Peter Marshall opened the Boyne school in 2015 and built the school’s culture on three concepts: Work hard, be nice, and make a difference.

News 100 yellowBy Staff

January 31st, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Peter Marshall, Principal of Boyne Public School in Milton, has been named one of Canada’s Outstanding Principals for 2018 by The Learning Partnership, an organization which honours the unique and vital contribution of principals in publicly-funded schools.

Peter Marshal - HDSB

Peter Marshall opened the Boyne school in 2015 and built the school’s culture on three concepts: Work hard, be nice, and make a difference.

“Peter Marshall is a dedicated leader who puts student success and happiness first,” says Stuart Miller, Director of Education for the Halton District School Board. “His desire to ensure students, staff and the community come together to provide an inclusive learning environment where students feel welcome and encouraged speaks to his leadership and teamwork skills. He joins a group of outstanding principals and educators from the Halton District School Board who have received this award.”

Each year, 40 principals across the country are recognized for demonstrating innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and for their remarkable efforts toward improving public education. Recipients attend a five-day executive leadership training program at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management in late February.

“It is an honour to be recognized by The Learning Partnership,” says Marshall. “It is humbling to read some of the kind comments written by students, families and staff about the work we have been doing at Boyne Public School. There are so many wonderful administrators within our Board and this really is an indication of the great work throughout the Halton District School Board. I feel very fortunate to be in an amazing school with terrific children, supportive families and hard-working staff.”

Marshall’s nomination was supported by students, parents, school staff and colleagues.

In the nomination package sent to The Learning Partnership, parents of students at Boyne Public School described Marshall as someone who enables their children to realize their full potential and contribute to society in meaningful ways. Students said Marshall continuously strives to improve their learning environment and teaches them the importance of connecting with others and that one simple action can impact a community for the better.

Under Marshall’s leadership, Boyne Public School opened in September 2015. He built the school’s culture on three concepts: Work hard, be nice, and make a difference. Students, staff and parents credit this culture for fostering an environment that is a welcoming and caring place for children.

Staff members speak about Marshall’s ability to promote progress and engage educators in their capacity to effect positive change and growth. His colleagues say his knowledge of the curriculum and research-based practice is driven by caring and empathy, which results in his effective leadership style.

Andrea Taylor +

Loui Silvestri and Andrea Taylor were named Outstanding Principals in 2017

This is the fourth consecutive year Halton District School Board principals have received a Canada’s Outstanding Principals award: Alka Sahai (2015), Michelle Newlands (2016), and Loui Silvestri and Andrea Taylor (both 2017). The Learning Partnership invites nominations of outstanding principals from school boards, colleagues, parents, teachers, students and community members.

The Learning Partnership is a national charity dedicated to enhancing publicly-funded education to prepare students in Canada for a globally connected world by building partnerships between government, education and business.

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HDSB Board Superintendent of Education Rob Eatough will address LGBTQI2S+ youth at Milton high school.

News 100 blueBy Staff

January 26th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Halton District School Board is hosting the 2018 HDSB Secondary GSA Student Conference on Tuesday, February 13, 2018 at Milton District High School (396 Williams Ave, Milton).

Rainbow flagThe all-day event, with the theme Queering Valentines, begins at 9 a.m. with a marketplace of community partner displays including the Positive Space Network, the Canadian Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity and Egale Canada.

The conference features keynote speaker Teddy Syrette, a two-spirited genderqueer activist. Board Superintendent of Education Rob Eatough will also address the conference.

Organized for students and by students, the day offers LGBTQI2S+ youth and allies the opportunity to connect, converse and create with each other. Facilitated conversation spaces throughout the day include Inclusion in Sports, Trans Inclusive Environments, LGBTQI2S+ Literature, Spoken Word Workshop, and Indigenous and Two-Spirit Perspectives.

This conference is one way the Halton District School Board ensures all Halton schools are positive spaces that welcome, recognize, and respect diverse genders and sexualities.

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District school board recognizes nine for 'inspiring students.

News 100 redBy Staff

January 19th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Halton District School Board has Inspire Awards for people who go above and beyond to support students in the School Board.

Everyone in the Halton District School Board community can nominate or be nominated – families, neighbours, related organizations, staff, students and school volunteers.

The Inspire Award is given to an individual or group that is formally or informally associated with the Halton District School Board, who support our students and their achievements through exemplary caring, initiative, innovation and creativity.

Recipients choose where they receive their award, so some choose the monthly Board meeting, while others choose to receive the award at their school or workplace or in the mail, if they wish. This month, three out of the nine recipients chose to receive the award at the January Board meeting while others have chosen to receive it at other locations this month.

HDSB Inspire awards

Pictured with trustees and director of education are ( L-R) Brian Vincent and Amy Abbott from TA Blakelock and Juliann Rosizky, itinerant EA and occasional teacher.

The following Inspire Awards recipients will have their awards presented at their school or workplace, as requested:

Kyle Kennery, child youth counsellor (CYC) at McKenzie-Smith Bennett PS
CYC at MSB displaying deep caring for students. He ran a floor hockey club, basketball club; always making himself available to students. (Award at MSB)

Lorna Brooks, volunteer at McKenzie-Smith Bennett PS
Lorna has volunteered for many years on the School Council and by helping with the Nutrition Program, always with a friendly smile. (Award at MSB)

Andrew Strachan, volunteer at Ethel Gardiner PS
Volunteered with tremendous support for Hungry Bears Breakfast Program supported by Halton Food for Thought. The program has run five days per week since 2008. (Award at Ethel Gardiner PS)

Marge Anderson, volunteer at Ethel Gardiner PS
Volunteered with tremendous support for Hungry Bears Breakfast Program, supported by Halton Food for Thought. Program has ran since 2008, five days per week. (Award at Ethel Gardiner PS)

Steve Feltz, teacher at Bruce Trail PS
He helps students see the value in striving for success, the benefit of being involved and bringing out the best in his students and helping students gain confidence. (Award at Bruce Trail PS)

Diane Vandenbossche, representative for the Learning Disabilities Association of Halton (LDAH) on the Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC)
Diane has been the LDAH rep on SEAC for many years, and is a strong advocate and voice for children with special education needs. (Awarded at SEAC meeting).

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Library and Sound of Music hook up -

eventsred 100x100By Staff

January 18th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

SoM + BPL graphicBurlington Public Library and the Sound of Music Festival are excited to announce a new partnership.

Starting in January, free music and art education workshop series begins. They are called: Taking It to the Streets, designed for kids ages 9 to 12:

Sun January 21: Body Percussion Level 2 with Sheldon De Souza

Create music from nothing to something! Turn a zipper into a scratching turntable. A bottle for a cowbell. Clap, tap or stomp in a pattern. Use multiple voices to layer and create impact.

Sun February 11: Creative Arts with Rosalinde Pecino

Rosalinde Pecino

Rosalinde Pecino will show people how to explore the world of imagination and artistic expression.

This workshop is an opening into the magical realm of creative arts using a series of exercises focusing on play, discovery, relationship, and expression. Together, with the help of the arts, we explore the world of imagination and artistic expression!

Sun April 8: Body Percussion Level 2 with Sheldon De Souza

Sun May 27: Theme to be announced

Sessions run 1.30-3pm. To register for any one or all of the Taking It to the Streets music education workshops @Central, please visit Sound of Music Festival. Space is limited. Maximum 20 children. There is no cost to attend but pre-registration is required.

Questions about the workshops? Contact Elizabeth Gomez, Chair, Music Education, Sound of Music Festival, 905.334.2241.

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Day care facilities at the two high schools being closed are being set up at different schools.

News 100 yellowBy Pepper Parr

January 16th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The process of closing the two Burlington high schools begins.

Some good new – the Ministry of Education is providing capital funding for the relocation of two existing child care programs.

pearson-nursery-playgropund-full

What was a purpose built school that included an additional gymnasium is going to be hard to replace.

Pearson Co-operative Nursery School will move from Lester B. Pearson High School to Brant Hills Public School in Burlington.

The Lord Elgin YMCA Child Care Centre will move from Robert Bateman High School to Frontenac Public School in Burlington.

The provincial government will provide funding for these two projects. Brant Hills Public School will receive $771,381 to upgrade facilities, and Frontenac Public School will receive $1,028,508.

For both these relocated child care programs, the capital funding will be used to retrofit underutilized spaces.
Scott Podrebarac, Superintendent of Education who handled the PARC’s and with responsibility for Early Years/Child Care Liaison in the Halton District School Board said: the funding “allows us to work with two long-standing, established child care programs to increase the number of child care spaces in our community and serve more families.”

The design phases for the Pearson Co-operative Nursery School are complete and the new space will open at Brant Hills Public School in September 2018.

How many of the parents currently using the Pearson facilities will want to or be able to use the new location.
Renovations to Frontenac Public School are in the preliminary design stages and the opening date for the Lord Elgin YMCA Child Care Centre will be announced at a later date.

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Art Gallery video - a nice look at what the Art Gallery has to offer.

artsorange 100x100By Staff

January 15th,2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Everyone knows we have an Art Gallery. A significant number of people attend events at the Gallery. Hundreds of young people take courses and hundreds more seniors are active participants in the Guilds.

art etc video

Some of the Art Etc retail operation at the Art Gallery of Burlington.

The Art Etc shop offers the best selection of arts and craft related products in the city. The quality is close to unsurpassed.

The Gallery has its supporters – they are loyal and generous and the funds they provide are needed.

Utter Morris, a Burlington based insurance agency that has been in business since 1927, underwrote the cost of a short video – it is part story about the Gallery, and an appreciation of what the Gallery has to offer and a bit of a look at how the place works.

Hopefully the Tourism department will make use of it and perhaps the developers of all those high rise condominiums can use the material in their sales presentations.

It’s worth looking at – CLICK for the link.

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Were social license or civic space part of the decision to close two Burlington high schools ?

opinionandcommentBy Rory Nisan

January 14th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

What is democracy?

Is it a single act, an election every four years?

Certainly, that is one part of democracy, an essential but not sufficient component. Without the ability to have the final word on our leadership through a free and fair vote, and the ability to do so in a human rights-based system, with freedoms of association and expression, we do not have democracy.

However, a vote every four years does not guarantee that leaders will listen to their constituents in the long gaps between elections.

Is democracy a decision made by an elected representative?

Trustees - fill board +

Halton District School Board trustees in session

When that person is balancing the values and interests of their constituents, the sum total of decisions is certainly an important aspect of democracy.

Yet, individual decisions by representatives can nevertheless be anti-democratic if they are taken for other reasons, such as payback to political, union, private or corporate interests who have funded their campaign, or to further professional goals (promotion, a future private sector career, fear of disagreeing with a senior bureaucrat).

Is democracy the social licence given to leaders from civil society?

Licences carry responsibilities to be maintained. They are only given when tests are passed. They can be revoked. Social licence is critical to democracy.

Is democracy a function of civic space?

When a society has the room it needs to engage in decisions that affect it — and it fills that space with collective action, we have the strongest democracies.

As far as the decision to close Pearson and Bateman High School is concerned, we do not believe that civic space was respected; nor was any social licence given to trustees to make that decision. We were then let down a second time by an Administrative Review process that supported the decision of the trustees despite noting several flaws in the process. We expected a better outcome based on the consultations we had with the facilitator and the numerous violations of policy we had uncovered.

Miller Diane addressing Wilson HDSB

Administrative Review Facilitator Margaret Wilson listening to Diane Miller.

