Times Advocate, 1996-11-27, Page 5J
Times -Advocate, November 27, 1996 Page 5
Owners fight board's attempt to
compete in computer business
In justifying the fundraising effort of the Board of Education, Director
Paul Carroll said six schools in Huron County have been named as pos-
sibly slated for closure before the turn of the century
By Heather Mir
T -A Reporter
CLINTON.- Should private busi-
ness be forced to compete with the
Huron Board of Education for
computer sales and Internet ser-
vice?
This controversial topic reached a
boiling point last Tuesday after pri-
vate sector businesses voiced ob-
jections to the board's latest ven-
ture.
Nothing was
solved at the meeting
but a committee com-
prised of an equal
mix of business peo-
ple and school board
trustees will continue
discussion on the is-
sue.
The committee will
establish parameters
within which the
board's recently
formed corporations
may engage in fundraising ctiv
ities.
The boardroom for last Tuesday
night's special meeting was filled
to capacity and the participants
were informed the gathering would
be videotaped.
"The meeting was not chaired
properly and the issues at hand
were not dealt with," David An-
stett of Odyssey Network Inc. told
the T -A Friday.
Odyssey, an Internet Service Pro-
vider, sent a letter to the director
requesting a detailed listing of all
costs involved in setting up the
board's Internet connection as well
as ongoing costs. This information
was not provided to the public at-
tending the meeting.
The issue
Recently a virtual computer store
was set up by the board enabling it
to purchase computers direct from
the manufacturer for sale to stu-
dents, teachers and staff, Along
with the sale of these computers,
the board is providing low cost In-
ternet access
through a partner-
ship with HOME -
town, a non-profit
community ser-
vice provider.
"We are not sell-
ing computers to
the public," said
Director Paul Car-
roll who ex-
plained the sale of
computers to stu-
dents is an effort
to provide each
child in tt' - school system with a
computer by the year 2000.
A partnership has also been es-
tablished with the Bank of Mon-
trc i1, which will pit vide lu.ins for
computer purchases at prime rate.
The deadline for applications was
Nov. 15 and by last Tuesday one
computer had been sold, 10 ap-
plications were being processed
and five people were waiting for
financing."
The computer package includes
six months fee Hometown Internet
access. An added bonus is that a
portion of every Hometown sub -
"We have a lot of
small business
that need to at
least work in
conjunction with
the board of
education as
opposed to being
left behind."
scription is returned to support pro-
grams at your local school," states
a brochure sent home with a num-
ber of Huron students.
Private enterprise in Huron
County has voiced strong opposi-
tion to fundraising activities by the
board 'that would put it in direct
competition with the tax base that
helps support it.
"Should federal and provincial
grants be used to establish entities
which cannot sustain themselves
without allowing them to compete
directly with those who directly
provide the funds for such grant?"
asked Bill Wagner in his presenta-
tion to the board.
According to the board's legal
counsel, the education act states the
minister may pass regulations pro-
hibiting a specific board or all
boards from engaging in activities
that compete with private business.
"You may have misread it. That
section does not prohibit anything,"
Dan told the Coalition of Private
Business.
To date, the minister has not
passed such regulations but ac-
cording to Huron MPP Helen
Johns, the minister is concerned.
"It is a big concern," Johns told
the T -A on Thursday. "We have a
lot of small business that need to at
least work in conjunction with the
board of education as opposed to
being left behind."
Although a partnership has been
esti dished with a Wingham com-
puter store to provide some of the
equipment for sale, in a report to
the board Carroll states attempts to
establish partnerships with other
private business have failed.
"At the end of long discussions, it
,became clear that the private ISPs
(Internet Service Providers) wanted
only to 'sell' their services and not
to establish any kind of partnership
for mutual benefit."
Corporations
While at present the two corpora-
tions set up by the board, including
West Coast Enterprises and the
Huron Public Education Corpora-
tion, do not hold any funds, they
were set up for three reasons:
* to provide limited liability
* to permit flexibility in how
funds are dispersed, and
* to keep- operations at an arms
length from the board
What's the rush?
When asked what the hurry is in
acquiring new technologies in the
classroom and at home, Carroll ex-
plained low enrollment courses that
might otherwise be cancelled can
be saved through technology such
as video conferencing. He also cit-
ed competing with Catholic
Schools for enrollment in a time of
economic cutbacks as reason for
the drive to provide computers with
Internet access to students.
In an effort to make his point
clear, Carroll admitted six schools
in Huron County have been named
as possibly slated for closure before
the turn of the century.
According to information pro-
vided by the superintendent of busi-
ness Janet Baird -Jackson at least
four colleges in the Western Re-
gion also provide computers for
New initiative to stop illegal tobacco sales
OTTAWA - More than 30,000
convenience stores, pharmacies,` sti-
permarkets, gas stations, wholesal-
ers and trade associations have
joined in a major national initiative
to improve compliance with Cana-
da's laws prohibiting tobacco sales
to minors.
The Canadian Coalition for Re-
sponsible Tobacco Retailing
launched Operation I.D., which
calls on retailers to implement a
"zero tolerance" policy and to re-
quire proper identification before
selling tobacco products whenever
age is in question. Operation I.D. is
the largest effort of its kind ever
undertaken in Canada and is
backed by a broad coalition of stak-
eholders.
Retailers across the country will
begin receiving information and
training kits that provide a wide
range of point-of-purchase commu-
nication materials, such as posters,
cash register signs and counter dis-
plays. The in-store signs tell minors
they will be asked for proof of age
without fail. The kit also includes
materials that assist store operators
in training their employees on how
to implement a firm policy on ille-
gal tobacco sales.
Federal law makes it illegal for
any retailer to sell tobacco products
to persons less than 18 years of age.
Laws in a number of provinces
place this age at 19. Despite past ef-
forts to curb the problem, a recent
federal survey and a number of lo-
cal studies across the country have
found that minors are still able to
purchase tobacco with relatively lit-
tle difficulty.
' The unprecedented effort will
make headway by focusing on an
achieveable goal. A' part of the
program retailers sign a pledge that
they will ensure that proper identi-
news tip?
11 the Times -Advocate
1
RSP
1Yr. -3.15%
3 Yr. - 4.65%
5yr. -5.20%
fication is required when there is
any doubt about the, age` of a cus-
tomer: Requiring identification is
widely regarded as the most effec-
tive way to curtail tobacco sales to
minors.
Operation I.D. is endorsed by the
Canadian Association of Chiefs of
Police and is made possible
through funding provided by• the
Canadian Tobacco Manufacturers'
Council, the industry association
representing Canada's three major
tobacco manufacturers.
The members of the Coalition in-
clude: the Retail Council of Cana-
da, the Canadian Association of In-
dependent Grocers, the National
Association of Tobacco and Con-
fectionery Distributors, the Canadi-
an Council of Grocery Distributors,
the Ontario Convenience Store As-
sociation, the Ontario Korean Busi-
nessman's Association, the Canadi-
an Tobacco Manufacturers'
Council, the United Food and Com-
mercial. -Workers internaticMal'lin-
ion, the Retail Wholi sialel`CaWada/
USWA, and the Graphic Commuhi-
cations International Union.
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