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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1999-04-21, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21, 1999. No French immersion for Avon Maitland By Susan Hundertmark Special to-The Citizen Too few students enrolled in French immersion at any of the three planned sites in Huron and Perth Counties to be able to offer the program this fall. But registration may be offered again in September, 2000, trustees learned at the April 13 Avon Maitland District School Board meeting* After the March 26 final registration date, only five enrolled in the Grade 1 entry for French Immersion at Grey Central Public School. 1 1 at Huron Centennial Public School and 17 at Bedford Public School. A Feb. 19 registration indicated that earlier plans to offer French immersion at the Grade 4 level would not be viable either. Coffee House raises $800 for research The Coffee House for Cancer put on by students at F. E. Madill Secondary School Friday night was a great success. Danielle Wagar came up with the idea of holding a Coffee House to raise money for Cancer Research last April. She wanted to do something to help find a cure for a disease that touches many lives. She, with a group of students at F. E. Madill have been organizing the event for the past two months under the supervision of Mr. Elmslie, their teacher advisor. ' • ' Mrs. Gerth helped set up and Doris Howie, from the Cancer society-was also instrumental in the planning 2nd organizing. The evening consisted of performances by local teens: Laura Sande played Song without Words on the piano. Carla Freiburger and Jodi Clarkson sang The Rose, with Jodi playing the piano. Jarred Homes played Trumpet Voluntary on the trumpet. Dana Davies read a poem about cancer and Kaft Kuepfer sang Castle on the Clouds. Jackie Falconer sang Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Ashley Gropp, Angela Chippa, Karen Prentice, and Amy Reidner performed the slumber party scene from Grease. Virginia Schenk sang Angel, accompanied by Kim Schedler on piano. Angela Chippa sang Do you Sleep and Kiss Me, accompanied on guitar by Mark Chippa. Kait Keupfer read a poem about cancer. Heather Hopkins did a ballet dance en pointe. Justin Ruttan sang He is There. Arris Hopkins sang Iris and / Want to Grow Old with You. To end the evening Shannon Scott sang two songs, accompanied by Dan Hamel on piano. Refreshments were available thanks to donations from area businesses. The event raised just under $8(X) which will be donated to the National Cancer Research Institute. *Heart disease is one of the leading h Ilers of both males and females in Canada. "Even at Bedford, with 17 students, if we lost a couple of students’we couldn’t run a viable program,” said Superintendent Marie Parsons. "We need 22-25 students to ensure a viable class so French immersion will not happen in September." Parsons said a lack of transportation to schools offering French immersion was the main stumbling block to registration, especially since the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board provides busing to its French immersion sites. She added that some parents also want to be able to enrol all their children at the same school in the regular English program if one child is attending for French Immersion. And, others are only interested in French immersion if it is offered at their child's home school. Offering a voice Kait Kuepfer of Brussels performed a solo at the Coffee House for Cancer held Friday night at F.E. Madill Secondary School in Wingham. Kuepfer also read a poem later in the evening. Proceeds from the event went to cancer research. LHEALTH on the hillj A Review of activities at SEAFORTH COMMUNITY HOSPITAL SMOKING REGULATION UPDATE the new and ONLY designated Hospital smoking area is located on the patio. Cigarette butt stops for cigarette disposal have been installed on the walls of Hospital door entrances. VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION WEEK is April 18 24, 1999. Volunteers provide a vital “link to many a chain.” Our staff and management highly regard the importance of the many Volunteers associated with the delivery and enhancement of Hospital services and programs. If it weren’t for Volunteers, the Hospital, patients and staff would be deprived of the numerous therapeutic benefits that the skills, personalities and varied talents exhibit. Our sincerest appreciation to you ALL~ DIABETES COUNSELLING individual counselling is available by appointment by contacting 527-1650 Ext. 234. Canadian Diabetes Educators, Dianne Wood Reg.N. &/or Lorraine Devereaux, Registered Dietitian will address your personal Diabetes concerns. Doctor referral is not necessary. “MORNING OUT” is a New Parent Support Service offered each Friday 10:00-11:30 a.m. with Karen Searle, Facilitator. Moms/Dads & infants are welcome to attend and learn/share information and experiences with discussion on a variety of postpartum topics. Childcare is available by pre-registering with Grace Dolmage 527-3001, no later than Wednesday noon of each week. You are invited to a HEALTH FORUM on TUESDAY, APRIL 27th, 7:30 p.m. at the Town Hall Heritage Theatre, Wingham Ek TOPICS: • Future Plans for your Hospital • New Medical Clinic • Physician Retention & Recruitment • Panel Discussion • Question & Answer Session Sponsored by Wingham & Area Chamber of Commerce in partnership with Wingham & District Hospital.Jrfi "As a parent, I would want all my children in the same school and that seems to be an easy thing for us to provide," said Trustee Abby Armstrong. "That's not a huge problem for us and would be a tremendous convenience for parents." Parsons said allowing sibling transfers might cause "considerable staffing impacts" but said she’d look into it. She will also research the cost of busing in preparation for the 2000-2001 budget. Trustee Donald Brillinger questioned offering French immersion if it means only attracting a few students back from Still no funds for summer school buses By Susan Hundertmark Special to The Citizen While the Ministry of Education and Training has announced it will fund summer school, including transportation, for Grade 8 students preparing for the new Grade 9 curriculum, Avon Maitland finance Superintendent Janet Baird-Jackson told trustees at an April 13 board meeting that the board will still not be able to afford busing for summer school. "The ministry is only providing per pupil funding for the transportation of the Grade 8 students enrolled and that won't cover the cost in rural areas so we still won't be offering transportation to summer school," she said. A letter from the board to Education Minister David Johnson requested transportation be included in the funding "so that rural students will have equitable access." A response from the province has not yet been received by the board. the Catholic system. Parsons said the Avon Maitland board has lost 500 students in Grades 1-8 but that since the program is being introduced one grade at a time, it would not attract "huge numbers," adding that she knows of two or three students registered at Bedford Public School who will go to the Catholic system instead if French immerson is not offered by the Avon Maitland board. Trustee Margaret Laprade asked if it wouldn't be better to offer a Grade 1-8 French immersion program immediately since she knows of whole families that would transfer to the public system at various grades but are not prepared to split up their family to different schools and systems. Parsons said the insufficient registration for French immersion will not cause the board to look again at offering primary core French, which was dropped by the WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH HEALTH CARE IN YOUR COMMUNITY? board earlier this year. "Trustees would have to bring that back to the table and we're too far into the process to do anything to bring it back for this fall. We needed to know by February for staffing purposes," she said. Wescast earns award Wescast Industries Inc. has once again been the recipient of awards for its high standards. For the sixth straight year, Wescast earned the Supplier of the Year Award from General Motors and was handed one of Ford's World Excellence Awards. Wescast achieved the World Excellence Award for excelling in the two categories of quality and cost. Jltawiape Natasha and Jordan would like to announce the forthcoming marriage of their parents, Karin Anne, daughter of Ken and Bette Lee of Blyth to Philip George, son of George and the late Marion Hubbard of Blyth. The wedding will take place April 24,1999 at the Blyth United Church at 4:00 p.m. Please take this as a personal invitation to the open reception at the Blyth Community Centre at 8:30 p.m.