Yet, while there are errors and omissions in the Administrative Review report, our battle was never with the facilitator, because the true letdown was a Program and Accommodation Review (PAR) that was so deeply flawed that the Premier had to put a halt to all PARs shortly after ours was completed.

Second, the original sin was committed by trustees who voted against our schools in the first place; they did so against strong evidence as well as the wishes of a clear majority of constituents. And we cannot forget one trustee whose failure of leadership all but ensured the closure of Pearson High School.

The community will bear the consequences of these errors for years to come, and the “divide and conquer” approach to community engagement of the Halton District School Board and the PAR process has left the Burlington community divided.

Has democracy failed us?

It has been said that democracy is the worst system of government, except for all of the other ones, and we certainly feel that way at the moment.

Still, we need to expand our horizons in reflecting on this encounter with democracy, politics, interests and values. Because while Burlington is going to be worse off as a result of the school closures, we have made strides in improving democracy as well as local and provincial governance as a result of the actions taken.

We stood up for what we believed in and proved that decisions in Burlington and Halton cannot be taken lightly in the future. We did so by protesting in the middle of winter, by putting up signs and getting signatures, and so many other activities to get our voices heard. We will also make sure that future decisions are better made, by supporting candidates for trustees later this year who understand the foolishness of the decisions taken, who will actually read our emails and who have the analytical and leadership skills that our community deserves.

rory shot

Rory Nisan

We engaged the province in our fight, pulling no punches in confronting Premier Wynne with our plight. She took notice, as did Education Minister Hunter, as did MPP McMahon. As a result of our tireless conviction, and that of other citizen groups around the province, Wynne put a hold on all PAR processes, thereby admitting that they have failed Ontarians. It was too late for our schools because our PAR process had concluded, but it may save many others.

Furthermore, Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown has promised to stop all school closures should he be elected on June 7, in part because of our advocacy, meaning our collective efforts could have an even bigger impact across the province.

We also exposed the flaws in the decision and in the process, so when a new system of reviewing schools is developed they will have a “worst practice”, which has been carefully documented by our teams, upon which to draw.

Importantly, we also learned how to advocate for our community: how to push our objectives in the media, how to go door-to-door for signatures, how to build momentum, how to convince people to get involved. These democracy skills are ours to keep.

And finally, we gained enthusiasm. We will not go home. We will continue to advocate for Burlington’s children when they are confronted with bad ideas from un- elected bureaucrats who have forgotten that they were not elected, or from elected representatives who have forgotten how to represent.

Several years down the road, when the Director of Education has moved on to a new position, and most or all of the trustees have been voted out or retired, we will still be in Burlington, fighting for our kids.

And by holding our elected officials’ feet to the fire and never giving up on what we believe in, we will be agents of change, and create a better Burlington.

rory closeupRory Nisan is a long-time Burlington resident and Lester B. Pearson High School alumnus. He has been an active member of the Save Pearson community organization, serves on the City of Burlington’s Mundialization Committee, and is co-creator and co-organizer of the One Burlington Festival, which brings together Burlingtonians of different faiths and cultures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Civic engagement - Timbits style. Bold indeed!

News 100 yellowBy Staff

January 12th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The city goes to great lengths to engage its citizens – the are using social media much more and reporting significant reach into the community.

That reach isn’t reflected in the level of public awareness of just what the city has planned for the various neighborhoods in the downtown core.
If you are a Timbits type you may have noticed the public message that scrolls across the screens in some of the locations.

Grpw Bold - community engagement

Civic engagement – Timbits style.

Intriguing – not sure if the city pays for the space on the screen or if the franchise owner runs the video as a public service message.

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Conservation issues weather conditions notice - rising water in the creek system.

News 100 blueBy Staff

January 12, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Flood conditions - yellowWith weather all over the map we plan for what we are told the weather is going to be during the day and know that it will probably change significantly before the end of the day.

A major dump of show on the weekend and rain three days later that washes much of the snow away.

One day you could have worn shorts and sat out on a patio and the next day you need those mitts.

The recent rain has added to the water flooding into the creeks creating safety concerns.

The Conservation Authority has issued a Watershed Conditions Statement advising that Environment Canada is forecasting rainfall that will continue into Friday. Expected amounts will range between 10 to 20 mm with higher amounts possible in localized areas.

Kids near winter water

Not what you want children to be doing – especially if they are unsupervised. Caution.

Based on the forecast of mild temperatures and rainfall, combined with the partial melt of our existing snowpack, we may experience an increase in flows and water levels in our creeks throughout Halton. In addition, the snowpack melt may contribute to blockages at bridges and culverts and produce localized flooding concerns in low lying areas.

Widespread flooding is not currently anticipated. Our reservoirs are currently at winter holding levels which allows for larger storage capacity for circumstances of this nature.

Conservation Halton is asking all residents and children to stay off ice covered bodies of water and keep a safe distance from all watercourses and structures such as bridges, culverts and dams. Elevated water levels, fast flowing water, and slippery conditions along stream banks continue to make these locations extremely dangerous. Please alert children in your care of these imminent dangers.

This Watershed Condition Statement will be in effect through to Saturday January 13, 2018.

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Report confirms Board followed its process for Burlington PAR - school closure plans will now move at full speed.

News 100 blueBy Staff

January 11th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

With the headline : Report confirms Board followed its process for Burlington PAR, the school board gets on with the changes that were voted in by the school board trustees – close the Lester B. Pearson high school at the end of the 2018 school year and close the Bateman high school in 2020

“The Administrative Review report regarding the Burlington Secondary Program and Accommodation Review (PAR) process from the Ministry of Education concludes the Halton District School Board followed its process for the Program and Accommodation review of Burlington secondary schools.

“This report does not change the Board of Trustees’ decision from June 7, 2017 to close Lester B. Pearson High School and Robert Bateman High School.

“The report contains recommendations by the provincially-appointed, independent facilitator Margaret Wilson, who undertook a review of the Board’s Burlington secondary accommodation review process in November and December 2017.

Margaret Wilson PAR Admin Review

Margaret Wilson, Facilitator of the Administrative Review of the process used to close two of the city’s seven high schools apparently didn’t see any serious flaws in the process used.

“While there are suggestions for improving the process in the future, the report’s conclusion states: “Based on my review and consultations, I conclude that, while there were violations of the Board PAR Policy, they were such that they had no material effect on either the deliberations of the PARC or on the final decisions of the Board.”

Miller prep at Central

HDSB Director of Education Stuart Miller at a Central high school meeting.

“We appreciate the comprehensive nature of this review,” says Stuart Miller, Director of Education for the Halton District School Board. “We are pleased to see the recommendations in the report and we will review our Program and Accommodation Review Policy to ensure these recommendations are considered for the future.”

“With the conclusion of this review, we will continue our work toward building new school communities, and our focus on positive transitions for students, their families, staff and the community,” adds Miller. “We are committed to working with our school communities to ensure the smoothest possible transition.”

There are two very disappointed groups of parents in Burlington but the deal is done and the task now is to work to make the transition as smooth as possible.

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Public school board now taking kindergarten registrations for the September 2018 school year

News 100 yellowBy Staff

January 11th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

The Gazette asked the Board staff which dates have been established for Kindergarten registration in the different areas and were told that”many elementary schools would establish their own Kindergarten registration times and that it was more “more conducive for parents to contact the school in their area for specific times to attend. Also, some schools have started tweeting registration times.

The Halton District School Board wants to do a head count – how many of the little darlings are going to show up at elementary schools across the Region.

Students at Lincoln Centennial public school. Ontario school boards are struggling to find low-cost options to school additions to accommodate full-day kindergarten. Some options may include bussing kids. Reading are Heyley Ta and Zeynep Coskan-Johnson. Feb 21 2013. Bob TYmczyszyn/St. Catharines Standard/QMI AGENCY

The beginning of an education.

The School Board is now accepting registrations for Junior (JK – Year 1) and Senior (SK – Year 2) Kindergarten for September 2018. Parents are advised to visit or call their local elementary school to find out which dates have been established for Kindergarten registration in their area. Parents and guardians are asked to register their child by February 2, 2018. Children can access the school library once they have registered.

Please take the following original documents when registering:

• Proof of address (any two of the following current documents): lease or deed, car registration, utility bill, residential telephone bill, moving bill, property tax bill, bank statement, credit card statement, correspondence with a government agency

• Proof of age: birth certificate or passport or baptismal/faith record for your child
• Proof of citizenship: birth certificate or passport, Record of Landing (IMM 1000) or Permanent Resident card

If you are not the child’s parent, or if you have sole custody, please bring proof of custody (court order).
To register for Fall 2018, Junior Kindergarten (Year 1) children must be four years old by December 31, 2018, and Senior Kindergarten (Year 2) children must be five years old by December 31, 2018.

To determine your home school, refer to “Find My Local School” under the Schools section on the Board website at www.hdsb.ca.

If you require language assistance to register your child for school, please contact the Halton Multicultural Council at 905-842-2486. Parents should contact the principal/vice-principal of their school if they require accessibility accommodations to register their child for Kindergarten.

To learn more about the Halton District School Board’s Kindergarten Program, refer to the ‘Parents’ section of the Board website and click on ‘Kindergarten’.

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Wilson: Based on my review and consultations, I conclude that, while there were violations of the Board PAR Policy, they were such that they had no material effect on either the deliberations of the PARC or on the final decisions of the Board. Respectfully submitted,

News 100 redBy Pepper Parr

January 10th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

It is a 39 page report, it is close to exhaustive. Margaret Wilson, the Facilitator appointed by the province to carry out an Administrative Review of the process used by the Halton District school Board to arrive at it’s decision to close two of the city’s seven high schools: Lester B.Pearson and Robert Bateman.

The report needs a close reading before any analysis can be done.  Not that all the analysis in the world will make any difference.

This was a decision made by the elected trustees – the only recourse is to elect different trustees – you get a chance to do that in June of this year.

The Wilson report:

The Honourable Mitzie Hunter Minister of Education

900 Bay Street 22nd Floor Toronto, M7A 1L2

Re: Independent Facilitator’s Report on the Burlington Secondary Program and Accommodation Review, Halton District School Board.

Dear Minister:

On October 10, 2017, your Ministry appointed me as the Independent Facilitator to conduct an Administrative Review of the Program and Accommodation Review Process undertaken in the City of Burlington. The Board’s Review was focused on the seven secondary schools in Burlington.

My appointment was in response to 2 petitions, one dated July 5, 2017 regarding Lester B. Pearson High School and the other, dated July 6, 2017 regarding Robert Bateman High School. The two petitions request an Administrative Review of the Program and Accommodation Review (PAR) of 7 City of Burlington secondary schools. The PAR was conducted by the Halton District School Board between October 19, 2016 and June 7, 2017, the date on which the Board made its final decision. The PAR Committee was formed on December 1, 2016 and held its last meeting on March 17, 2017.

The PAR led to a series of Board decisions on June 7, 2017, including decisions to close Robert Bateman High School and Lester B. Pearson High School. The focus of both the Bateman H.S and Pearson H.S. petitions is on the process which led to the decisions and on the propriety of the decision making process.

