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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-12-10, Page 5Education 1 GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 0, 1986—PAGE 5 Loss of tw trustees will keenly felt y oard Despite our petitions to the Provincial Government, at the December meeting of the Huron County Board of Education we lost our two separate school represen- tatives. The Chairman of the Board, Art Clark, aptly expressed the discourage- ment likening it to an amputation, which it V' C..-- iv Eitc •-t;l hive :.LL iiv-e.),. As there is no enabling legislation to per - nut them to stay on the public board now that the Huron -Perth Separate School Board is -constituted to provide•secondary education to its constituents, we were com- pelled, by law, to say our good-byes. It was a loss we all keenly felt as it marks a significant change in the complexion of the Board and is the harbinger, in my opinion, of many changes which must be con- stituted by the province if it is to make any sense of the burgeoning bureaucracies developing as the result of recentt legislation. Likewise, established patterns of representation are no longer deemed ap- propriate and with the implementation of Bill 30 (extension of funding for separate school boards) and Bill 75 (which permits French language representation of Boards where numbers warrant) the integrity of the electoral process is diminished in many communities. The McDonald Commission Report on the financing of elementary and secondary education gives us some sense of what direction the province may now take. Regarding school board structures, the Commission recommends the amalgama- tion of some boards (London/Middlesex being an example close to home) and the review of the geographic jurisdictions of •other boards. A Huron -Perth connection would probably make sense to a policy maker sitting in his Toronto office. Another recommendation in this report would permit the integration of school boards and, in the process, develop systems to provide public, Roman Catholic and in some areas French -language schools under one jurisdiction. On the heels of this Report and reaffirm- ing its direction, the Ministry of, Education has published a Research Brief on Trustee Apportionment for Ontario School Boards which uses Huron County as an example of an area where public and separate school boards are not identical in terms of the municipalities they encompass and recom- mends': 'That, in order to foster stability of representation and identification, boun- daries of boards of education and Roman Catholic separate school boards be coter- minous wherever possible.' On November 13, the Ministry announced the formation of a Joint Committee on Trustee Distribu- tion to study this commissioned report. Another recommendation that could significantly, alter the voting traditions of communities. is the establishment of 'elec- toral districts' .for which a maximum' of two trustees may be elected. The fashion- ing of electoral districts may require the breaching of municipal boundaries and could affect the integrity of the community affected though in theory these districts are to be designed to reflect communities of interest. TRUSTEE TALK Juan Van den Broeck Current apportionment of trustees is determined by residential and farm assessment. It is suggested that a new model is needed recommending that equalized residential and farm assessment •discarded in favour of determining trustee representation based on some measure of population. Such a measure could be quite disruptive in an agriculture - driven county such as Huron as any mark- ed change in trustee representation could further distance the relationship between the trustee and the rural community school. Although these proposed changes are still in the formative stage and the final work is yet to be put on the table, my prediction for 1987 is that waves of change will continue to sweep across the floor of the Legislature as it attempts to put the ad- ministration of education back on course, addressing the impact of the significant changes it has unleashed. Clark chairman for board of ed CLINTON - Unanimous choice at the Huron County Board of Education (HCBE) December meeting saw the re -instatement of the chairman and committee heads for another year term. Art Clark was unchallenged in his bid to return to the chairman's seat for the ensuing year. First elected.to the HCBE in 1982, he has served as chairman for the past year and previous to that was vice chairman of the board for two years. In 1987 Mr. Clark will be assisted at the helm by Vice Chairman John Jewitt. He was unanimously re-elected by board members to the position. • Other unanimous appointments came in the re-election of Joan Van den Broeck as head of the education committee and Graeme Craig, chairman of the personnel committee. With the retirement of Catholic trustee Eugene Frayne, Donald McDonald was chosen as executive committee member -at - large. He was elected by board members in a secret ballot vote. Sally Bothwell was also nominated for this position. In his remarks to the board Mr. Clark noted, feel this I oard has a special flavor, a mix of filen'and women, a good blend of new and experienced. members." He congratulated board members on their efforts to work together, noting, "The issues have been the important things. Personalities have not entered into the discussion or the decisions." 