HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1984-04-04, Page 19„,
8
HP
The bottom line was dollars and cents when
the Huron -Perth Separate School Board
turned down a French Immersion pilot
project on Monday by a 9 to 5 recorded vote.
Board chairman Ron Murray said the board
cannot afford such a program.
Discussion of French Immersion got off to a
slow start when Ron Marcy, chairman of the
finance committee, introduced a motion to set
up a two-year pilot project at St, Mary's
Separate School in Goderich ' for Kinder-
garten and Grade 1. He said the cost of
introducing a pilot project would cost almost
$43,000 for the first year and $62,000 the
second year.
Costs and available grants were then
introduced into the discussion. Mr. Marcy
said the $115 per pupil cost of starting French
turns
Immersion at St. Mary's still leaves that
school's per pupil cost at $200 less than the
system average.
I'm glad to see. so much interest in
French...but I'm not so sure this is the way to
go - to isolate one school and not look at the
whole system," said trustee Ernie Vander-
schot of R.R.7, St. Marys.
"There are only three. other boards in the
area that don't have French Immersion,"
said Mr. Moriarty.
They are Huron, Perth and Oxford Boards
of Education. The Huron Board of Education,
has also ,been approached by a group of
parents in Goderich to set up 1 a French -
Immersion program. The Perth Board of
Education turned down a pilot French
Immersion program for the City of Stratford
ch
over a year ago. hive small schools," he said.,
Mt. Moriarity said the way the separate , .,Some trustees said it isn't fair to offer
school beard should go is to introduce a pilot F cnch Immersion in one school and not
program in one school and seeb how it goes p he��ra.
from there. Mr. Marcy agreed and pointed M. Marcy said there isn't equality in the
out the board would receive aciditipnal grants schools now since three of the five schools in
of $2t1 per pupil from the Ministry at 'Stratford don't have gyms. Dublin Trustee
Education. Lotus Maloney said he would like to see his
"I'm very much in favor .of French-- children have the same educational opper-
Immersion, but 1'd like to see Fr'enclr itunities as the students in other Huron -Perth
Immersion for every child," said trustee Communities.
Michael Ryan who said the cost is $1,94,000-' "At the outset I was all in favor of French
over two years. ;; , tmmetsion, but I'm a pretty practical
Trustee Vanderschot commented that person...but when it gets down to basics,"
statements that even with the additien o r ,where is the moneygoing to come from? I
French Immersion at St. Mary's, it will .stilly don't know whereVincent McInnes said.
be the fifth cheapest school to operate in the Mr. Murray criticized the survey taken on
system aren't fair. "We can't help it if w' the number of students interested in French
Immersion
Immersion. The total number given was 33
for both kindergarten and Grade 1, but Mr..
Murray said only the people interested in
French Immersion were surveYed. Those who
don't want it were not asked` He suggested
the per pupil cost would not be an additipnal
$115 per pupil, but more like $1,300 per pupil
more.
"I don't think anybody here is net in favor
of, French Immersion. If the province would
give us the money we'd put it in," said Ron
Murray noting that the board is trying tb
provide decent facilities for,, the separate
school students in the two counties. He added
that the board has undertaken additions and
renovations at three schools and none of the
funding has been from the normal route by
the Ministry of Education.
The board agreed to survey parents across
the two counties to determine the interest in
French Immersion.
Those trustees voting against a French
Immersion pilot project at St. Mary's were:
Tim McDonnell of Gadshill, Ron Murray of
R.R.1, Dublin, Louis Maloney of Dublin,
Gerald Groothius of Seaforth, Mike Ryan of
Mount Carmel, Vincent Mclnnes of Wing -
ham, Ernie Vanderschot of R. R.7, St. Marys,
William Kinahan of R.R.2, Lucknow, and
Dave Durand of St. Joseph's.
Thpse,voiing in favor were: Goderich area
trustee, Michael Moriarity, Ron Marcy of
Stratford, John Devlin of Stratford, Arthur'
Haid of R.R.4, Listowel and Ray Van Vliet of
R.R.7, St, Marys.
