Huron Expositor, 2005-03-16, Page 66 - THE HURON EXPOSITOR, March 16, 2005
News
Local school boards receive close to $460,000 in funding from
Ontario government to help high school students succeed
By Jason Middleton
Expositor Stall
High school students in
Perth and fIuron counties will
benefit from an innovative
project designed to provide
them with new opportunities
for success in school.
On Friday, Huron -Bruce
MPP Carol Mitchell and Perth -
Middlesex MPP John
Wilkinson announced close to
$460,000 in funding from the
Ontario government to support
local high school students,
after a visit to both the Avon
Maitland District School
Board office in Seaforth and
the Huron -Perth Catholic
District School Board office in
Dublin.
"This will have an
immediate impact on
students," Mitchell said. "The
McGuinty government's
support for this project puts our
commitment to meet the
diverse needs of students into
action."
The funding will be split
with the AMDSB, which will
receive $331,000, and the
Catholic Board, which will
receive $126,000.
The AMDSB said they will
use the money to expand a
program designed to help
dropout students achieve
success in school. The money
will add St. Marys District
Collegiate and Vocational
Institute and Goderich District
Collegiate Institute to the list of
five high schools under the
AMDSB that already offers the
program.
Ted Doherty, Avon
Maitland's System Principal
for Student Success said, "'This
funding will make a difference
for students across our district.
Part of the Learning to 18
Grant is being used to perform
a detailed study of recent
school leavers in the Goderich
and St. Marys communities.
"The information gathered
will identify specific students
needs as we move to enhance
our recapture programs at all
nine of our secondary
schools," he continued.
"Attracting students who have
left school before graduation
so that we can help them earn a
secondary school diploma will
be the measure of our success."
The Catholic School Board,
meanwhile, will use their share
of the money to improve
retention, re-engage drop -outs
with individualized off-site
program using electronic
curriculum modules, credit
recovery, and co-op.
The $18 million funding is
one component of the
government's $100 million
student success strategy to
either boost projects that are
helping to reduce the numbers
of students who do not
graduate from high school or
create new innovative
approaches.
"By tailoring its courses and
programs, the Avon Maitland
District School Board and the
Huron -Perth Catholic District
School Board are ensuring that
local students' unique needs are
being met," said Wilkinson
Projects are also helping
students who have left school
make a successful transition
from either school -to -work or
apprenticeships.
"Every student should
receive a good outcome from
publicly -funded education,
whether it is an apprenticeship,
job placement, or admission to
college or university," said
Minister of Education Gerard
Kennedy, in a press release.
A government -
commissioned study on the
performance of high school
students by Dr. Alan King of
Queen's University estimated
that as many as 30 per cent of
students will not graduate.
Dan Parr, student success
leader with the Catholic School
Board, said that in his school
board, the percentage of
students dropping out is closer
to nine per cent.
"We're very proud of that,"
he said, adding that the
AMDSB has comparable
numbers.
"Even though it looks good
relatively, anyone that works in
education know that we can do
better," he said.
Steckle to stick to his convictions when vote on same-sex marriage bill comes
By Cheryl Heath
News -Record Editor
Huron -Bruce MP Paul
Steckle is not backing down
on his stand against the
legalization of same-sex
marriage.
"My opinion is not
changing on this issue," he
says. "My opinion will never
change on this issue."
Steckle acknowledges
reading letters to the editor
supporting in several area
newspapers that support the
change, but says he plans to
stick to his conviction that
same-sex marriage is not
appropriate.
The bill (Bill C-23)
proposing to legalize same-
sex marriage, which has
reached second reading and
County
to speak out
on farm crisis
By Tim Cumming
Signal -Star Editor
Ashfield-Colborne-
Wawanosh's Ben Van
Diepenbeek suggested Huron
County should send out
resolutions across Canada to
speak out about the depressed
commodity prices threatening
the future of farming in this
country.
He said the upper -tier
governments have been
"sitting on their hands and
have done absolutely
nothing."
"How can we put pressure
on as a county council?" he
asked.
Farmers sent a clear and
united' message when they
gathered at Queen's Park on
March 2 but that message may
not have got through to the
decision -makers at the
province.
"(Farmers) have sent a
pretty clear message but I'm
not even sure the government
is listening," Van Diepenbeek
said.
A motion will be drafted
and brought forward to the
next meeting of Huron County
Council.
FOREST
MANAGEMENT
AGREEMENT SOUGHT
Huron County and the
Maitland Valley Conservation
Authority (MVCA) are
pursuing an agreement that
could see the MVCA oversee
the management of the
county's 1,600 acres of
woodlots in exchange for a fee
for service.
The county's past warden,
Bill Dowson (Bluewater) said
proper forest management
needs to balance economic
benefits with a healthy
approach that will preserve
forests for the future.
"We don't want to get led
down the path of harvesting
every log," he said. "Don't get
the impression we want to
harvest every saleable tree."
Deb very
(Goderich),
suggested the. roads
department wasn't the proper
authority to have responsibility
for forest management as that
department already has too
many other responsibilities.
' "Roads (is) busy with other
things," he said.
It was suggested that forest
issues should be under
planning.
is currently being debated in
the House of Commons, will
likely continue for some
time, says Steckle, who notes
dozens of Members of
Parliament are scheduled to
•
•
speak on the issue.
Once MPs address the
issue, the bill must then go to
committee for review.
That process, says Steckle,
will also likely take quite
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March 16 -
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some time given the issue is
so controversial and there is a
minority government in
place.
Steckle says once it is time
to vote, he will "be there"
`,.;1( tut:.I
with a resounding no.
"It's not as if the whole gay
community is choosing to be
married," he says, adding the
fact the bill is in the House is
a result of the "me"
generation pushing its own
agenda.
"It's about what's good for
me and, you know, life
doesn't operate that way," he
says.
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"EASTER COLOURING CONTEST" ENTRY FORM
Name Age
Address
Town
Telephone
Postal Code
Mail to or
drop off at:
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11 Main St. Seaforth,
Ontario NOK 1WO