6,40.4i1r, Christmas Camera SPECIALS • In-store .:• discounts •Kodak Cash Back •Free Film and Batteries •Photofinishing .Discounts GODERICH 524-4840 Suncoast Mall CLINTON 482-9494 Across from Shiral's EXETER 235-1612 Next to Mac's Milk Catholic representatives on the Huron County Board of Education are being phased out with Bill 30 legislation. Board members bid fond farewells to Dennis Rau (left) and Eugene Frayne Iright) this month. Board chairman Art Clark (centre) thanked the trustees for the years of service that they have given to education in Huron County. (Shelley McPhee Haist photo) Trustees bid farewell to members CLINTON - Huron County Board of Educa- tion (HCBE) trustees bid their farewells to fellow members Eugene Frayne and Dennis Rau at the December board meeting. Catholic representatives Frayne and Rau are no longer eligible to sit on the public school board with the enactment of new government legislation - Bill 30. The controversial Bill 30 outlines that after the end of the first year in which a Roman Catholic School Board, in this case the Huron - Perth Board, performs the duties of a secon- dary school board, no member elected by separate school electors is eligible to be a member of a public board (that is, the Huron Board of Education) that has the same or part of the same areas of jurisdiction as the Roman Catholic School Board. Eugene Frayne sat on the Huron County Board of Education for 10 years. He represented separate school supporters in the Townships of Colborne, McKillop, Hallett, Ashfield, West and East Wawanosh, Grey, Morris, Turnberry, Howick, the Towns of Goderich, Seaforth, Wingham, Villages of Blyth and Brussels. Dennis Rau was a board member for five years. He represented separate school sup- porters for the Townships. of Stephen, Usborne, Hay, Stanley, Tuckersmith and Goderich, Towns of Exeter and Clinton, Villages of Zurich, Hensall and Bayfield. HCBE Chairman Art Clark said of Mr. Frayne and Mr. Rau, "Losing these two members on the board, I feel like we're be- ing amputated. We still have the same work to do in this county, but we lose two very valuable members." ' Mr. Frayne told board members that he would give "no tear jerker" farewell speech. He noted, "I leave here with a lot of good memories and a lot of satisfaction." He commented on the "co-operative good- will" that was evidenced between the separate and public sectors on the HCBE. As chairman of the board, one of his main goals was to develop good co-operation and liasion between the two groups. He said he felt that this task had been successful. Dennis Rau echoed similar sentiments in his farewell speech to the board. He noted, "I came to the board thinking that a Catholic representative on a public board would be a hassle, but the support and respect that I have received was unbelievable." • Presentations were made to both members, along with standing ovation tributes. As of the government legislation which forces the retirement of separate trustees from public boards, former Hcpts member Frank Falconer best summed up the situation when he noted to board members, "It's like snow on a tin roof. You might as well stand back and let it go." The HCBE has voiced its opposition to Bill 30 m letters to Minister of Education Sean Conway. A most recent letter from the Mr. Conway notes, "....there is no way short of an amendment•to the Education Act to. prevent the separate school representatives on the Huron County Board of Education from becoming ineligible to sit on January 1,1987." YOU GET INTEREST PLUS... 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Copies of the report will be sent to you if you will supply your name to the Informa- tion Officer. the negotiations betvteyen the elementary teachers and the trustees of the board has submitted a report Flo the Commission. As required under Section 26 (1) of the School Boards and Teachers Collective Negotiations Act, Revised Statutes of On- tario, 1980, the teachers and trustees now have a period of 15 days for further negotiations on the basis of this report. NEW YEAR'S EVE with "Brenden Gillam" TICKETS: 530. per couple. Includes Hot and Cold buffet, novelties (hats, horns, etc.) champagne at midnight. RESERVE NOW - TICKETS ARE LIMITED! Special OUR OWN PIZZA Our ONE GET SECOND 1/2 HARBOUR LIGHTS RESTAURANT & TAVERN HIGHWAY 21 - BAYFIELD 565-2554 OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK 8 A.M.-1 A.M. 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