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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-05-13, Page 26PAGE 26. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MAY 13, 2010. BBBB rrrr iiii dddd eeee ssss IIII nnnn HHHH uuuu rrrr oooo nnnn AAAA nnnn oooo nnnn ----llll iiii nnnn eeee rrrr eeee ssss oooo uuuu rrrr cccc eeee cccc eeee nnnn tttt rrrr eeee ffff oooo rrrr HHHH uuuu rrrr oooo nnnn bbbb rrrr iiii dddd eeee ssss We are looking for stories and photos from Huron County couples. For more information call The Citizen 519-523-4792 Email us your writeup at norhuron@scsinternet.com www.northhuron.on.ca (click on Brides In Huron) Send us a description of your wedding (up to 600 words) and up to 2 photographs and we’ll post them on the Brides in Huron website for one year for no charge. AMDSB confident funds are available for new school Ash suggests equipping AMDSB trustees with laptopsAt a regular meeting Tuesday,March 23, Avon Maitland DistrictSchool Board Superintendent MikeAsh and Principal Jeff Reaburn provided an advance look at some of the possible options for equipping trustees with laptop or slightly smaller-format computers. The presentation came in response to a Feb. 23 request from trustees for information about making theirmeetings more environmentallyfriendly.“The biggest part of this is thatwe want to be modelling to the restof the board that technology is theway to go,” explained chair Jenny Versteeg, following the March 23 meeting. According to Ash’s report, needs for moving to paperless meetings include “reliable wireless cards for consistent access to the wifi network at the (board’s Seaforth-based) Education Centre . . . aminimum screen size of 13 inchesso that documents can be read atnormal size . . . and a hard drive ofat least 120 gigabytes with aminimum of one gigabyte of RAM.” Education Director Chuck Reid advised staying with the larger, laptop-style, 15-inch screen, arguing it will allow for easier reading if trustees want to have two documents open in a “split-screen”mode.And in the post-meetinginterview, Versteeg said therewould be benefits in includingsome kind of video-conferencingcapabilities – including cameras and specialized connection software – not necessarily for full board meetings but possibly for committee meetings during inclement weather or for single- item agendas. Trustees, however,acknowledged there’s nothing inthe current year’s trustee expensesbudget for the computers. And theywere reluctant to make a decisionfor next year’s board, since theirterms are all up for election during the October 25, 2010 municipal vote. Reid advised setting aside the discussion to allow the next board to handle it. By Stew SlaterSpecial to The Citizen The Avon Maitland District School Board remains confident it can secure funding from the provincial government for a new elementary school in North Perth, proposed to replace Wallace Public School in Gowanstown and Listowel Central Public School. If their experiences with attempts to replace the aging Milverton Public School are any indication, however, administrators may be in for some surprises. “We’ve certainly made the case” (to the Education Ministry)”, commented business superintendent Janet Baird- Jackson, in an interview after the board’s regular meeting Tuesday, April 27. Trustees stepped outside their normal meeting environment, gathering instead in the gym at Elma Township Public School in Newry, in an effort to make it easier for members of the public to make their feelings about the North Perth proposal known through 10-minute “delegations”. The project would follow on the heels of government-funded new construction in St. Marys (with a new school scheduled to open in October) and Wingham (with a 2012 timetable) – both of which will consolidate students from a number of smaller schools. And, while the rationale for changes in St. Marys was the advanced age of the existing schools, Baird-Jackson notes the message being sent by the board in the case of North Perth is similar to that used in the Wingham area: currently, the existing schools are not all filled to capacity, and it would be easier to provide specialized instruction if students could be consolidated. “One of the Ministry’s main priorities is empty space,” Baird- Jackson said. According to the business superintendent, a key to receiving funding for the Wingham project was a change in focus from what was previously known as “Prohibitive to Repair” (PTR). In St. Marys, it was a PTR analysis which determined it would cost less over the long term to build new rather than maintain. But that wouldn’t necessarily have been the case in Wingham, nor in North Perth. When PTR was changed to “Local Priorities,” however, other factors became important – including projected empty spaces and possible enhancements in student achievement. An October, 2008 application for Local Priorities funding ranked the Wingham project as the board’s “top ask,” followed by the replacement of the aging Milverton Public School and Stratford Central Public School. Of those, only Wingham received Local Priorities funding. Milverton, meanwhile, will see a significant upgrade, following trustees’ approval of a project tendering process at the April 27 meeting. At an approximate projected cost of $1.9 million, the original building – formerly a high school – will be torn down and replaced with an office, staff workroom and new library. Within the portion of the school that will remain standing, library and other space will be converted to classroom space. Education Ministry funding was secured for the project, to the tune of just under $900,000. It didn’t come from Local Priorities, however, but the Energy Efficient Schools envelope, geared towards upgrading energy efficiency measures within schools. Not only that, but the school board struck out in an attempt to build into the Milverton plan an element that – according to Education Ministry documents – could have played a role in securing Local Priorities funding. Specifically, one goal of Local Priorities is to promote partnerships with other publicly- funded institutions. For months, Avon Maitland administrators were in discussions with the Township of Perth East to share in the construction of a new, shared school/municipal library on the Milverton Public site. “We practically rolled over backwards for that,” Baird-Jackson contended. However, it didn’t work out. Will attempts to secure Local Priorities funding in North Perth be equally complicated? The business superintendent remains confident. “People from the Ministry have certainly been reading the reports (about the school consolidation proposal) and e-mailing questions,” she said. By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen Stewart elected to Lions District Governor The Lions Clubs of District A9 held its 36th Annual Convention on May 7 - 9 in Kincardine. Blyth Lion John Stewart was elected to the office of District A9 Governor. Stewart along with his wife, Mary Lou, will attend the 93rd Annual Lions Clubs International Convention in Sydney, Australia where he will be sworn into office on July 1 for a one-year term. Stewart advised the delegates in attendance that his theme for the year is, “Lions Service: A Proud Past – An Even Brighter Future.” He stated that while it is beneficial to remember and reflect upon the service work which has taken place in the past, it is extremely important to focus on the future and many projects yet to be completed in our communities. Stewart who has been a member of the Blyth Lions Club for nearly 36 years is the first member in the Club’s 65-year history to hold the office of District Governor. The District Governor is the highest ranking officer in the District and Stewart will be responsible for overseeing 47 Lions Clubs and five Lioness Clubs. The District covers an area from Goderich to Mitchell to Orangeville to Thornbury to Lions Head.