SECOND
SECTION
Serving the communities and areas of
Brussels, Dublin, Hensal and Walton
50c a copy
9EAFORTH, ONTARIO; WEDNESPAY,'APRIL 4, 1984 .' 8 PAGES B1 -B8 ,
::.ung-Off�nd)�r's;Act
iht
rasp p s i y
consideration by not allowing the nihil atiot�
•resses
BY ANNE NAREJKO
The word delinquency is) no longer in of court proceedings.
{existence. It has been replaced with offence, The Young Offenders' Act also differs from
''according to Joan Belford, co -chairperson of the former Juvenile Delinquent Act by not
r .the' Ministry of Community and Social taking the view that the offender needs'
:':'Services' area co-ordinating committee for assistance every step of the way. The new Act
;implementation of the new Young Offender's states that the offenders must know their
-- Act. legal rights in each stage of the case.
On Mar. 28 the 73tdannual meeting of the "The adult court aspects are similar to the
Family and Children's Services of Huron new Act but there are special considerations
County was held with Ms. Belford as the for special needs due to immaturity," said
'.guest speaker. Ms. Belford.
The Young Offender's Act replaced the The rights and responsibilities of the
~Juvenile Delinquent Act on Apr. 1. The parents to the children are also heavily
Offender's Act has been in, the works for emphasized. If the parents are not in court,
approximately 10 years but there are still a they must have a good reason or they will be
few minor details that need to be worked out. held in contempt of court.
Overall, the new act makes young people BLUEWATER CENTRE
accountable for their achons. The former Bluewater Centre for the
"The key factor in the 'Young Offender's developmentally handicapped which closed
Act is the uniform age of 18," said Ms. last November will be_ converted into a
Belford. regional detention facility for the young
Presently the provinces vary' on the offenders. TheCentre will open Apr. 1, 1985.
'aluminium nge,df your"'•:offenders Bili The regional detentionCentre 'is :to beohe
Cojuiribidandt'ewfoundland#tavetbese l6riii, of -two loc4tted,.td O$grio_, I wtU house 17.7
v:the upper, -brae et• vhiits a"tnfobit and young-oi ndersildt��ectrili&-agesof:1 '`''and'"
(�uebec call those 17' and' under youn g.: 17 as the age for criminal responsibility has.
Offenders. Ontario and the remaining prov- been moved from seven -years -old to 12.
Even though the actual structurcof e
building will not Change. a fece '11
encompass the entire property and t
windows will have bars placed on them. Th
young offenders placed in the deter 'o _
centre will have committed minor crimes
compared to inmates in an adult detention
centre.
Brussels bank
closing May fl
FEVER'S OVER—Two years ago, the Royal
Bank In Brussels held a promotion called
Baseball Fever. Such promotions by bank
staff will end due to the closing of the branch
on May 11. Most of the staff will bo absorbed
Into other Royal Bank branches, but staff
who do not want to transfer to another town
could be out of a lob. Three employeettln the
photo have since transferred Including Ray
Nelson, Jean -Marc Beneteau and Jim
Matisz Shown from left to right Is: Ray
Nelson, Jerry Dillow, manager, Fran
Wasslnk, Jean -Marc Beneteau, Sharon
Demaray, Rhonda Fischer and Jim Matisz,
The photo at the right shows the grand
opening held at the bank In February 1978.
Despite opening seven years ago, little
business was generated during that time.
inces include offenders who are 15 -years -old
and under.
`'The Young Offenders' Act also empha-
sites the responsibility which the offender
has, The phrase that's_going around now is, if
yott're old enough to do the crime, you're old
enough to do the time."
Nis. Belford feels that this attitude
con fs wiifi the former Juvenile Delin-
qu nt ct's view of having the offender's
best int rest in mind. The courts a're no
longe taking the "kindly parent" tole,
instea they have taken the position Of "drib.
process."
The courts will not be handing out
sentences that are for an undetermined time,
but are required tosentence the offender for a
fixed period. -
The hearings will no longer be in -camera.
The public will be allowed into the youth
courts. However, the judge can remove
people from the court if he chooses to do so.
