The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 2001-06-20, Page 6Kevin required 20 units of blood after being seriously injured in a car accident. Kevin's summer was no day at the beach... would you help save a life? Have a ball this summer - but take an hour and give blood. Someone like Kevin is counting on you. Brussels Donor Clinic Thursday, June 28, 2001 5:00 - 8:30 Community Centre I.D. Required CANADIAN BLOOD SERVICES Blood. Bs in you to orve. www.bloodservices ca U-PICK Organic Strawberries Location: Follow Base Line Road south from Auburn, turn right first cross road, #38130 Maitland Block Road, big strawberry at corner, first farm on right. Open 7 days a week while quantities last Paul & Sherry Blay 526-1010 BLYTH FESTIVAL Attention Residents of Blyth: During the run of The Outdoor Deenellys gun shots may he heard during the performances. The Outdoor Donnas closes on July 1st. Call for tickets to any of our other productions at: 519-523-9300 or 1-877-862-5984 www.blythfestival.com PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 2001. AMDSB stops short of demanding deficit budget By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen Trustees of the Avon Maitland District School Board stopped short of demanding a "deficit budget" for 2001-02 from administrative staff. But the strategy — which was made illegal by Premier Mike Harris's rul- ing Conservatives and has inspired the government to talk about fines and even jail time for trustees — was mentioned several tithes at the board's regular meeting Tuesday; June 12. Stratford trustee Rod Brown went the furthest, suggesting the board threaten to deliver a deficit budget in a letter being sent to the minister and deputy minister of education, requesting a meeting to discuss the province's educational funding for- mula. Two other minor amendments to the letter were accepted without trustee votes, but chair Wendy Anderson didn't even suggest mak- ing Brown's change, after it became apparent no other trustee would sup- port his amendment. Among other things, the letter states that the board "barely keep(s) up with accepted health and safety standards and (is) only able to handle the required ongoing facility mainte- nance and repairs, with little left for facility upgrades to meet the new curriculum requirements. We are in the midst of a financial crisis because of this short-term survival strategy." Trustees voted unanimously in favour of sending the letter. Later, following an update on the budget process from Superintendent of Business Janet Baird-Jackson, Brown again expressed support for running a deficit. He quoted a Globe and Mail newspaper columnist who charged the ruling party "still insists on blaming the school boards and every other stakeholder except them- selves," then called on the govern- ment to increase funding and/or alter its funding formula. Again, however, it was a less dras- tic measure — something called a "needs-based budget" — which received some level of trustee sup- port. But fellow Stratford trustee Meg Westley expressed the hope that a message could be sent through the move, especially if it could be cou- pled with delaying tactics that could see the board miss the provincially- mandated June 30 deadline for com- pletion of a budget. Following Baird-Jackson's presen- tation, Westley proposed asking administrative staff to deliver two preliminary budgets. One would be a balanced budget, but would high- light where cutbacks had been made from the previous year. And the' other would be a "needs-based budg- et," which would retain all those services, programs and staff mem- bers and potentially run a deficit. "I'm not saying we're going to ask for the moon," she said, stressing her motion would not suggest bringing in a deficit in the final budget. But she added school boards in Ottawa and Toronto have used similar meas- ures to successfully highlight the shortcomings of the province's fund- ing formula. Central Huron trustee Charles Smith argued against the motion, saying it was the first step towards defying the law. He cast one of the three dissenting votes — along with North Perth's Don Brillinger and Northwest Huron's Butch Desjardins — in a slim 5-3 victory for Westley. Following the meeting, Baird- Jackson admitted she now faced increased work leading up to the June 30 provincial deadline. She also admitted she had not seen examples of the Ottawa or Toronto needs- based documents. But she vowed to "go on what the trustees were say- ing" and "work to have it done by the deadline." ,In her budget update, the superin- tendent of business had included a list of "expenditure areas previously identified as 'protected' (which) are no longer sustainable, at least at the current level." Among other things, the list includes: a principal at each school; split grades but no triple grades; social workers in partnership with the Huron County Children's Aid Society; public health nurses in partnership with health units in Perth County; maximum length of student time on buses; a certain level of sec- retarial hours; a certain level