In conducting this Review, I received excellent support from Tom Adams, Education Officer with the Toronto and Area Regional Office of the Ministry of Education. I appreciated the co-operation in the process of Trustees, Board Senior Staff and support staff, Principals of the 7 schools, the Ipsos facilitator, members of the Burlington Secondary PARC, a Student Trustee and a Student Senator, petitioners, parents and members of the community. All were generous with their time, frank in their views and had a deeply felt interest in the education of Burlington’s children. In addition to my meetings with participants in the PAR I viewed, on the Board website, all of the Board Meetings during which the Burlington PAR was discussed and or debated. After my meetings with the PARC and the Petitioners I received several letters, on a g-mail account which we had set up, which are germane to how the process worked. In addition, I received a phone call from the Mayor of Burlington.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

 HALTON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD

 Burlington Secondary School Program and Accommodation Review

The Facilitator will be responsible for the Administrative Review of the Program and Accommodation Review undertaken by the Halton District School Board of the seven secondary schools in the City of Burlington.

SCOPE OF THE REVIEW

 The Independent Facilitator shall be responsible for:

  • Determining whether the Halton District School Board followed its Board approved program and accommodation review process in conducting the Review of Burlington secondary schools;
  • Reviewing formal documentation, interviewing relevant participants including PARC members, petitioners and board staff;
  • Submitting a written report to the Minister of Education upon completion of the Review

PROCESS OF THE REVIEW

 The Independent Facilitator will consult the Senior Board Staff, the Trustees, the PARC and the Petitioners. She will also visit each of the schools which were under Review.

REPORTING TO THE MINISTER

 The report should be in the form of a letter to the Minister, indicating whether the program and accommodation review process followed the Board’s Program and Accommodation Review Policy. The report will include recommendations for improvement in the Board’s Program and Accommodation Review Policy and/or Processes.

The Minister is responsible for making the Facilitator’s findings available to the Board and the public in a timely manner.

BOARD PROFILE AND DESCRIPTION OF SCHOOLS

The Halton District School Board is responsible for public English language education in the Halton Region, the only Region in the Greater Toronto Area which is not immediately adjacent to Toronto. The Region includes the City of Burlington and the Towns of Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills. Oakville and Burlington are largely urban while Milton and Halton Hills to the north have large rural areas within their boundaries. The Board is organized into three areas, East (Oakville) North (Halton Hills and Milton) and West (Burlington). The Board is responsible for 102 schools, 84 elementary and 18 secondary.

Secondary schools in the Halton District School Board offer a similar core program consisting of subjects such as English, Mathematics, Science and other core subjects which are required for graduation. Schools also offer a variety of optional courses in areas such as the Arts, Technology, Physical and Health Education, Business, Modern Languages, the Social Sciences and Humanities. Every school offers some Specialist High Skills Majors (SHSMs). These provide an additional concentration of learning in a specific career area. The Board has the highest percentage of students enrolled in SHSMs in the Province.

The availability of a wide range of courses in a particular school is dependent on the size of the school population. Secondary school programs/courses are organized with students’ post High School direction in mind. In terms of Special Education, most students with special needs receive in-school support so that they can attend regular classes in their home schools. Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are developed to ensure that support, curriculum and instruction are individualized.

The concept of Pathways tries to ensure that students are able to take the specific courses required for entry to their chosen Pathway (e.g. workplace, university, college, community and/or apprenticeship) when they graduate. Providing the appropriate core courses can become challenging when, as is the case at Robert Bateman, the grade 9 intake drops to only 75 students.

The Board also offers Regional Programs. Regional programs are not offered in every school. Two of them, ACCESS and LEAP are designed to assist at risk grade 8 students who will benefit from an intensively assisted exposure to secondary school while still in grade 8. The Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Programs (OYAP) is offered in a small number of Halton secondary schools. Some schools also offer Dual Credit programs in which students achieve both a secondary school credit and a Community College Credit. Mohawk and Sheridan Colleges are partners in these programs. French Immersion and Extended French programs are also options for students. The Board has specific programs for gifted students. Each area of the Board also has a regional English as a Second Language (ESL) Centre where specialized support and programming is provided to English Language Learners (ELL). The Board has recently opened, in Milton, a Welcome Centre for New Canadians.

Regional Special Education programs are located in schools that offer specific program areas and courses which complement the special education program. The programs are designed for students on the Community Skills track and the Employability Skills track. The Community Pathways Program (CPP) and Essential Skills Program are offered together at a select number of schools throughout the Board. These schools offer open level courses such as technological education, vocational courses and the arts for CPP students. The students can also access Essential level courses. These are locally developed academic courses designed to meet their needs. Many CPP students are medically fragile and require individual support, specially trained Educational Assistants (EA’s) and Special Education teachers and specialized equipment. Students are gathered together so that there is a minimum number at each site to support viable programming. CPP students are entitled to 7 years of secondary schooling.

The Board offers the International Baccalaureate (IB) at three schools. This program has a prescribed curriculum, prescribed exams and requires teachers and administrators and the school site to hold IB certification.

This Review is about the secondary schools in the City of Burlington; therefore I will focus on the City’s situation rather than that of the whole Board. Burlington lies between the north shore of Lake Ontario and the Niagara Escarpment. The Town of Oakville is to the East and the City of Hamilton is the western boundary. It is located near the geographic centre of the Golden Horseshoe, a densely populated region of over 8 million people. The population of Burlington, in the 2016 census, was 183,314. Burlington started as a small 19th century village on the Lakeshore, surrounded by farms. The village grew slowly into a town and then exploded with development in the years following World War 11. Provincial decisions have influenced Burlington’s urban geography and therefore development decisions and decisions on schools. While the City population continues to grow, areas of growth are limited by the Province’s “Green Belt” and Niagara Escarpment rules. In  addition, Burlington is divided north from south by the Queen Elizabeth Way, a controlled access Highway opened in 1939. The City is also bisected by the 407 ETR, another controlled access road, which runs diagonally from northeast to southwest.

Of the 7 schools in the Burlington secondary PAR, 4: Robert Bateman High School (Bateman), Nelson High School (Nelson). Burlington Central High School (Central) and Aldershot High School (Aldershot) are located south of the Queen Elizabeth   Way (QEW). Bateman is the furthest east and Aldershot is nearly in Hamilton. Lester

  1. Pearson (Pearson) and M.M. Robinson (MMR) are located north of the QEW, south of the 407 ETR and centrally in east west terms. Dr. Frank Hayden Secondary School (Hayden), the Board’s newest school, is located north and east of MMR and Pearson but is still south of the 407 ETR. The PAR led to a series of Board decisions on June 7, 2017 which included decisions to close Lester B. Pearson High School and Robert Bateman High School. The recommended date for closing Bateman was June 30, 2019. This  was  amended  at  the  Board  Meeting  to  June  30,  2020.  The approvedclosing date for Pearson is June 30, 2018. The school closing decisions were accompanied by boundary changes and student and program shifts to which I will return.

My appointment responds to petitions from each of Robert Bateman H.S and Lester B.Pearson H.S.

I therefore visited both schools. The PAR involved all 7 schools in Burlington and a number of the decisions made as a result of the decision to close 2 schools affected the other schools in the PAR, in some cases in major ways. I therefore visited all 7 schools, have data on all 7 and will include all of them in my description of the process. My comments on Accessibility under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (OADA) are taken from the Board’s Facility Audit for Accessibility done by Snyder Architects Inc. and dated February 8, 2017. Only one of the schools was untouched by the decisions. I will therefore describe them in alphabetical order.

Aldershot High School

 Aldershot High School was opened in 1960 in an area first settled in the mid 19th century. The first Aldershot School was built in 1870. The area is primarily residential with houses tucked into well-treed lots on quiet streets. The Aldershot neighbourhood and its High School are somewhat isolated from the rest of Burlington. The QEW is on its eastern border and that major road merges with Highway 403 as it turns east. Highway 403 then creates a northern boundary. Aldershot is so close to the Hamilton border that the school has been working with the Royal Botanical Garden, which is in Hamilton, on a horticultural program. The school houses grade 7 and 8 students from the neighbourhood but they are not part of the PAR process. The school is well kept and has a welcoming atmosphere.

Aldershot H.S. sits on a 16-acre site. It is a 2-storey building with several level changes on the ground floor, the result of additions made after the original build. Aldershot offers English Language and French Immersion programming. The school has the usual academic classrooms, multiple gyms, a library, 3 Science labs, 5 Technology shops for College and Workplace Construction Technology and Transportation Technology. There are specialized rooms for Visual Arts, Music, Computer Studies and Family Studies. It also has an auditorium as well as a cafeteria. There is a spacious playing field and a track which is in good condition. The library, gyms, the general office and some computer labs are air-conditioned. There is an adjacent City operated swimming pool which the school uses. There is a paved parking lot with 163 places plus 6 handicapped spaces (HC). Aldershot H.S. meets most of the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (A0DA). There is a limited use elevator (LULA) between the 1st and 2nd floors and stair lifts have been installed in several locations to deal with access on the 1st floor. Washroom access has been upgraded but does not meet current standards.

Aldershot H.S. has a student capacity of 1018. The enrollment in 2010 was 523. In 2015 it had dropped to 436 and is projected to reach 461 in 2020. The school offers 109 courses in its calendar but that does not mean that every course is available in any given semester. The courses are primarily focused on College and University bound students but one of the offerings is College and Workplace Construction Technology. The school offers 1 SHSM to 52 students. The reality is that, despite what is listed in the course calendar, 38% of Aldershot students had timetable conflicts in 2016. With the small number of students, not every course will be offered in any given year. The low numbers affect the number of teachers assigned to the school and also affect the number of subject specialist teachers who will deliver the program. As a consequence, most students in grades 11 and 12, who  need specific courses for post secondary program entry, take e-learning courses. This is a learning mode which suits some but not all students.

The Board has agreed to examine innovative ideas for Aldershot H.S. including the concept of a magnet school. While the community and its students love their walk-to school, the question of an equitable education for its students remains unresolved.

Burlington Central High School

 Burlington Central High School was originally opened in 1922 and has been added to several times since. As its name suggests, it is in downtown Burlington, adjacent to a City of Burlington playing field and track, which the school uses, and close to  City Hall. The school sits on a 10-acre site. It has a paved parking lot with 148 spaces plus 1 H.C, The school site and parking are shared with Central Public School. The school houses grade 7 and 8 students but that program was not part of the PAR process. Central is the Dowager of Burlington high schools. It has “good bones” but, particularly in the original building, it is in need of a face-lift. It is a 3-storey building with multiple levels on various floors as a consequence of the additions. The original building has high ceilings, big classrooms with large windows and wide corridors. The newer sections of the school are also light and spacious. It was a bustling, cheerful place on the day that I visited. The school offers English Language and French Immersion programming. The school building has academic classrooms and specialized rooms for Visual Art, Science, Music and Family Studies. There is an Auditorium, a library and a cafeteria. The last major addition added a technical wing and multiple gyms. The Library, Auditorium, general offices and some computer labs are air-conditioned. The Auditorium was recently upgraded with new seats and technical equipment. The building does not meet AODA standards. Some floor areas of the building are accessible only by stairs. Both a new elevator and several stair lifts will be necessary to provide access to all floors.

Burlington Central has a student capacity of 1271. The enrollment in 2010 was 715. In 2015 it was 595. The projected enrollment for 2020 is 593. The school lists 135 courses in its calendar. Central provides English Language and ESL programming. The courses are primarily focused on college or university bound students. The English as a Second Language programs for Burlington are housed here. They range from  basic  ESL  programs  to  academic  courses  adjusted  for  English  Language Learners (ELLs). The school is also the Centre for fee paying International Students. The Technical wing houses programs in Construction, Computer, Manufacturing and Communications Technology. In addition there is Technical design and prize winning Technical Design Robotics. Robotics is offered as a Dual Credit  course. There are 2 SHSMs serving 33 students. While the calendar presents a large number of courses, they are not always available when students need them. Burlington Central had 32% course conflicts in the 2016/17 school year, mostly in the senior grades. The alternative for students was e-learning or summer school.

