.
Thus, if there should be one constant concern for our Jewish community – based on what happened both those years at Gray Academy, it should be losing families to other cities.
We can now report, however, that the trend of losing families seems to have reversed itself since 2021. Enrollment at Gray Academy has not only held steady, it has increased both the past two years –to 468 last year and to 474 this years.
In analyzing enrollment at Gray Academy this current school year, Lori Binder offered the following pieces of information:
2023-2024 Total Number of Students JK to Grade 12: 474 (compared to 468 same time last year)
The total number of new students is 78 (compared to 66 at the same time last year).
Retention of students in 2023-2024 from eligible* students returning from 2022-2023: 98%
*When we count eligible students we remove graduates (44 graduates) and students who moved with their families out of the city (20 students moved outside of Winnipeg in the summer of 2023)
New Students This Year Include:
- 38 New Students in Early Years (JK & K)
- 12 New Students that Just Arrived in Canada
- 4 from Other Cities in Canada
- 2 International Students (Brazil and Australia)
- 17 from Public Schools
- 5 from other Independent Schools
The new students above can also be viewed as follows:
38 new to Early Years (JK & K)
16 new to Elementary (Gr. 1-6)
24 new to Grades 7 – 12 (high school)
- Graduating class size is 41 for the Class of ‘24
Local News
Nakba exhbit at CMHR – you can see it right here and make your own assessment
By BERNIE BELLAN (Posted June 26, updated July 19) The Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Exhibit for Human Rights opened to the public June 27. The morning before the exhibit was set to open to the public, (it had a private opening for invited guests the evening of June 26) we received a press release from the CMHR. That press release gave a very detailed description of what was in the exhibit, along with photos (supplied by Annie Kierans of the CMHR).
There is also a link right at the beginning of the press release that will allow you to watch the same videos that anyone attending the exhibit can watch. We reprinted what was sent to us without making one edit. We leave it to you to form your own opinion as to whether the exhibit is fair in its presentation, and whether it is lacking “context” – which is an accusation that has been levelled at the exhibit’s organizers by some representatives of Jewish organizations.
We have received many emails in reaction to the exhibit. If you have an opinion and would like to see it published on this website, you can send it to jewishp@mymts.net, but please indicate whether you would be willing to have it published on this website.
Here is what we received the morning of June 26:
Winnipeg, MB — June 26, 2026 — The Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) will open a new exhibit tomorrow that explores human rights violations related to the ongoing forced displacement of Palestinian Canadians.
Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present will be on display in the Rights Today gallery on Level 5 until 2028. Featuring personal stories told through artifacts and video testimonies, the exhibit presents Palestinian Canadians reflecting on their ongoing struggle for human rights. The small exhibit reveals enduring patterns of loss and resilience, helping visitors understand more about this contemporary human rights story.
Palestinian Canadian stories are now included alongside many other stories of forced displacement and human rights violations featured in the Museum’s galleries. Each of these stories contribute to our visitors understanding of human rights and help the Museum fulfill its mandate to foster reflection and dialogue.
Exhibition highlights
Personal stories and artifacts: Experience firsthand accounts from Palestinian Canadians sharing their journeys of displacement and memory through a series of five artifacts. Cases display artifacts like property deeds, house keys, and a traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, accompanied by short videos that deepen understanding of the impacts of displacement.
Powerful artworks: In her painting Bound Together in Gaza, Malak Mattar, a Gazan artist, captures the struggles and resilience of her generation shaped by conflict. Her work pays homage to Guernica, Picasso’s powerful masterpiece depicting civilian suffering during war.
Curfews and Closures, by Rajie Cook, bears witness to life under military occupation during the 2000–2005 Palestinian uprising, when curfews and closures were expanded and further limited basic rights and freedoms.
Cultural heritage: Discover traditional Palestinian embroidery called tatreez. Tatreez motifs and colours are tied to place, family history and regional identity. Patterns are associated with particular towns, villages or areas of Palestine. In this way, tatreez is a form of storytelling: a way of preserving memory, sustaining identity and expressing resilience across displacement and exile.
Poetry and reflection: Engage with Mahmoud Darwish’s evocative verses, inspiring personal reflection on exile, voice, and responsibility. Visitors can take a card containing Darwish’s poem and add a personal note, fostering ongoing dialogue beyond the exhibit.
Contemporary context: Witness striking images of current events in Gaza and the West Bank, connecting past displacement to ongoing struggles.
Quotes:
“No force can silence the truth we carry. Growing up in Canada, my children lived the Nakba through our stories. And now we watch it happen again, live, on our phones. When I see the images coming out of Gaza, I am not watching the news. I am watching my history repeat itself.” -Fouad Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian featured in the exhibit
“We developed this exhibit with a clear awareness that Palestinian Canadian voices have too often been marginalized, silenced or spoken over — and that anti-Palestinian racism affects whose stories are heard and whose suffering is recognized. That is why we intentionally centred Palestinian Canadian voices throughout the exhibit.” -Isabelle Masson, Curator of Palestine Uprooted
“Human rights matter precisely when they are inconvenient, when the question of who deserves the dignity of having their rights recognized is genuinely contested. These are the moments where having a national museum for human rights is most important.
There are people who believe this exhibit should not exist in its current form. There are people who believe it should have existed sooner. There are people who will visit this exhibit and feel that it does not say enough, and others who will feel it says too much.
We have listened to every one of these voices. We have reflected. And we have renewed our resolve to continue the difficult, sometimes contested, and often controversial work of building understanding about human rights. We are a museum grounded in Canada’s human rights framework, whose mandate requires us to bear witness to the full complexity of the human story. We are proud to open this exhibit because the story it tells will help achieve that mandate, and because this story belongs in the collective memory of Canadians.”
- – Isha Khan, CEO
Local News
A photo that’s being circulated on the internet about me
For those of you not familiar with nutjob Michael Kalo – the psycho who created the notorious “$hitler’s List” years ago and the same psycho who went after Ben Carr, well – now he’s obviously taken a strong disliking to the stance I’ve taken on the Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (You can read elsewhere on this website how I simply posted the entire exhibit as it is – and asked readers to form their own opinions.)
Kalo likes to send out emails to various individual using phony names – such as Frank Ostrowski. When people ask me (or asked Ben Carr) why we don’t take action against him, my answer is: What’s the use? He only basks in the attention.
So Michael – enjoy the attention you’re receiving. I know how much of an embarrassment you are to your wonderfully talented daughters.
Local News
Ami Hassan returning as owner of Falafel Place
By BERNIE BELLAN In a surprise move – and after more than a six-year absence as owner of Falafel Place (Corydon at Wilton) the legendary Ami Hassan has decided to return as owner of one of Winnipeg’s most famous eateries.
Long known for his sometimes irreverent attitude to his customers, e.g., “If you’re finished, get out!”, Ami decided to return to running Falafel Place after having retired years ago (or so he thought) from running the Corydon Avenue restaurant.
We asked Ami whether he’ll be sending a special invitation to Julia Roberts to come visit him at Falafel Place. He asked again: “Who’s Julia Roberts?” (Just kidding – he really does know how Julia Roberts is.) Read the story how Ami told her to leave the restaurant and come back later at Julia Roberts turned away from Falafel Place
Ami did note that when customers saw him inside the restaurant one recent day as he was getting it ready for the reopening Monday, August 10, over 20 of them came in asking him if he was open already.
We asked Ami whether the menu will be the same as it was when he last ran the place and he said everything will be the same.
Falafel Place will be open 7 days a week from 7 am – 2 pm. Remember, if you’re finished – get out!