Even though the courts will be open to the
public, the offender's privacy is taken into
All off-road vehicles to be registered
Owners of off-road vehicles need more
information about their vehicles because
several in the Seaforth area are being driven
on the roads without licences or registrations.
says Seaforth police chief. Hal Claus.
All vehicles which cannot be driven on the
road must be registered with the Ministry of
Transportation and Communications by June
An off-road vehicle is any two or
three -wheeled vehicle, plus specific types
with four or more wheels designed primarily
for recreational use. Those licensed for
on -road use or exempt by regulation are not
included.
Exempted off-road vehicles include: golf
carts; road building machines and motorized
wheelchairs. Off-road vehicles participating
in rallies or exhibitions sponsored by a
motorcycle club or association with member-
ships of 25 or more are exempt if they are
used solely for such events.
Licence plates for such vehicles went on
sale Feb. 1 and can be obtained at any motor
vehicle licensing office.
The one-time registration fee is S25. And,
vehicles cannot be registered to anyone
under 16 years of age. On registration.
owners will be supplied with a vehicle permit
and licence plate. the permit to be carried by
the driver at all times.
For two and three -wheeled vehicles, the
licence plate is to be mounted on the front of
the vehicle in plain view, facing forward. The
plate is to be mounted on the rear of four or
more wheeled vehicles.
In addition, as of Aug, i, vehicle liability
insurance will be required for all off-road
Rural areaswant
Rural municipalities are not being heard by
the Ontario government.
That was the general concensus taken from
task force hearings carried out throughout
the province last year.
Leader of the Opposition, David Peterson
told delegates of the Rural Ontario Munici-
palities Association (ROMA) at a Feb. 6
meeting in Toronto that hearings resulted in
one common theme.
"it i$ that the government is not listening
to rural Ontario, that it is taking rural Ontario
for granted. At every hearing, without
exception, we were told over and over again
that decisions are being taken at Queen's
Park without even an effort being made to
consult rural municipalities. There is a sense
that the rural perspective is not being heard
at the Cabinet table; that rural issues are not
getting the priority they deserve; that the
province is charting the future course with
little regard for the opinions of those who
placed primary emphasis on the need to
sustain a vibrant community lifestyle in a
rural context," he said.
in 1983, the task force was established to
hold hearings across Ontario, to listen to the
problems and concerns of rural communities
and visited 221 rural municip.alities.
Mr. Peterson retiortec to ROlidA members
that government concerns was a prominent
issue in most municipalities. In Goderich, he
explained, "we (the task force) were told of a
number of programs where the province had
initiated things and then left the municipality
to carry the ball. We were told that many of
these programs were good and necessary.
but that the municipality simply did not have
the funds or the assessment base to keep
them operating on a continuing basis. When
the province comes bearing gifts, they said,
we always know that their commitment is for
the short-term, or on an ad hoc basis and that
we will have to live with the long term
burden."
Many rural municipalities voiced concern
over the government s discussion paper on
Unconditional Grants. Municipalities sur-
veyed, indicated that government changes
were -being implemented without allowing
municipalities an opportunity to assess what
the impact of the changes would be.
Exeter residents indicated that they would
lose 34 per cent of their unconditional
transfer payments with the changes.
Mr. Peterson -stated, "In my view there is
not a single rural municipality in Ontario
which can afford to be a 'loser' in these days
of tight budgets and shrinking assessment
bases...Grants must not be changed arbitrar-
vehicles driven anywhere other than do land
owned or occupied by the vehicle owner.
Proof of insurance must be carried by the
driver.
The new regulations also specified as of
Feb. I, drivers, passengers and riders on a
conveyance towed by an off-road vehicle wear
regulation helmets. Helmets are not required
when operating on land owned or occupied by
the vehicle owner.
Persons under 12 are not permitted to drive
an off-road vehicle except on land owned or
occupied by the vehicle owner,
The vehicles may be driven directly across
selected highways, only if the driver has a
valid driver's licence.