The Burlington Central solution will appear in my summary of the Board’s decisions.

DR F.J. HAYDEN SECONDARY SCHOOL

 Dr. F.J. Hayden is Burlington’s newest secondary school. It is a 3-storey building which was opened in 2013. It is located in Alton Village, north of Dundas Street and south of the 407 ETR. The Alton area was developed fairly recently as a residential area with most of the homes being detached. Commercial activity is along Dundas Street. Hayden is currently the only school in Burlington which is well above capacity. It is expected to grow until 2021. In comparison with the other secondary schools in Burlington, Hayden sits on a rather small plot of land, 2.6 acres. When the school was planned, a shared facilities agreement was worked out with the City of Burlington. As a result, the school and community facilities were planned and built  at the same time. The school and Community Centre share parking, with a total of 404 spaces and 16 H.C. There were bicycle racks everywhere in front of the school. The school has its own playing field and track and its own multiple gyms but it also has open access to the Community Centre gyms and fields during the school day. Hayden is fully air-conditioned and has an elevator. The school meets all of the requirements of the AODA.

Hayden is a brand new place with new ideas about learning in full play, a school for the 21st century. It provides English Language and French Immersion programming primarily for college and university bound students. The school calendar offers 164 courses. The range of offerings in subjects such as History and Geography, as well as in subjects where the compulsory core demands more courses e.g. English, Math  and Science is very impressive. In 2016/17 the timetable conflicts were a low 11%. Hayden is a Wi-Fi school. The students use computers all day every day in all subjects although the exclusive use of computers, that is no books and no paper, has become a matter of some debate, including with some parents. The students we saw were clearly comfortable and happy in their school and with their teachers. The school building has academic classrooms and specialized rooms/shops for Technology, Cosmetology, Music, Family Studies, Art, Drama and Science. The Technical programs include Construction, Transportation, Communications, Computers and Technological Design. The school offers 2 SHSMs with 29 students enrolled. The school has a cafeteria but it does not have a dedicated school library. The Public Library is part of the Community Centre complex and, through the  shared facilities agreement, a teacher librarian works there but is part of the school staff. The school and Community Centre are attached so that movement between the two is indoors.

Hayden’s student capacity is 1194 but in 2015 it housed 1408 and the projection for 2020 is 1799. The short-term solution has been a bank of portable  classrooms which, to the irritation of the community, sit on part of the parking lot. A longer- term solution, to redirect the French Immersion program, is part of the Board’s decisions.

LESTER B. PEARSON HIGH SCHOOL

Lester B. Pearson was built in 1976. It is located north of the QEW between Guelph Line and Walker’s Line in a quiet residential neighbourhood of mostly single-family homes. The 2-storey school sits on a 13.88-acre site. There is an unused “porta- pack” addition on the grounds. Pearson has a well-kept playing field  and  track. There is a paved parking area for 216 cars plus 2 H.C. places. The school is a quiet, bright and comfortable place and one can easily see why it is valued by its community.

Pearson offers English Language and Late French Immersion programming. The focus is primarily on programs for college and university oriented students. The student capacity is 642, so Pearson was always intended to be a small school. Its enrollment in 2010 was 721. In 2015 it had dropped to 416 and is projected to decline to 353 by 2020. It is the only school in Halton to have late  French Immersion. The program starts in Grade 7 at Sir Ernest MacMillan Public School.  The school has academic classrooms and specialized rooms for Learning Resources/Student Success, Technology, Music, Art, Drama, Science and Computers. It has a Library, a cafeteria/auditorium and 3 gyms. The Technology offerings are in Construction, Communications and Transportation. The calendar lists 2 Dual Credit courses. There are 2 SHSMs serving 16 students. The school’s low enrollment has affected both staffing and course availability. There is a music room but no program. There is an after school Band in conjunction with M.M. Robinson. Pearson’s calendar lists 100 course options. In the 2016/17 school year timetable conflicts totaled 44%. Over 200 students, roughly half of the student body, were enrolled in e-learning courses. The school manages to meet the demands of the compulsory core, in part with e-learning, but the course offerings are thin. For instance Geography, academic and applied, is offered only in grade 9 and History offers only 4 course options, including both academic and applied from grade 10 to 12.

The school has a LULA elevator but would need further work to meet the standards of the AODA.

The Board decision was to close Pearson. The school is 1.9 km from M.M. Robinson.

M.M. Robinson High School

 M.M. Robinson High School was opened in 1963. It is located north of the QEW between the Guelph Line and 407 ETR. It is in a residential district of mostly single- family homes. The 3-storey school sits on 29.85 acres with ample paved parking,  304 spaces, and 5 H.C. It is adjacent to a City operated pool which the school uses. The school has its own playing fields and track. A recent renovation created a large entrance foyer, Drama and Music rooms and a very large elevator. The school is now 75% air conditioned, the remainder being the Tech shops. In the renovation a large wing was added. It is equipped for special needs education and also includes technical shops. The special needs wing has the necessary accessibility features. When I visited the school it was clear that there was no physical barrier to students leaving the special needs wing to access Essential Skills programs. MMR, as it is called, is a large, light filled and spacious second home for its students. The building meets most of the requirements of the OADA.

MMR is a composite secondary school which offers English Language, French Immersion and Technology programs for college and university bound students. In addition it has the full range of Essential Skills courses and Community Pathways programs. The latter programs support special needs students on the Community Skills and Employability tracks. They have access not only to their self-contained special needs and Essentials programming but also to workplace-oriented programs. CPP students are individually assessed for integration into the schools’ programs. The student capacity of MMR is 1347. In 2010 enrollment stood at 1173. By 2015 it had dropped to 730, and this is after the addition of the special needs students. The projection for 2020 is 633. In addition to the purpose built wing, MMR has academic classrooms and specialized rooms for Music, Drama, Science, Art and Computers. There are multiple gyms, a cafeteria and a Library. The Technical shops are equipped for Broad Based Technology, Construction, Communications, Manufacturing, Transportation, Robotics, Technical Design, Communications Technology and Hairstyling and Aesthetics. The calendar lists 6 Dual Credit courses and 6 OYAP programs. There are 130 students enrolled in 5 SHSMs. The schools’ low enrollment has affected staffing and course availability. Some specialized rooms and shops are not in use. The school calendar lists 161 courses. In the 2016/17 school year the timetable conflicts totaled 25%.

The Board’s decisions would change boundaries and program placement to re- direct students to MMR

Nelson High School

Nelson High School was opened in 1957. It is located south of the QEW between Walker’s Line and Appleby Line. It is in a well-established residential area of mostly single-family homes. The 2-storey school sits on a 17.39-acre site. There is ample paved parking, 225 spaces plus 2 H.C. The architecture of the school is very plain 1950’s style on the outside but the interior is bright and welcoming. The halls are wide and the classrooms spacious. The school has ample playing fields and a track and is adjacent to a City owned stadium and field to which the school has access. The Library, gyms, general offices and some computer rooms are air-conditioned. There are 2 LULA elevators, one providing access to the 2nd floor and the other providing access to a small music wing. This meets minimal AODA requirements.

Nelson High School provides English Language, French Immersion and Secondary Gifted Placement programs. The programs are geared to college and university entry. The student capacity of Nelson is 1341. In 2010 enrollment was 1436. In 2015 it dropped to 998 and is projected to rise to 1111 in 2020. Nelson has academic classrooms and specialized rooms for Art, Music, Science, Drama and Family Studies. There are multiple gyms, an Auditorium, a Library and a cafeteria. Technical shops are equipped to deliver Broad Based Technology, Construction, Computer, Communications and Transportation Technologies and Technological Design. The Music program is extensive and English, Mathematics, Science, History and Geography offer a wide range of options. There are 35 students enrolled in 2 SHSMs. The school offers a total of 136 courses. The drop in enrollment meant fewer teachers and tighter timetabling. In 2016/17 Timetable conflicts totaled 18%.

The Board’s decisions would expand and renovate the Nelson building to create a composite High School with a more diverse student population and facilities to meet all student needs.

ROBERT BATEMAN HIGH SCHOOL

Robert Bateman High School opened in 1970 as Lord Elgin High School. It is located south of the QEW between Appleby Line and Burloak Drive. It is close enough to Oakville that a small number of students from an area known as the Samuel Curtis Estate is directed to Bateman. The Bateman neighbourhood is another well- established residential area of mostly single-family homes. There is a shopping plaza, Appleby Village, on nearby Appleby Line. The 2-storey school sits on a 12.79- acre site. There is ample parking for 241 vehicles plus 8 HC. The school has a good playing field and a track and has access to an adjacent City owned pool. Bateman is a pleasant looking building although many of the windows are smaller than one expects in a school. The interior architecture of the school is different from the other Burlington high schools because Lord Elgin was built with a particular mode of teaching in mind. Elgin was designed as an “Open Plan” school. While Elgin did have some rectangular rooms with walls, it also had a number of large open spaces in which a several individual teachers would teach their assigned classes. The idea was that the teachers would also work as a team and “team teach”, when appropriate,  the entire large group as part of their team designed program. For a variety of practical reasons, which are not germane here, the Open Plan concept died quite rapidly, at Elgin and in boards across the Province, although in many schools some team teaching survived.

When the Elgin building was converted to traditional classrooms the hallways were placed around the exterior walls as well as in the interior. This means that most of the academic classrooms have no windows. The partitioning which was erected provides adequate rather than good soundproofing between classrooms and has  had to be strengthened in some of the special needs rooms. When Elgin and General Brock, a Vocational School, were merged to create Bateman in 2004, a wing was added to the school. The new wing was purpose designed to accommodate special needs students and a number of very up-to-date Technical shops. Some classrooms in the old wing were also re-designed. The addition, and renovations done to the original building mean that Bateman is compliant with the OADA. The school has a full sized elevator to the second floor and several accessibility features in the special needs wing. The school is fully air conditioned except for the Tech wing

Robert Bateman High School offers English Language programming, and Regional programming. It is the International Baccalaureate (IB) Centre for Burlington. It  also provides a wide variety of Self Contained Special Education programs which are also Regional. Bateman is a composite school which serves college and university bound students and Community Pathways students. Many of the CPP students are medically fragile. The student capacity of Bateman is 1323. In 2010 enrollment was 1261. By 2015 it had dropped to 799 and is projected to be 726 in 2020. Bateman has academic classrooms, and a large number of specialized rooms. There are rooms for Art, Music, and Science, There are multiple gyms, a Library and Auditorium/cafeteria. The Technical area offers a wide range of options: Broad Based Technology, Manufacturing, Engineering, Welding, Construction (including Robotics) and Transportation Technology including auto body. There is a restaurant quality kitchen for the Culinary/Food program. Health Care, Health and Personal services and Hairstyling and Aesthetics are also available. There is a LEAP outdoor activities program. Essential Skills courses are available in English (4),  Mathematics and Science (3). There are 4 OYAP Programs and 4 SHSMs offered. Bateman offers a total of 153 courses in its calendar . The timetable conflict rate is 21%, but over 50% of Bateman’s students are in tightly prescribed Regional Programs . This means that the course conflicts are experienced by the roughly 350 students in the English Language Program. The grade 9 and 10 program has a large number of required courses. The timetabling problem is most serious for grade 11 and 12 students who need both core and optional courses for university or college

SUMMARY OF BOARD PROCESS LEADING TO DECISIONS

 The Halton District School Board reviews its Long Term Accommodation Plan (LTAP) on an annual basis. Each new iteration is published and adopted by the Board.  The  LTAP  had identified low  enrollment  in  Burlington’s secondary  school since 2012-13. Enrollment in Burlington had been declining for several years prior to 2012. In 1999 Grades 7 and 8 students were added to Aldershot H.S. and in 2001 they were added to Burlington Central. In both cases the intention was to fill empty student places. The 2015-2016 LTAP identified 1748 empty student places in Burlington’s secondary schools. The number was projected to rise to 1919 by 2025.

