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The Citizen, 1991-04-17, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17, 1991. Bd. of Ed. changes have Hullett parents worried About 75 concerned parents of Hullett Central Public School stu­ dents attended a meeting last Thursday evening to discuss the issue of student transfer and transportation policy changes with representatives of the Huron Coun­ ty Board of Education (HCBE) administration and trustees. Superintendent of Operations for HCBE Paul Carroll said the issue has arisen primarily over concerns the parents have about any pos­ sible decision or action the board may make about boundary changes. They are afraid, he said, their children may be forced to attend a school outside of the resident area. Controversy began after a report was released by the board inform­ ing parents of the serious problem of overcrowding and of govern­ ment-mandated bus route changes. The board listed a five-stage pro­ gressive sequence of plans for consideration. These included: re­ defining when the school is full, stopping the inflow of out-of-area students into the school, tidying up the bus routes and returning out-of-area students. The final suggestion was the revising of boundaries to move students out of Hullett and Huron Centennial into schools with space, like Clinton and Vanastra Public Schools. In providing background infor­ mation to the parents at the meeting. Mr. Carroll outlined the difficulties facing the board finan­ cially. “There is no doubt that the local tax bill is the greatest challenge in the board room,” he said. A bus route operation for one year is $30,000 while the average teacher is being paid $50,000 yearly. Cost of a portable classroom is $35,000 plus utilities for a total board cost of $115,000. Property activity was another area that concerned Mr. Carroll. In one year alone, there were 1,000 new places created in the county, he said. “You can imagine the implication that has.” Another statistic showed a pro­ jected population growth of 4,000 in the future. “The system is full now. We don’t have room for 4,000 more,” said Mr. Carroll. Since 1988, the board has been studying extensively the school space situation. In the spring of 1989, Mr. Carroll says they identi­ fied possible solutions to be imple­ mented over the course of a five to 10 year period. Some ideas, Mr. Carroll said, are pretty easy to take, like building additions, “but the minute you start talking about relocation there is lots of excitement." He explain­ ed about the Urban Analysis Study conducted by a group from Water­ loo on the board’s behalf and stated that their suggestion as the best solution was boundary changes. In a recommendation passed by the board it was decided to instead close the doors to any additional new enrollment from outside the school area. Also, Mr. Carroll has been authorized to begin an evalua­ tion of the bus routes so there are no longer any “free rides” for children attending Hullett, who live outside the area. With the new grant regulations handed down by the government effective July 1. the buses, he said, will be full anyway. What this means is that transfer students presently coming to Hullett Central from Clinton, for example, will still be able to attend if they wish, but must find their own transportation. Mr. Carroll expects this will lead to a change in enrollment at Hullett, estimating that about two-thirds of those affected won’t su-fer the inconven­ ience. In an interview after the meet­ ing, Mr. ( arroll said these parent, are obviously ton erned, but f< 1 ,omewhal hclples* . ||<- ',;ik| wh j the enrollment was approved for their children to attend Hullett it was on the stipulation that there would be no extra cost to the board. With the new transportation grants and the space problem this would no longer be the case. He believes that these changes will quite likely address the over­ crowding issue at Hullett, but if not, other alternatives will have to be considered. Only, he added. with considerable opportunity for public input. Mr. Carroll said, in his opinion, there were a number of parents not satisfied with the information pro­ vided at the meeting, but he has promised to modify or amend the report so its intent is clearer. “My wording of Section 5 of the report I admitted was unclear. It got action, which is what the trustees wanted, but I promised to clarify the recommendation and the status of students of Hullett Central and Huron Centennial for parents.” Section 5 noted the impacts on the schools but did not state they were only proposals. Hullett trustee John Jewitt was satisfied with the outcome. “I think people listened to the reasons why boundary changes are being dis­ cussed and now have an under­ standing of why,” he said. “I know I. have a better understanding of things that the people involved won’t stand for.” He stated that it has been made plain to him that those concerned will not support boundary changes should the issue arise again in the future, but as of one of 16 trustees it is his opinion that it won’t come to that. “Everyone made their feelings known and I know the direction I have to go,” he said.