Vehicles with three or more wheels may be
driven along a highway by a farmer when
used for a farming operation and displaying a
RECORDS
The records on the young offenders are to
be 'destroyed after a qualifying period to
ensure the offenders of a fresh start.
s • 0
According to Goderich Police Chief Pat
King, as the Act reads now, the police are
responsible for destroying all' records.
' We can't tell otherpeople to do it if we
send the records to them, therefore we'll
have t6 keep a check on what goes out to
where and when," Mr. King said.
If the records are not destroyed after the
qualifying period, those responsible will be
given a penalty.
UVIPLICATiONS
The major implications for the Children's
Services are the age change, wardship status
and legal procedures.
Under the 75 -year-old Juvenile Delinquent
Act, a child under the age of seven could net
be charged with a criminal offence. The new
Young Offenders' Acfhas raised the age to 12
as well as classifying a youth as a person
under the age of 18.
The terms 'for the wardship status are
absolute.
After the offender. does the specified
time, -no one can -interfere with their life.
W t the judges will:pprobab�lyy do is lace the
5ffaitirsirr"cusiody fal Med "a` chador
period;" said Ms. Belford.
The legal procedures not only specify
compelled attendance at court by parents,
but the Act is also strict on the admissibility of
evidence. There will be no opinion allowed in
court, only evidence.
There will also be extensive mandatory
ream ews done on the offenders finding out
where they are, how they are progressing and
where they should go from there.
Although the Young Offenders' Act seems
to be more rigid than the former act, it does
make all young people accountable for their
acts.
slow moving vehicle sign. However, the
driver must have a valid driver's licence.
Off-road vehicles cannot be driven along a
highway in any other circumstances.
Every person who drives one of these
vehicles without due care and attention or
without reasonable consideration for other
persons can now be charged with careless
driving. -
And, the owner of the vehicle, as well as
the driver, is responsible for violations of The
Off -Road Vehicles Ad and is liable for any
loss or damage to property.
Legislation of these vehicles was prompted
by the request of approximately 160 mbnici-
palities which were concerned for the safety
of the drivers, passengers and property
owners.
more attention
ily. We will continue to press for full
consultation and full disclosure."
NEW INDUSTRY
The hearings also found that many
municipalities are facing difficulty in attract-
ing new industry and employment. Mr.
Peterson explained, that the trend spells a
decrease in the assessment base, an absence
of new jobs and the wholesale emigration of
young people to larger centres where skills
may be learned and employment found.
He added, "In Smith Falls and Alexandria,
we were presented with a spectre which could
haunt rural communities across Ontario: an
aging population, a greater need for services,
a reduced assessment to support those
services - and no public policy actively
working to turn the tide. Local officials kept
repeating the need for locally based skills and
Manpower training."
in one -industry towns, the task force
committee was told that nothing meaningful
has been done to make the community's
existence less precarious and no efforts had
been made to stimulate diversification or
broaden the industrial base.
In Goderich the committee found that the
key to economic diversification is harbor
improvement. Mr. Peterson noted, "With
the closing of the Bluewater Centre for the
mentally retarded and the consequent loss of
jobs, the harbor project assumes even greater
importance."
The declining provincial share of education
costs was also an issue. in some communities
more than 80 per cent of the property -tax
dollar is spent on education.
The farming sector also expressed con-
cerns at the hearings. Mr. Peterson noted,
"...Every single agricultural representative
and farmer has impressed upon our party the
desperate need for government help to
bolster the farmers of this province."
Help, he noted, could came through the,
form of more capital assistance, interest
relief, help for young farmers and an
expanded Ole drainage program.
"Let me tell you," Mr. Peterson said. "if
the farming community is left to wither, rural
municipalities might as well call ittcurtains,
because that's What it will be. I want to
promise you that the needs of farmers will be
the centre -piece of the task force report."
The task force finding's will be presented
before the government and the committee
would continue to hear the voice of rural
Ontario.
THE EFFECT of soil texture and water
holding capacity on the emergence of white
beans was an indepth display by Gary
Martin at the Brussels Public School science
fair. Gary is holding a tray of beans which
have started to germinate. The fair was held
last Thursday. (Wassink photo)