On October 5, 2016 the Director of the Halton DSB presented to the Board of Trustees the Director’s Preliminary Report on the Undertaking of a Program and Accommodation Review for Burlington Secondary Schools, dated September 29, 2016. The Preliminary Report referred to Ministry of Education initiatives such as the School Board Efficiency and Modernization Strategy, the Community Planning and Partnership Guidelines and the newest Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline. The Preliminary Report provided data on enrollment and programming in each Burlington secondary school. Five of the schools were experiencing declining enrollment and were expected to continue to decline. Data trends on Small and Large Secondary Schools were included, in brief, in the Report. The premise of the Preliminary Report was that “by re-organizing the secondary Schools and creating larger grade sizes HDSB can improve program delivery and learning opportunities for all secondary students in Burlington.” The Report provided an overview of the Program and Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) makeup and PAR process. A list of 19 Options for discussion of the program and empty seats issues was accompanied by brief impact Analyses of each. One Option, #19, had been  selected as the “preferred/recommended option”. That was followed, in bold print by the following: “At this time one option is recommended. It is the intent this recommendation not to be presented as a final option but as a starting point for the review and discussions by the PARC.”

The Preliminary Report continued with brief notes on Transportation, Capital Investment, Timelines following a PAR, Community Planning and Partnerships, School Information Profiles and Consultation and Communications Plans. The Report states:  “The Board staff recommended option is not to be construed as  the Board of Trustees preferred or approved option.” The recommended option was:

  • To close Lester B. Pearson HS and redirect its students to M.Robinson
  • To close Burlington Central HS and redirect its students to Aldershot HS and Nelson
  • To change Dr. Frank J. Hayden SS program and boundary and move the French Immersion Program to M.M. Robinson HS and Robert Bateman, and to redirect a portion of English program students to Robert Bateman and,
  • Having added French Immersion to Bateman, redirect a portion of French Immersion students from Nelson HS to Bateman

The Director’s Preliminary Report was accompanied b y 8 Appendices one of which was a presentation given at a Board Committee of the Whole meeting, on the previous day, September 28, 2016, titled “Small/Large Schools”.

For clarity in this Report, I will consolidate the details of the Board’s outreach to the public over the course of the PAR and then describe the PARC meetings.

On October 19, 2016 the Halton Board approved a motion to commence a Program and Accommodation Review (PAR) process for all seven secondary schools in Burlington. The motion was based on the Director’s Preliminary Report. The Board also directed that a Program and Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) be formed which would represent the 7 schools under review. The next day, October 20, 2016, the Burlington PAR website went live on the Board’s website. The Director’s Preliminary Report was on the website as was a description of the purpose of a PAR and the proposed process. “Frequently Asked Questions” were posted on the website and were regularly updated throughout the PAR process. Board Communications distributed a news release on October 20, 2016 explaining that a PAR had been commenced and encouraging the community to attend November supplementary information nights. These nights would be “information only” rather than question and answer sessions.

An e-mail was sent out to all families of Burlington elementary and secondary students, via the Board’s Home Notification System, advising them of the initiation of the PAR, of how to keep track of the process and of the dates and locations of the supplementary information nights. The message emphasized that the staff recommendation was not a final decision of the Trustees, but a starting point for consultation. On November 9, 2016 the Board sent out a news release which the Burlington Post used for two stories on November 11 and December 2, 2016. The November 11 article included the statement that “Option 19 is not the final decision of the Board….(it is) to initiate the PAR process and gain input from the community.”

The Director wrote to Burlington High School students on October 27,2016 informing them of the PAR and inviting them to attend the information sessions and informing them of where to find the presentations on the board website. The letter states that the initial recommendation is not the final decision. The supplementary information nights ran between November 1, 2016 and November 16, 2016 in each of the schools in the PAR. The Director and Senior Staff members presented the information using 32 Power Point slides. The slides outline, mostly in plain English and with graphs, the enrollment situation of each school, the general program delivery consequences of low enrollment and the PAR process, including how to participate. The presentation and a video were posted on the Board website for those who could not attend. A flyer outlining the PAR timelines was handed out at the information nights.

The Board hired Ipsos Reid as a neutral third party to assist with the design and management of the Public Meetings required by the Board’s PAR Policy. Ipsos was also to facilitate meetings of the PARC and assist with meeting records.

The Program and Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) met on December 1, 2016 for an orientation session. The information provided at that session was used at the first Public Meeting.

The Board’s outreach to the public went well beyond the use of electronic and paper media. The first Public Meeting was held on December 8, 2016. The information sent out announcing the meeting made it clear that the purpose was information gathering, not a Question and Answer session. The Agenda included an overview of the PARC orientation session, the Director’s Preliminary Report, including Option 19, presentation of the School Information Profiles (SIPs) and the gathering of individual input on the PARC framework around 4 themes: Programming and Enrolment, Physical state of the 7 schools, Geographical and Transportation issues and Fiscal responsibility and future planning. The presentations were followed by a questionnaire, organized around four 20-minute sessions focusing on a distinct topic. Participants answered each question using an electronic clicker. Each segment concluded with a discussion. The first Public Meeting had over 300 people attend, but only three schools hit double digits in attendance: Central, Pearson and Hayden.

The Board held two more Public Meetings, on February 28, 2017 for schools in  North Burlington and on March 7, 2017 for school in South Burlington. About 400 people attended the February meeting and around 700 attended in March. These meetings used a “Town Hall” format in which members of the public could ask specific questions both about the Board’s situation and the options which were generated by the PARC. This was not large group Q and A. The media release, newspaper advertisements, and the e-mail to parents/guardians included the  format of the meetings and reminders about the Board website and its information. Nearly 30 Board staff were at stations around the rooms and were prepared to answer individual questions. The Options which were still under discussion by the PARC were posted at each station. The stations were staffed with HDSB experts in Human Resources, Facility Services, Planning, School Programs, Student Services (Special Education) and Business Services (finance and transportation). A handout “Guide to the Public Meeting/Open House” was given, by Board Staff, to attendees at the entrance. The Handout explained the meeting format and highlighted the Online Survey which had been developed and encouraged participation in it. It also presented the then timeline for completion of the PAR and in the middle spread sheet outlined the 6 Options which were still under discussion at the PARC. The Options were also posted on the Website.

In addition to the Public Meetings and Supplementary Information Meetings, on November 21, 2016, the Board hosted a live, online Question and Answer session for parents/guardians, students and community members. During the 1 ½ hour session the Director and the General Manager of Planning received and answered more than 240 questions. Questions which were not dealt within the allotted time were answered as part of the Frequently Asked Questions section of the PAR Board website. A video of the Question and Answer session was also posted on the  website.

Once the Director’s Final Report was made public, the Board scheduled two Special Delegations nights on May 8 and May 11, 2017. They heard 59 delegates  over the two nights. They then allowed 6 more delegations on May 17, 2017. All Board Meetings relative to the Burlington PARC, including the Special Delegations nights, were live-streamed and remain on the Board Website.

The PARC, as previously noted, met first on December 1, 2016, for an orientation session. Following Board Policy, it consisted of a Trustee as an ad hoc member and a Superintendent as Chair, both from an area which was not under review. From each affected school there was the Principal, as a resource person and 2 parents/guardians. One of the parents was nominated by the School Council Chair. The other was selected by the Superintendent from parents who had expressed interest. The selection process was intended to ensure that all affected geographic areas and programs were represented. The PARC invited the City of Burlington to name a representative. It named the City Manager. All Trustees were invited to attend PARC working meetings to observe the proceedings.

The orientation session presented the Director’s Preliminary Report as the PARC’s Terms of Reference. The PARC’s role was defined as advisory. It was to be the  official conduit for information shared between the Board of Trustees and school communities. The proposed timelines for the PARC and Public Meetings were accepted. While the PARC was to provide feedback on the options in the Director’s Preliminary Report, it could also provide different options. In providing information to the Board, the PARC did not need to reach consensus. PARC members were welcome to attend the Public Meetings.

The PARC Framework in the Board Policy lists 13 items which might be considered by a PARC. The first 3 are: Range of mandatory programs, Range of optional programs and Viability of Program-number of students required to offer and maintain program in an educationally sound and fiscally responsible way.

PARC Meeting #1 was held on January 26, 2017 at the Board Office. All  members were present. The General Manager of Planning and 2 of his staff members attended, as did the Director of Education. The Planners attended all meetings as resource people. The Meeting Notes record that the responsibility of the PARC was re-iterated. It was “to deliberate on options, drafted by HDSB staff and by PARC members themselves.” The PARC was then to develop a short list of options for the Director of Education. He in turn would make recommendations to the Board which would make the final decision.

Prior to the 1st Working Meeting PARC members were asked to complete a short online survey to gauge what they thought of the current 23 options. Only 7 members responded. The 14-parent/guardian PARC members divided around 2 tables of 7 with the Ipsos Facilitator and the Chair of the PARC moderating and taking notes. The discussion was also recorded. The topic of discussion was the 23 options. Other attendees named to the PARC such as the Trustee liaison, the Principals, and Board staff were observers/resource people. Members of the public were also present. By the end the discussions, 13 options were removed. The Meeting notes confirm that closing Bateman was discussed under 4 of the remaining options. The notes on 3 of the Options were revised following a PARC request on February 14, 2017. The revision records concerns around the relocation of Bateman’s special education students. The notes also record an extended discussion, under Option 23, of Special Education and Bateman. Pearson is identified for closure in 2 of the remaining Options.

The PARC requested more information on timetable conflicts at all of the secondary schools, numbers of students from 4 public feeder schools opting to attend  a Catholic secondary school, costs of building a new wing for Special Education (SPED) students and costs and logistics to move CPP/SPED program and equipment to another school.

The 2nd Meeting of the PARC was held on February 2, 2017 at the Board Office. Three parent members were absent, 2 from Hayden and 1 from Bateman. PARC members had been asked to continue to discuss, by email, the outstanding options and to propose new options. Thirteen new options were proposed. The Trustee representative was nominated to keep a speakers list to ensure that all PARC members had a chance to offer comments. There was a discussion about adding a meeting to the PARC schedule. With three members absent, at the request of several members, the group of 11 formed around one large table. At the outset of discussions for each new option, a Board Planner provided a synopsis of the consequences.

All options had been previously circulated to PARC members. Because the existing options had been discussed at the first meeting, the group decided to start with the new options. The Notes, again taken by hand and recording, show that most of the meeting was taken up with discussion of 2 new options, both of which closed Bateman. There are extensive notes on the pros and cons of this move and many questions and comments. Some members looked for more information and others wanted to know how transitions would be handled for special needs students. There seems to be no discussion of the program needs of Bateman students who are not identified for Special Education. The Bateman discussion closed and there are notes on a brief discussion of a new option, closing Pearson and Central. It is new because the boundary changes redirect students differently from Option 19.