of edu- cation assistant support; and a cer- tain level of support in libraries and computer labs. "Pretty much everything listed will be attacked in an effort to corn- bat the problem," Baird-Jackson said. She also mentioned -school clo- sure, saying it "will help, but it's not the magic bullet." Closure wasn't mentioned directly in her report, but it does, state that "consolidation of student accommodation, so as to reduce duplicated infrastructure and to maintain or enhance student learn- ing environment, will continue to be essential." Drawing inspiration from such comments, Westley spoke _strongly in favour of joining with other school boards in approving such measures as the needs-based budget. "There are a lot of things that can be done. Maybe we can file late or wait until the last minute," she said. "If we can't make some kind of stance . . . (the government) is going to take everything. "We're not alone. There is a lot of resistance going on." Lost Kirkton dog seeks companionship at Grey Central By Stew Slater Special to The Citizen A 12-year-old German shepherd/terrier cross, missing two weeks from a home in Kirkton, chose a schoolyard in Ethel to make its reappearance. The principal of the school, Grey Central Public, used information on the dog's registration tag to alert the owners. "The whole village (of Kirkton, between Exeter and St. Marys) was looking for Holly," said owner Sharon Wiles, whose husband, Jim, set the odometer on his vehicle when he was called to retrieve the pet and discovered the dog had travelled about 60 km. Wiles says Holly had never run away previously, but had recently become increasingly disturbed by thunderstorms. The family discov- ered the dog was missing the morn- ing after Jim, Sharon and son Logan had attended a "Fun Fest" at South Perth Centennial School near St. Marys, where Logan attends junior kindergarten. That was Friday, May, 25, and there was a thunderstorm while Holly was home alone. Exactly two weeks later, on June 8, Holly wandered out of the wood- ed portion of Grey Central's environ- mental learning grounds onto a sports field being used for physical education by a Grade 6-7 class. She was bedraggled, limping, thin and, according to Grey Central principal Alice McDowell, "there was no doubt she had run a long way. "Of course, because of safety rea- sons, we had to bring the students inside," McDowell explained. "And she just ran right behind them. The whole time the children were inside, the dog just lay outside at the door." A check of the dog's tag revealed the telephone number for Perth Selected Grade 7 and 8 Blyth stu- dents received several periods of enrichment math instruction with Mrs. Laurie this spring to prepare for the GAUSS Mathematics Contest sponsored by the University of Waterloo. The questions included all five mathematics strands and empha- sized creative problem solving. On Wednesday, May 26 the stu- dents took the test and are now anx- iously awaiting the results. Participating students were: Jacob Rouw, Alyssa Gross, Rebecca Schultz, Blake Miller, Amanda Bearss and Stephanie Sanderson. Blyth is one of nine schools in the Avon Maitland District School South Twp., and township officials checked the identification number to put McDowell in touch with the Kirkton family. Jim Wiles was on the road within five minutes of the dog's reappearance. He soon arrived in Ethel and, for the first time since being found, Holly began barking. "We hadn't heard a bark at all until the gentleman came," McDowell remembered. "And then she just Board which has qualified for fund- ing to upgrade the computer hard- ware at the school. The exact amount has not yet been disclosed. Report Cards will go out on Monday, June 25, which is also Grade 8 Graduation Day. The schogl council met on June 7. At this meeting the council helped to prepare a submission for the Community Accommodation Study Committee for this region of the board. A further School Accommodation meeting will be held in Clinton at Central Huron Secondary School on June 28 at 7 p.m. Parents are welcome to attend any of these public meetings. started to bark and bark. There was no doubt who the owner was." Jim says, "I think she was giving me heck for not finding her sooner," Sharon Wiles smiled, adding Holly wouldn't let Jim move without fol- lowing right by his side for a couple of days. A veterinarian examined the pet 'and said the only problem is burrs in the dog's paws, which will eventually work out on their own. Sharon may have been taken aback by how far Holly had trav- elled, but she wasn't surprised the dog finally decided to seek help from children. Besides Logan, Sharon babysits for several other families. "She just loves kids. So it didn't surprise me that she would show up at a school. I guess she trusts kids more than she trusts adults." This isn't the first time Holly has been rescued from dire circum- stances. When she was just two or three months old, in the middle of January, the Wiles discovered Holly abandoned at a crossroads just out- side Kirkton. Bluth PS news Students wait for GAUSS marks