Twenty-four Grades 8 to 10 students from F.H. Collins Secondary School staged a protest inside the legislative assembly Tuesday afternoon to emphasize the importance of their school gym.

"The F.H. gym is the heart of our school, and if the government politicians have any heart, then they won't make us go years without having another gym,” said Tristan Sparks, a Grade 10 student.

Based on current plans, Sparks noted, the building won't have a gym again until he's out of school.

"I don't think that's very fair,” he said.

"F.H. sports teams are doing really well right now, and they only plan to give us half of the flexi-hall for four hours a week, and we have six volleyball teams to train, six basketball teams to train and that is less than 45 minutes for each team a week, which is not adequate.

"We wanted to be here today just to prove a point that we're here and we don't agree with what they're doing for us. They say they've listened to us, but there have been no changes yet since the (Nov. 22) open house, so we just wanted to make our voices heard,” Sparks said.

Grade 8 student Pascale Halliday added that even though the high schoolers aren't old enough to vote, that shouldn't discount their opinions.

"The gym really is important to us; if you go into our school anytime at lunch, you will see hundreds of kids playing in our gym, and participating, making new friends and enjoying their high school,” she said.

The students, who were seated in the public gallery during question period, rose, standing until Speaker David Laxton interrupted proceedings and asked them to sit down.

"If you're worried about your democratic right to protest and everything else, it's not in here,” the Speaker told them.

"It's outside. The members who are here were elected, and they're here to represent everybody in the Yukon, and this is their opportunity to speak and do their job.”

The students rose once more and proceeded to run down and then up the stairs of the public gallery before exiting the legislature.

Laxton addressed them a second time, saying, "Order, please. The students in the gallery are really trying my patience.

"I don't know what your purpose is, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Please come again when you can follow the rules of the house.

"If you'd like to discuss it with me at another time, please feel free to come to my office.”

Construction plans for the new school indicate F.H. could be without a gymnasium for 2 1/2 years.

Recently, the government announced it's looking into options for a temporary structure, but it's limited the budget to $180,000 – including heating costs.

A previous estimate for a tent alone was listed at $1.3 million.

Education Minister Scott Kent said in an interview today that both he and Public Works Minister Wade Istchenko met with the students before question period in the lobby of the government building to give them an update on the situation.

"I certainly understand the concerns that the students and many of the parents have with respect to the loss of the gym for an extended period of time, and that's why we're working on options for a temporary structure on site,” said Kent.

If a temporary structure is determined to be viable, it wouldn't be constructed until the fall of 2013, leaving students without a gym for part of the spring and summer.

Construction of the temporary facility would be delayed due to the need for site preparation and having to wait for the ground to thaw, Kent said.

The minister also noted that students, parents and school staff will have to choose ultimately between a temporary structure and the other community activity options that have been raised, including trips to Mt. Sima and Mt. McIntyre.

"Obviously, to be responsible to Yukon taxpayers, we need to make sure that resources as spent in a fiscally responsible manner,” he said.

Kent noted that the government has yet to receive a successful bid for the project that falls within the $55 million-cost parameters, the key next step in the project. The tender will close in January.

With all the concern and focus on the gym, Kent wanted to remind the public of the positive aspects of this project.

"We're going to end up with a facility there that the entire territory can be proud of and will be available to adapt to different learning styles and teaching methods over the next 60 years,” he said.

The current school has lasted just under 50 years.