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$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, February 3, 2011
Volume 27 No. 5
HEALTH - Pg. 14Blyth native beginsmonthly health column TURBINES - Pg. 18 Capital Power presentsto ACW CouncilSPORTS- Pg. 9Ironmen break losingstreak with two winsPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK:
School transition meeting focuses on bright side
Closure dates set
for local schools
March of the haggis
It wouldn’t be Robbie Burns Day without the haggis, which was brought out at the Brussels
Legion on Saturday night by Roger McHardy, led by Mattan Jones, left, and Jamie Mitchell.
The annual celebration, presented by the Melville Presbyterian Church, features highland
dancing, food, music and of course the reading of the Robbie Burns classic, “Address to a
Haggis”. (Vicky Bremner photo)
A special meeting was held at East
Wawanosh Public School on Jan. 27
to address issues that will arise in the
building of a new public school in
Wingham.
Headed by Steve Coultes, the
meeting featured presentations by
former principal Frank Stretton and
Scott and Jill Taylor, a couple who
recently experienced the closing and
opening of public schools in St.
Marys.
The meeting, which was attended
by parents and no one higher than a
principal in the Avon Maitland
District School Board, had a
decidedly positive spin on it.
“There should be no question
about the closure of the five schools
in Northern Huron County,” Coultes
said early in the meeting. “We need
to accept that and begin to move
forward and plan for the future.”
Coultes stated that there are things
that parents can do to affect the way
the transition happens, but there are
also things that parents won’t be able
to change.
The planning and construction of
the facility, for example, and the
flow of finances will not be things
that parent-groups or transition
groups can affect.
The selection of staff, movement
of supplies and equipment, and the
setting of roles and responsibilities
for community and transition groups
are also decisions that the board will
make.
“We can help,” Coultes said. “We
can recommend a suitable [school]
name [and] school team name and
colours [to the board of trustees].”
Coultes went on to state that
parents could assist in the
development of orientation
programs for the new school, and
assist in celebration ceremonies for
the closing of current schools and
the opening of the new school.
“You can identify, discuss and
make recommendations about the
new school and transition program
to the board of trustees,” he said.
“We can also fundraise for things for
the school.”
Coultes, a former classmate of
Scott Taylor, explained that many
things that he would expect to be
included in a school wouldn’t be,
and that parents and community
groups would need to band together
to make sure those things are
provided.
Stretton explained that, regardless
of the school build date, students
would be getting moved for the
2012-2013 school year.
He explained that the school board
had released a contingency plan for
the new school not being built by
that time that would see students
moved into separate buildings. For
more information on the plan, see
page one.
Scott and Jill said their experience
of having two schools closed in their
town and another one opened isn’t
similar to the problems faced by
Belgrave, Brussels and Blyth, but
the methods through which they
tried to enrich their new school
could be applied, according to the
couple.
The Taylors said they did not work
for the board, and that they were not
there to discuss the closure.
“We’re not here to sell the pros or
cons of closures,” Scott explained.
“That’s not what we know about.”
The couple explained that they
have three children, eight-year-old
twin boys and a six-year-old girl
who were affected by the move.
“We’ve had a great experience,”
Jill began her presentation by
After months of uncertainty,
Brussel, Blyth and East Wawanosh
Public Schools’ closure date has
been set.
Regardless of the opening of
Wingham’s new school, the Avon
Maitland District School Board
announced on Friday, Jan. 28 that
they would be amalgamating
Wingham Public, East Wawanosh
Public, Turnberry Central, Blyth and
Brussels Public Schools into two
centres, one at Turnberry Central
and one at Wingham in Sept. 2012.
This means schools in Belgrave,
Brussels and Blyth will be closed at
the end of the 2011-2012 school
year.
The current Wingham Public
School site will house students from
Kindergarten to Grade 3 from
Wingham, Turnberry Central, and
East Wawanosh public schools.
Students from Kindergarten to
Grade 3 from Morris Township that
attend Brussels Public School will
also be going to Wingham Public
School.
Students in Grades 4-6 from the
aforementioned schools will be
attending Turnberry Central Public
School. Students from Grades 4-6
from Morris Township that attend
Brussels Public School will also be
going to Turnberry Central Public
School.
Grade 7 and 8 students from the
school’s new catchment area will
attend F.E. Madill Secondary
School’s new elementary wing.
Grade 7 and 8 students from Grey
Central Public School will also
attend there, unless they reside in the
Listowel District Secondary School
catchment area. Those students will
attend Elma Township Public
School.
Those students at Blyth Public
School who currently would attend
Central Huron Secondary School for
secondary education will attend
Hullett Central Public School.
Students in Blyth will still be in a
dual-enrollment zone, and will be
able to choose which school they
wish to attend. The remaining
students who attend Blyth Public
School will go to the new centres
listed above.
Brussels students who are not in
Morris Township will move to Grey
Central Public School.
The school board hopes that its
new school will be built before the
2012-2013 school year begins, but,
if it isn’t, this will prevent students
from starting school with one
teacher and group of friends, and
having to switch mid-way through.
A press release from the board
explains that not only will this move
allow students to prepare for their
new school by being acquainted
with peers and teachers, it will also
fast-track the benefits from having
services concentrated in less centres.
“Moving forward with the
consolidations allows the board to
Kevin McLlwain, Chief
Administrative Officer for Central
Huron stated he has received calls
from Auburn residents who wish the
former police village to be put under
the jurisdiction of one council,
instead of the three it currently sits
in.
McLlwain suggested the residents
start a petition and determine
which municipality the residents
wish to be in; Central Huron, North
Huron or Ashfield-Colborne-
Wawanosh.
Reeve Jim Ginn stated he liked the
idea, but stated that the destination
of the village would need to be
requested by those residents.
“The movement needs to come
from them, they need to take
charge,” he said. “I don’t want
[Central Huron] to seem land-
hungry.”
Councilor Alex Westerhout
thought the idea made sense, and
commented on what he felt the mood
of the residents was.
“It would make sense... if they
were all in one municipality,” he
said. “They’re really an unhappy
bunch of campers up there. Maybe
they should just secede from Canada
or something.”
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Continued on page 7
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
CH suggests Auburn
start zoning petition
Continued on page 7
By Denny Scott
The Citizen