The PARC requested information on OADA costs for the 7 schools. It decided to lengthen its meetings from 7-9 to 7-10 PM and to add a meeting to the schedule.

PARC members were requested to respond to an email from the Chair requesting input on the options not discussed at the meeting.

The 3rd PARC Meeting was held on February 9, 2017 at the Board Office. The Superintendent of Business Services and the Director attended. There was a new addition, Student Leaders as observers..

In preparation for the 3rd meeting, PARC members were asked to consider, by email, outstanding options and to propose new options. The outstanding options were in 3 categories: “No Closures”, “One closure” and “Two closures”. One remaining option proposed no closures. Five options proposed 1 closure and 8 options proposed 2 closures.

The PARC received 2 presentations in response to its questions. The Superintendent of Business Services, using Option 19, the closing of Central and Pearson as an example, discussed savings which could be achieved. There was then a discussion on staffing implications, busing and Portable costs. The 2nd presentation was on the  cost of making all Burlington secondary schools fully AODA compliant.

The PARC members were asked to pair by school and provide input on the outstanding options in two modes. Each option had foolscap paper. With reference to the 13-point PARC framework members were asked to write whether or not an option met, or did not meet the criteria. Any suggestions were to be written on the foolscap. In addition, there was a “dot-mocracy” exercise. Members were given 3 dots and asked to attach a dot to the three options which they favoured. Options which received 2 or fewer dots were removed from the list. This left 4 options. One was no school closures, one closed Bateman and 2 closed Pearson  and  Central. There was a complaint that, because the Superintendent had used Option 19 as her example of savings, the two exercises had been biased against Central. The notes state that this complaint was deemed substantial because comments on the foolscap reflected some of the presentation from the Superintendent of Business Services. The group agreed to leave option 23, which closes Bateman, on the list.

The Director had brought the student leaders to the PARC meeting. He talked to the PARC about interacting with student leaders when they went on school tours. One of the leaders spoke to remind the PARC members to not only think about finances but about what is best overall for the students.

The 4th PARC meeting was held on February 16, 2017 at the Board Office. The Chair and 1 parent member were absent. The Associate Director sat in for the Chair. Two Superintendents of Education and the Superintendent of Facility Services were present.

Again, the PARC had been asked for input, by email, on the 5 outstanding options, including option 23, which had not been discussed at the 3rd meeting. One additional option was put forward between meetings 3 and 4. The list was now: No Closure, 1; One Closure, 2 and Two Closures, 3.

The Superintendent of Facility Services spoke about the facility costs of the 7 High Schools. He had the difficult job of explaining 2 different sets of numbers. One set, which the PARC had, came from an older database which he stated was incorrect and no longer in use. He presented information from the database to which both the Ministry and the Board had transitioned. This data was current and considered accurate.

The PARC broke into 3 groups, organized as follows:

  • Group 1: Pearson and Hayden, 4 PARC reps
  • Group 2: Aldershot and Central, 4 PARC reps
  • Group 3: MMR, Bateman and Nelson, 6 PARC reps

Each was facilitated by a superintendent who took notes. The groups were asked to discuss the remaining options within the context of the PARC. What elements of the options addressed, or did not address the framework. How could a particular option be improved, for instance by Capital improvements, program improvements or transition planning? Should an option be removed from the list?

The Notes of the discussions indicate that the PARC considered each of the 6 options in detail. The Schools which are identified for possible closure in the 6 options are, by number of options, Nelson (1), Bateman (2), Central (2) and Pearson (3). The notes on several of the options indicate that the needs of Special Education students was part of the discussion. There is no record of discussion of the program needs of students who are not identified for Special Education. The 6 options were to be part of an online survey which the Board was going to release on February 27, 2017.

The 5th PARC meeting was held on March 21, 2017 at the Board Office. One parent member was absent. This was one of two meeting held in the same week.

The first part of the 5th meeting provided initial information from the Survey. The quantitative data showed that 1611 surveys were completed, but there had been some instances of surveys coming more than once from the same IP address. In the view of Ipsos these were not sufficient in number to invalidate the results.

The Committee was given course selection sheets from a selection of small and large schools in Halton. These highlighted the current timetabling and programming challenges facing secondary students. Simply put, larger schools could offer a diversity of courses in a face–to-face environment. Small schools had to rely on online courses, whether or not this mode of learning suited students. Small schools might also have to combine different grades and courses in the same classroom.

The PARC then engaged in a roundtable discussion. Each PARC member presented his or her personal view of each option. The sample course selections sheets led to timetabling and programming being the major focus of the discussion. The Committee discussed 3 of the options in detail. A recurring concern was students transferring to the Catholic Board if the wrong decisions were made. There are extensive notes on the needs of the Special Education students at Bateman.

The Committee was to continue the discussion at its 2nd meeting that week. They adjourned at 10 P.M.

The 6th PARC meeting was held on March 23, 2017 at the Board Office. Two parents were absent, one of whom sent email comments prior to the meeting.

The Chair discussed the revised timelines for the PARC. The minimum of 4 meetings of the PARC had been extended to 6. As a consequence, the timelines for the Director’s Report to the Board, in Committee of the Whole would have to be adjusted. Based on the other adjustments to the process which would be required, the report would go to the Board for final decision on June 7, 2017. The Chair also said that an additional meeting, to discuss Innovation, could be held on March 27.

The PARC was asked to focus on programming and the student experience. After some general comments from committee members, the PARC discussed the remaining options. The first option discussed involved closing Bateman and Pearson. The notes indicate that there was discussion of the special nature of the Bateman programming in that the Community Pathways students were integrated into the whole school rather than being confined their own wing. Some PARC members noted that specialized programs have been successfully moved in the past and can be again. The second discussion was of 2 similar options, both of which closed Central and Pearson. One of the options was the original Option 19b which closed Central and Pearson. There was general agreement that 19b, which closed Central and Pearson, be removed.

The Chair said that the Director would receive a report on the findings of the PARC with the 5 remaining options for consideration. The PARC had fulfilled its Terms of Reference.

The Associate Director presented data on regional/magnet programming. He pointed out that innovations should be seen through a programming lens, not as a means of filling empty spaces. He pointed out that only 55 Halton students attended regional programs in other boards. Students generally stay within their  municipality. So magnet programs will not fill the 1800 empty pupil places. And putting grade 7 and 8 in secondary schools fills seats but does nothing for programming for secondary students as their numbers shrink.

The 7th PARC meeting was on March 27, 2017. Three parents were absent. Two Superintendents       attended.        They were responsible for Education- Innovation/ingenuity and Education-IT and International Students. The  Director and Associate Director also attended.

The Director thanked the PARC members for their contribution to the PAR process.

There was an extended discussion of the current state of innovation in the Board. New ideas from the PARC members were discussed. The City Manager noted that higher density housing units don’t house many families with secondary students. He also commented on the risk in selling land when a school is closed because of the predicted exorbitant costs of land purchase in the future. The discussion went on for over 2 hours.

PARC members wanted the public delegations to be equitably allocated to ensure fair representation of schools and topics/themes.

The Chair and Trustee thanked PARC members and Board staff for their commitment to the process. The Chair formally dissolved the PARC.

The Director’s Final Report, with 18 Appendices, was distributed to Trustees on April 20, 2017. It was posted on the Board web site on April 21. This was standard procedure for reports which were to be discussed at the next Board Meeting. The Board met on April 26 with a single item on the Agenda, the Director’s Final Report. The Executive Summary of the Report contained the following Director’s Recommendation:

  1. Robert Bateman High School be closed June 2019 and students re-directed to Nelson High School and M.M. Robinson High
  2. The International Baccalaureate Program to transfer from Robert Bateman High School to Burlington Central High School, effective September
  3. Lester B. Pearson High School be closed June 2018 and the students be re- directed to M.M. Robinson High School commencing September
  4. French Immersion program to be moved from Dr. Frank J. Hayden Secondary School as of September 2018, beginning with the Grade 9
  5. Students from the “Evergreen” community (currently undeveloped) will be directed to M.M. Robinson High
  6. Aldershot High School will be explored as a site for a magnet program or themed

THE PETITIONS

 The petitioners and members of the public were heard at 2 successive meetings. The lead petitioners presented on the first night, followed by other supporters of the petitions. On the second night both petitioners and members of the public spoke.

Robert Bateman High School Petition

The letter to the Minister from Denise Davy, Lisa Bull and Stephen Beleck claims several breaches of Board Policy. The petitioners state that their review of the process documents the breaches. The following is quoted from the letter:

  1. The board’s policy states: Processes for decision making including those related to program accommodation, school boundary reviews, school closures/consolidation will be timely, inclusive, transparent and open. This review documents cases where inclusivity was not followed for students/parents with disabilities.

 2:The board’s policy states: There must be no fewer than ten (10) business days between the date of public delegations and the final decision of the Board of Trustees. The final vote by the Board of Trustees was June 7, 2017. That same night there were public delegations made to the

  1. The board’s policy states: The final decision regarding the future of a school or group of schools rests solely with the Board of Trustees. This review details the involvement of a City Councillor providing instructions to a HDSB Trustee during the June 7, 2017 final vote for closure of Robert

A note is hand printed on the letter stating that the petitioners’ review, which is attached to the letter, contains 27 points/areas where the HDSB did not follow its a Accommodation Policy. Some of the additional points are that school communities did not have a clear understanding of the process, that the PAR process did not include feedback from teachers and that the Director’s Final Report did not contain information from the delegations.

When I met with a number of petitioners, over two evenings, they spoke of how much they value the inclusive atmosphere of Bateman. They gave me additional print material on the value of their school. They wanted the Board to look at boundary changes rather than closing their gem of a school. I should point out the Bateman petitioners were almost entirely focused on the special needs/CPP students and their program. My notes do not record any discussion of the needs of students in the English Language program or the IB.

Petitioners felt that the CPP students were not sufficiently included in the PAR process. Only 30 out of 300 the CPP students responded to it and only 48% of the other students. But the school administration made appropriate efforts to  encourage student participation. On November 25, 2016, during Period 2, all students were invited to complete the student survey. CPP students had their usual assistance from EAs and teachers. The survey was voluntary. The school cannot be faulted for allowing students to make their own decision about participation.

A number of petitioners felt that teachers and staff should have been allowed to participate in the process. At the very least, the teacher/staff survey should have been available to the PARC. A petitioner said that there was not enough time to delegate and another complained that only 2 or 3 Trustees responded to her emails. There were complaints about the PARC member who was a parent and also a City Councillor. Because of some behavior in both the Gallery and at the Board table during the June 7th meeting, that petitioner felt strongly that electronic communications with Trustees should not be allowed during Board Meetings.

Petitioners were concerned about the transition for medically fragile CPP students. They would like, but do not have, a guarantee that teachers and education assistants will move with these students. The Chair of SEAC stated, “I was appalled by the lack of understanding and ignorance of PARC members about Special Education.” She believed that the letter which SEAC sent to the PARC was not given the attention it deserved. A student petitioner noted that a detailed plan for a massive transition of vulnerable kids was not yet available.

