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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2009-04-16, Page 7THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2009. PAGE 7.Seeing it throughInstructors from the Thames Valley Children’sCentre in London visited East Wawanosh PublicSchool last week for a student awarenessworkshop, that taught students what it was liketo live with a physical disability. While the centreusually educates the public about autism, thisworkshop dealt with all types of disabilities.Pictured at left, Laura Higgins and Heidi Raynard, right, attempt to complete written tasks while wearing scratched goggles, making it more difficult to see, and therefore, harder to concentrate. (Shawn Loughlin photo) Officially, the Avon Maitland District School Board is opposed to the methods used by the Fraser Institute socio-economic think tank when it assesses the adequacy of Ontario’s schools. But that doesn’t mean it’s going to prevent its schools from accepting cash prizes awarded based on those assessments – which is precisely what happened on April 8. Seaforth Public School received one of three $3,000 first-place prizes at the fifth annual Garfield Weston Awards of Excellence in Education organized by the Fraser Institute. The Huron East school earned top honours in the “Determination in Academic Achievement” category. According to a Fraser Institute news release, the category “recognizes schools that ensure that their students succeed regardless of the hurdles they may face. This award challenges the notion that only schools in rich neighbourhoods perform well academically.” Speaking from Seaforth Public School the day after the awards ceremony, principal Cheryl Peach offered no comment about how her school fits in with the Fraser Institute’s identification of “rich neighbourhoods.” Instead, she said her feeling was that the school is being recognized because of the collaborative work that has been done among students, staff, parents and the wider community to foster academic improvement. It’s not the first time Seaforth Public School has been nominated for a Garfield Weston award. Last year, the school received “School of Distinction” recognition – but not the overall category prize – in the same category. But it is the first time a contingent from Seaforth Public School attended the awards ceremony in Toronto (with transportation costs covered by the Fraser Institute). “We went (this year) because we wanted to celebrate our school and the hard work that’s being done in this school community,” Peach said. This year, East Wawanosh Public School in Belgrave, Grey Central Public School in Ethel, and St. James Catholic School in Seaforth were named “Schools of Distinction” in the same category as Seaforth Public. And, despite reiterating that the Fraser Institute’s method of ranking schools runs contrary to the provincial Education Ministry’s vision for Ontario- wide testing, Avon Maitland communications manager Steve Howe said the board encourages principals like Peach to accept the accolades. “When a school does make a great improvement, we would never want to take away from any recognition the staff and students might get,” Howe said. There was a long list of planning issues to be dealt with by Morris-Turnberry councillors at their April 7 meeting. Council approved an amendment to the “natural environment” section of the official plan to allow 94-acre parcels of land to be severed if both the severed and retained portions contain a suitable building site. The amendment was initiated after a request from a Turnberry ward landowner to sever parcels of land zoned natural environment to allow for houses to be built. Council also approved a zoning amendment for the RONA store at the north end of Wingham to build a new entrance on the B-Line Road that encroaches on the road allowance. Two amendments to put special provisions on parcels of farmland from which a surplus residence had been severed were approved. One affects a property on Concession 5, Turnberry Ward and one for the Concession 6 property in Morris ward owned by Lloyd and Nancy and Steven and Heather Michie. (Nancy Michie absented herself from the meeting for the latter property.) The amendments will prevent residences from being built on the remaining farm parcels. WANTED 7 HOMES THAT NEED ROOFING 7 homes in your area will be given the opportunity of having an INTERLOCK metal roofing system installed on their home at a reasonable cost. This lifetime product is capturing the interest of homeowners across the country who want to know this will be the last time they will have to re-roof their home. Our product is environmentally friendly and comes with a transferable Lifetime Limited Warranty with an excellent choice of colours to complement your home and is going to be introduced to your local market. Your home can be a show place in your neighbourhood and we will make it worth your while if we can use your home. Please call: 1-866-733-5808 Toll-Free 24 hours 7 Days a week OM Official marks of the Ontario Power Authority. Coin image ©2009 Royal Canadian Mint – All Rights Reserved. Get your coupons today! Valid only until May 22. For details and participating stores visit: everykilowattcounts.ca Savings on electricity-saving products are back The Power Savings Event is back for spring! Visit participating stores and pick-up money-saving coupons on electricity-saving products like specialty CFL light bulbs, clothesline kits, pool pump timers and more. Save $2 5 o n E N E R G Y S T A R ® qualifi e d c e i l i n g f a n s Local schools get cash prizes By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen M-T passes zonings Talk to us instead. TOLL-FREE 1-877-513-5333