HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1990-09-12, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1990.
School crowding ahead
as attendance up
rvice with a joke
Blyth Fireman Dick Poore jokes with a customer while serving pancakes at the Blyth Firemen’s
pancake breakfast at thef irehall on the weekend. More than 800 were served on the two-day event as
part of the Thresher Reunion.
Tech subjects losing appeal
Seamus Doherty the Technical
Director at Central Huron Secon
dary School in Clinton gave a
progress report on the technical
studies at the school at the Septem
ber 4 meeting of the Huron County
Board of Education (HCBE).
Mr. Doherty noted the concern of
attracting students into the techni
cal courses and said that they have
to get the word out to parents and
students that “there’s nothing
wrong with dirtying your hands
now and then.’’
In 1981 and ’82 the board had
concerns over the large drop in
numbers of students in the tech
courses resulting in the under use
of the large facilities at the secon
dary schools. An ad hoc committee
was struck to study the situation
and after two years of deliberation
brought recommendations to the
board. At the Ontario Public School
Board Association Symposium re
structuring initiatives and initia
tives from the throne speech were
addressed. The first step is the
consolidation of 64 courses into five
major areas: communication, con
struction, manufacturing, services
and transportation. This allows for
flexible delivery through its unified
program.
Consultations would be held with
post-secondary institutions to guar
antee the connection between the
two.
The technical studies would meet
the needs of all students from basic
to advanced and programs would
be built around group projects like
student centred learning and pro
blem solving.
In responding to the concept
Trustee Rick Rompf said in his
experience this education makes
employees more versatile helping
them to compete in today’s world
wide market.
Approval for grants for new
equipment in three secondary
schools’ technical studies programs
was acknowledged and purchases
will proceed in a manner that
allows the local share to be paid
from the 1991 board fiscal year.
The trustees also voted to apply
for additional funding for F. E.
Madill and Goderich District Colle
giate Institute.
In other business the hourly rate
for groups using school facilities
when custodial services will be
required was raised from $16.70 to
$18.40.
A recently completed report from
the Urban Analysis Group at the
University of Western Ontario for
the Huron County Board of Educa
tion (HCBE) has confirmed that
there will be anticipated space
pressures on a number of the
county’s elementary schools over
. the next five years. These will be
intensified should the implementa
tion of Junior Kindergarten occur.
The forecast, which is part one of
a study, involved pulling together
specific details and data to compare
enrollment at area schools with the
available space. Over the course of
several years, following what has
been a decline in population
growth, area schools are full and
the board must look at options for
providing necessary classroom
space. Superintendent of Business
and Operations Paul Carroll said
that the Urban Analysis Group had
the expertise to make the analysis
and present an objective overview,
which the board will submit for
grant applications, of what is
happening in Huron County and
will continue to happen over the
next decade. It is, he said, now up
to the board to decide what to do
next.
Mr. Carroll said that options that
could be utilized would be shifting
boundaries, buying portables, or
expanding the schools. Another
speculative consideration that has
not been openly discussed but
could be a possibility is the moving
of elementary classes into the
secondary schools. However, Mr.
Carroll pointed out only F. E.
Madill in Wingham of the five
county secondary schools has space
so the board would have to look at
whether anything would be gained
by the move. “It will be dollars and
cents,” he said.
Last year the board added the
equivalent of two classrooms at five
elementary schools and increased
South Huron District High School
in Exeter by five rooms. This year
eight classrooms are being added
at three schools.
Of the six elementary schools in
the area, attendance this year has
increased at four. Brussels Public
School had an enrollment in 1989 of
201, while 1990’s is 214. Grey
Central has increased by 16 stud
ents for a total enrollment of 276
and East Wawanosh is up from 230
to 236. Walton Public School,
which has students from Kinder
garten to Grade 3 has increased by
eight pupils for a total of 88.
Hullett Central School remains
about the same with an enrollment
of 243, while Blyth Public School is
down from 199 last year to 195 this
year.
The Urban Analysis Forecast has
the total projected enrollment for
the county’s elementary schools as
6,544. This is an increase of 38
students or .6 per cent over
September 30, 1989 enrollments.
The total projected enrollment for
secondary schools operated by
HCBE is 3,885. This is an increase
of 25 students or a growth rate of j6
per cent as well.
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