Two petitioners addressed specific program issues. A representative of the Trade Association for the Welding Industry spoke of the nature of today’s welding trade and the very delicate work that welders now do. He said, “The program at Bateman has significant value in fostering student achievement.” As the only program between Bateman and the US border, it has significant value to the industry. He was certain of the program’s value, but less certain that the Board would transfer it to Nelson. A parent had a lovely story about her son and how the Bateman program works. The boy is ADHD and autistic. When he started at Bateman he wanted to do Essentials and the culinary program. Bateman allows rotation through the Technical programs so he is now starting to learn welding. His 2nd rotation is in woodworking and it turns out that he has real talent in this field. His mother talked of the trinket box he made for her. When I remarked that I would love to see it she emailed a picture of boy and box the next day. And yes, he has talent. But she worries that Nelson may not have an integrated program.

Several petitioners would like the Minister to order a new PAR process under the new PAR guideline which is at the consultation stage.

The Board’s Response

 The Board sent multiple notices to parents, students, community partners and the broader community to alert them to the Burlington PAR. Notices of all meetings related to the PAR were posted on the PAR web pages on the HDSB web site. All materials, such as the Director’s Reports, and Power Point presentations were posted there. The PARC Notes/Minutes were posted. The system tracked the number of page views/hits by month: November 2016, 4593, December 2713, January 2017, 4307, February 13096,March 14266, April 11495, May 4449, June 3220. All venues for meetings were fully accessible. The Principal of Bateman requested teachers and EA’s to assist CPP students to fill in the student survey if they wished to do so. Parents were  regularly  up-dated  on  the  Home  Notification

 

  1. The Burlington Post published 23 stories related to the Burlington PAR between October 2-16 and June 2017. News reports on the PAR process were also covered by the Hamilton Spectator, CHCH TV and the online publication, the Burlington Gazette. The Board believes its broad dissemination of information on the PARC, across a variety of media, was inclusive, timely, transparent and open.

 

  1. The Board has a separate by-law (Delegation By-Law) that allows up to six delegations at Board meetings where decisions are being made. This practice has been in place for the Board for the last 15 years, and is not exclusive to the PAR. The Board would have been in violation of the Board’s Delegation By-Law should they not have heard the 6 delegations on the night of the Trustees’ decision. The Board notes that some of the delegates heard on June 7 were in favour of the decision. The two specially designated delegation nights for the PAR were on May 8 and May 11, both of which are more than 10 business days from the day of the final decision (June 7). As such, the Board has not violated their PAR policy by abiding by their long-standing Delegation By-Law.

 

  1. The PARC, once constituted, invited a municipal councillor or delegate to join it. The Mayor appointed the City Manager. Marianne Meed Ward’s membership on the PARC was not in contravention of Board policies. She was identified as the designate by the School Council Chair of Burlington Central HS as she is a parent at the

 

  1. There were many ways in which teachers were able to give feedback during the PAR process. Senior Board staff attended school staff meeting to give updates on the PAR and to respond to There was a staff specific online survey. The Director provided continual updates to Family of Schools system administrators. School administrators met with senior board staff regularly to share updates. The Director provided monthly updates with staff unions/federations.

The Board’s Delegation By-Law states: Employees of the Board, representatives of employee groups shall not utilize delegations to the Board to express their views relative to their employment or professional interests.”

 

  1. The Director’s Final Report did not contain information from the delegations. The Board states that the delegations from both public delegations nights were recorded and live streamed. The Trustees were able to hear all of the delegations and special accommodations were made for the “overflow” of attendees at these meetings. These videos are available on the Board’s website. The Board Meeting after the public delegations was also live-streamed.

The Board Responses to most of the additional claims in the Bateman Petition is that they are not about breaches of policy but about processes or decisions which the petitioners do not like or with which they disagree.

Lester B. Pearson High School Petition

 1:The letter to the Minister from Steve Armstrong claims a number of breaches of Board Policy. Mr. Armstrong starts, as did the Bateman petitioners, by questioning the Board’s commitment to its policy of “timely, inclusive, transparent and open” processes for decision making including those on “program, accommodation, school boundary reviews and school closures/consolidation. He then claims a number of policy

 

  1. The PAR Policy clearly states that PARC will provide feedback to the Board of Trustees. The primary method of interaction with Trustees was by emails, most of which received no response of a short acknowledgement indicating receipt. There was no presentation, dialogue, or documents created as an output by PARC

 

  1. Board policy states that the Board will “share relevant information with the public…(to allow) opportunity for input. But some community members, when they sought information which they thought relevant to the PAR, met roadblocks and one had to file a Freedom of Information

 

  1. PARC members took seriously their responsibility to interact with their communities but were excluded from some processes which might have helped the conversation. Examples are that PARC had no input into the student and teacher/staff surveys. The PARC was not given access to the latter

 

  1. By Policy, one of the Board’s conditions for approving a PAR is that “reorganizing involving the school or group of schools could enhance program delivery and learning opportunities for students.” The petitioner questions the accuracy of the Burlington enrollment projections and the information in the SIP’s. He attacks the Board’s failure to look at boundary changes which would rebalance the student population. He points out that only 1 of the original 19 options for discussion involved no school

Mr. Armstrong’s letter lists a number of procedural issues relative to how the PARC worked including how minutes were dealt with, what communication was appropriate with individual Trustees, and the role of the Municipality in the PAR process. He then finishes with 2 more claims of Policy breach:

  1. Board Policy states ”The Director will present the Final Report, including the compiled feedback from the public delegations, to the Board of Trustees.” His Report was deficient in that it did not provide that
  1. Board Policy states “There must be no fewer than ten (10) business days between the date of the public delegations and the final decision of the Board of Trustees.” Public delegations were heard on June 7th, the same evening as the final decision was

At the Petitioners Meetings the Pearson Petitioners shared some issues with those from Bateman but had their own perspective on the PAR. They see their small school as very suited to many students who are uncomfortable in large institutions. At Pearson, everyone knows everyone else. They found the process very divisive.

They saw much of the dialogue being framed around utilization when the real problem was program. They also felt that there was no open dialogue on the financial cost of the decision. In their community they had little co-operation from the principal in obtaining mailing lists. In addition there was no input from teachers. And there was no direct interaction with their Trustees regarding the PARC so they didn’t know what the community thought. For one PARC member the real eye opener was his tour of all of the schools.

One petitioner had delegated at the June 7th meeting and was sure that the Trustees did not have time to process the 16 pages of information which he provided. A petitioner noted the lack of any risk analysis in the Board’s decision. He questioned the reliability of the Board’s growth projections. Other petitioners returned to the issue of teachers and EAs moving with their students.

One of the under-currents in PARC discussions was the newest school, Hayden SS. Boundaries for other schools changed when Hayden opened. Both petitioner groups had opinions. One petitioner stated that the question of overutilization at Hayden was never discussed by the PARC. The 12 Portables at Hayden were a Health and Safety issue. Another had investigated the decision to build Hayden. He believed that Hayden should never have been built. He had made FOI requests of both the Board and the Ministry in his research.

The Pearson petitioners wish all 7 schools to remain open until Burlington’s population growth numbers are more certain.

The Board’s Response:

 Note: I will not repeat a response if the issue is identical to one of Bateman’s.

  1. See Response 1 to Bateman
  1. The PAR Policy places a Trustee, from another area of the Board, on a That Trustee’s role is to act as liaison between the PARC and the Trustees.

The person is expected to keep the Trustees up-to-date on the ongoing discussions of the PARC. Trustees also had access to the PARC Minute/Notes. The PARC feedback is to the Board as whole, not individual Trustees.

  1. All requests for information regarding the PAR need to fall within the purview of the PAR. Information requested from a member of the public was related to business case submissions for the Dr. Frank Hayden SS Capital Priority submission to the Ministry. As well there was a request for the agreement between the City of Burlington and HDSB from 1977 regarding community uses of Lester B. Pearson HS and more specifically the co-op nursery school located in the facility. Freedom of Information requests were made and information was provided whenever asked. No appeals were launched.
  1. The Ministry Guidelines and Board Policy affirm that the PARC assumes only an advisory role. This was clear in the Terms of Reference presented to the PARC at the Orientation Meeting On December 1, 2016. The PARC did receive the student survey. The teacher/staff survey was heavily redacted to ensure respondents could not be identified. The results were provided to the decision makers, the Board of
  1. Prior to Board Approval of a PAR, the Director, must present a preliminary report. One or more of the following must be present:

The school or group of schools has experienced or will experience declining enrolment where the On the Ground (OTG) utilization rate is below 65%.

Reorganization involving the school or group of schools could enhance program delivery and learning opportunities for students.

Three Burlington High Schools met the first condition: Robert Bateman, M.M. Robinson and Lester B. Pearson. As well, the Director’s Preliminary Report discussed the issues associated with small secondary schools and indicated that reorganizing the schools could enhance program and learning opportunities for students.

  1. See Response 5 to Bateman
  1. See Response 2 to Bateman Petition

The Board Responses to the claims in the rest of the Pearson Petitions are that the claims are not about policy but about processes or decisions which the Petitioners did not like or with which they disagree

Ipsos

When I met with the Ipsos facilitator he said that the level of partisanship and personal interest in the PARC had surprised him. There was tension in the PARC from the beginning. He helped set up processes in line with Board Policy. He noted that he had attended each meeting and that at each one, a colleague as well as a Board staff member had taken notes. He said that he had made it clear to the Board what the survey/questionnaire could and could not do. It could validate what was happening in the community. Any more intensive consultation with the community would have been a qualitative exercise. But these are labour intensive and therefore expensive. His view was that the PARC members were very involved with their communities. He noted that there were several well-connected people on the PARC, people who went on their own to the media.

THE TRUSTEES

 The HDSB, in designing its PAR Policy, decided that one Trustee would be named to the PARC and act as liaison with the other Trustees. I therefore met briefly with her to get her perspective on how the liaison function had worked. She said that generally it had worked well. She thought that the expanded timeline worked well and would not go back to 4 meetings. She also believed that no current or former local politician should be on a PARC. A former Trustee was a member in addition to the City Councillor. She said that the staff bent over backwards to ensure that everyone had a voice and “they have not been thanked.”

I also met briefly with the Chair of the Board to ask about 2 specific issues, the use of email during Board Meetings and the decision to have a Parliamentarian available for advice during the June 7, 2017 Board Meeting. She said that at present there were no rules about email activity during meetings but that there had been some discussion of it as an issue. She received emails, which, as she was chairing the Meeting, she ignored.  Board members received over 700 emails during the course of the June 7 Meeting. The Parliamentarian was brought in because a Trustee had served notice of her intent to move a Substitute Motion to replace the Motion in the Director’s Final Report. While the Chair had been trained in parliamentary procedure by the expert who came to the meeting, she believed that having expert advice during a relatively uncommon procedural move would be helpful to all of the Trustees.

Immediately following the above two meetings I met with the Board of Trustees. They were unanimous in the view that the single Option as a starting point was a huge problem. They noted that the Director kept reminding the school system and the public that the Recommendation was only the starting point but he was not heard.

Other than that, there was little real agreement. For instance, one Trustee thought that the local Trustee should be a member of the PARC while another thought that people external to the school should work with the school representatives because the school reps find it difficult to look at other options. The latter Trustees wanted to get people who know planning into the process and didn’t seem to realize that the Board had expert planners on staff. Some thought local politicians should not be members of a PARC. Others said that if they were parents it would be anti- democratic to exclude them.

One Trustee described the PARC members as “traumatized” by the end of the process. One made the point that the PARC should be able to have closed working meetings, with a note taker, but no attribution of comments or ideas to particular speakers. This Trustee thought that all of the necessary information was there for the PARC and that the Notes were well done. She thought that a brainstorming meeting between the Director and the Trustees, prior to triggering the process would have been helpful.

A Trustee said that she thought the process was innovative and creative. She was referring to the outreach to the community in the Director’s online Question and Answer session. She liked the Town Hall idea and noted the huge staff turn out for it. She also noted that the process “sucked our board staff dry”. In her view, any revision of the PAR process has to attend to what it does to staff workload. She also noted that the FOI requests were sometimes onerous.

A final comment was that the Trustees expected the Director’s Report on Delegations to be very high level; a summary of the major points made.

The Student Voice

 I met with 2 secondary school students, one of whom was a Student Trustee during the PARC, and is still a Trustee. The other was the regional representative for Burlington on the Board’s Student Senate and President of the Student Council at his school, Nelson. The 2nd Student Trustee during PARC has left home for university.

The Student Trustee did not attend any Private Sessions of the Board. The Board wanted her to work with students so that they could express their views on the PAR. She handled email questions from students. The Associate Director would get her the answers and she would reply. She felt that Student Trustees have always been listened to by staff and fellow Trustees. The Student Trustees did meet with the Student Senate. She is an IB student in Oakville and believes that the IB program is moveable. In her opinion, IB students need to be able to choose from a breadth of courses with qualified teachers. The range of IB courses at Bateman is limited and she said this at the Board Meeting. She did worry at times when she spoke up but things were fine.

The Student Senator said that he received all of the information the Trustees had. The Director and the Associate Director met with all of the Burlington Student Council Presidents to try to alleviate fears. As far as students were concerned, the PAR was much more important than the other big issue, French Immersion. The latter was ignored during the PAR. He is now on the Integration Committee and has met with the President of Bateman to try to deal with concerns.

Both said that the PAR had been a huge amount of work.

OBSERVATIONS OF THE PARC

 When I met face to face with the PARC, most members thought that the single opening Recommendation, which closed specific schools, was a disaster. It undermined any attempt to act for the whole community by pitting two schools against the others. Then, as the PARC dealt, in public, with other options other communities got upset. A member noted that the process brought out the worst in the group and in the community. Social media was abusive, nasty and mostly false. But, most members also believed that some recommendations were necessary as a starting point.

Many of the points raised by the petitioners were raised again at my meeting with the PARC. One said that the PARC was the worst thing she had ever done. She felt that there was no real discussion and no opportunity to refute positions. Her points were focused on the needs of the Special Education students. She had wanted highly detailed information from staff on how the transition would work, especially for CPP students in years 6 and 7 of the program. Another said that she didn’t know that program was an issue until almost the last meeting. A third member thought that boundary changes were the solution but that they got focused on the 1800 empty seats. The boundary change idea was repeated by several other members.

Some members commented, for and against, the structure of the Public Meetings. The most constructive comment was that an introductory session, with all present, would help people to understand an unfamiliar format of “information stations”.

Another member said that the meetings were chaotic. A member thought that the PARC could have helped design the methodology of the meetings. Other members thought that the Town Hall style worked well and enabled more people to get information.

The comment was made that the PARC was not given enough numbers to see how students were disadvantaged in the smaller schools in terms of program choice and availability of program. More time should have been spent on this. ( NOTE: that PARC member is identified, in the Notes, as absent at the 2 meetings which worked on program issues) Several members wished that the PARC had some meetings in private. A number also thought that they should have been able to have meetings in their schools specifically for parents. One PARC member complained that the Board did not ask the Municipality to take a position on the initial recommendation. She believed that the City Councillors and Trustees should be compelled to participate in

PARC processes. Another member did not agree with the involvement of either City Councillors or Trustees.

One member pointed out that lots of things did go well but it is easier to criticize. He thought that the Director and the Board went above and beyond anything he had seen before in trying to get information out. The Board did its best in the circumstances.

Other relatively minor issues were raised. Two people expressed concerns about process for approving Minutes and the question of corrections being made. One said that the idea of innovation was starting to take hold. One said that two composite schools will be beneficial to the community. The Chair made the point that the Burlington PAR was very ambitious since it covered 7 High Schools. He pointed out that every meeting went overtime and said that the creativeness of the group was vast.

EMAIL and G-MAIL

 During the course of my Review a number of participants had access to Tom Adams’ email address at the Ministry. Mr. Adams forwarded to me all correspondence which was relative to the Burlington PARC. In addition we opened a g-mail account to receive comments from the public.

During my meeting with the PARC, people were very civil to each other. On the following day, the email and g-mail comments started to arrive. They highlighted what I had heard verbally, the PAR process had been deeply emotional and divisive in the community. One PARC member stated that there was substantial discussion of the special needs kids during the PARC meetings, so much so that it was difficult to get to the English Language programming issues. That person did not speak up the night before because it would have caused another uproar. Another member emailed on the PARC’s discussion of special needs students. This person pointed out that the Notes show that there was discussion at every meeting. Not only that, but a former Trustee and Chair of SEAC was a PARC member. In those roles she had helped design much of the Board’s approach to programming for special needs students. “Her expertise guided many of our discussions at the PARC.” Another member wrote that there were constant demands for additional or new information from PARC members. Board staff did their best to provide what they could but the new information often pulled the conversation “deep into the weeds”. That member also said that early in the process the closing of Bateman rather than Central was discussed. That escalated divisions in the group. Board staff navigated this conflict skillfully, but from that point on there was little if any chance of reaching consensus and meetings often became chaotic and unmanageable.

Members of the public used the g-mail account to say what they would not say in a public meeting.

Two parents, who had attended all of the Meetings of the PARC and who had delegated to the Board, wrote to me. One said that she was disappointed in the PAR process because of the behavior of her fellow parents and the Burlington community. There was a lack of respect for the established process. ”I heard, read and witnessed heckling, threats, unsubstantiated accusations and bullying behaviour” by parents and PARC members. The second parent, the mother of 3 sons who receive special education support, regretted how hostile and judgemental people became in the name of saving their school. A third parent avoided the petitioners meeting. “I was glad to avoid another meeting where there are some people who seem to blame individual community members for the final recommendation and make threats and insults.” A parent who attended one of the Petitioners Meetings supported the Board decision, but did not speak because those who disagreed with the petitioners in public were subjected to ridicule and unpleasant characterizations of themselves. He had followed the PAR process closely and believed that its purpose was to improve equity of opportunity. The Board decision did that. In his view any delay in implementation would be damaging to students in the smaller schools.

MY OBSERVATIONS

 My responsibility was to examine the petitions and determine whether the issues raised constitute violations of the Board approved Program and Accommodation Review Policy. I have reviewed the petitions, met with the petitioners, Board Administration, the Facilitator, the Trustees, the Principals, student representatives and the PARC. I have also read all of the minutes, appendices and reports pertinent to the Burlington Secondary PARC. In addition I have watched the videos of all of the Board Meetings, including Delegations Nights, related to this PAR. I have received additional material from petitioners and interested parents, all of which I have read.

The Burlington Secondary PARC took place over one school year, from October 19, 2016 to June 7, 2017. The School Councils of all of the schools under Review were informed immediately of the Board’s decision. The Burlington PAR website went live on the HDSB website. It had the Director’s Preliminary Report and a full description of the PAR process. The Board Communications staff distributed a news release announcing the beginning of the PAR and providing the dates of the November supplementary information nights. E-mail was sent to all families of Burlington elementary and secondary students via the Board’s Home Notification System. It told families that the PAR had begun and told them how to track the process on the Board website. The Board’s PAR Policy: Procedures, 1, requires that at least I of 5 conditions be met before commencing a PAR. In this case, two had been met.

Condition 1: The school or group of schools has experienced or will experience declining enrolment where the On the Ground (OTG) utilization rate is below 65%. The Director’s Preliminary Report states that both Bateman and M.M. Robinson have reached that threshold and that Pearson is close to it.

Condition 2: Reorganization involving the school or group of schools could enhance program delivery and learning opportunities for students.

The dates of all public meetings and PARC meetings were widely disseminated. Agendas were clearly outlined. The type of meeting, e.g. information only or Town Hall style was described using the print media, the Board website, social media and widely disseminated print notices. The Board offered one more public meeting than Policy required. The 7 Supplementary information Sessions (1 per school) were beyond requirements as was the Director’s Live, on-line Question and Answer session. The community was invited to continue submitting questions to the on-line site. They were answered by staff. It is reasonable to say that parents and the public had ample access to the process itself and to very detailed information about it from beginning to end.

The secondary enrolment data for Burlington support consolidation of some of the student population in order to provide a stronger education program. The two schools which are to be closed have different problems but, in each case, students are at a disadvantage because of shrinking numbers. This is true for all students attending Pearson. In the case of Bateman, the English Language program students and the grade 11 and 12  IB students are seriously disadvantaged.

The Halton District School Board’s Program and Accommodation Review Policy is consistent with the Ministry of Education Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline. It is comprehensive and written in plain English. Initial Procedures are finely detailed, the requirement for School Information Profiles and the rules for the formation and working of a PARC are clearly outlined. In the case of the PARC there is substantial detail. Public Meeting requirements are described. Requirements for the Director’s Final Report are laid out as are the rules for Public Delegations to the Board. The respective roles of the PARC, the Senior Administration and the Trustees are described in plain language. It is clear that the decision making power is vested in the elected Trustees.

Observations: Robert Bateman High School

 Robert Bateman High School is one of the two schools to be closed as a result of the Burlington Secondary PARC.

The Petition claims that, while the Board policy promises that processes for decision making…. will be timely, inclusive, transparent and open, there were cases where inclusivity was not followed for students/ parents with disabilities. One of the examples used is that the student survey was not adapted to the needs of special needs students. Another was that a parent had difficulty reading the print on some of the posters at a public meeting. Another is that the PARC members did not use microphones so, sometimes, the public could not hear what was being said.

On the issue of the student survey I believe that the Principal of Bateman took appropriate action by scheduling time for the survey and requesting teachers and EAs to assist the special needs students in filling it out. One must remember that the survey was optional and it would have been inappropriate for teachers to pressure students to engage with it.

The small print issue may have been difficult for an individual but I do not think that it had any bearing on the outcome of the PAR. I do not believe that the use of microphones would have been appropriate. The room in which they met is not huge. Being “broadcast” would have made difficult conversations even more so. In addition, I did note that on one of the Delegations nights the Board had an American Sign Language interpreter available for one delegate and that her special needs daughter was assisted by staff to use her communications device to express her feelings.  The Board was compliant with its Policy.

 The Petition claims that Board Policy states that there must be no fewer than ten

(10) business days between the date of public delegations and the final decision of the Board of Trustees. The final vote by the Board of Trustees was June 7, 2017. That same night there were public delegations made to the Board. The Board has a Delegations By-Law which promises the public the opportunity to delegate on the day decisions will be made. This conflicts with the PAR Policy. In the strictest parliamentary terms, By-Laws trump Policy. But By-Laws and Policy should be consistent and complementary. The position of the petitioners is that this breach is major since the Board did not have time to absorb the new information, which might have led to a different decision. I watched, on-line, not only all of the meetings at which the Board discussed the Director’s Final Report, all of the Special Delegations and the June 7th Meeting. There have been accusations that the Board did not understand the issues and was not well informed. As I watched the Trustees question and debate it was clear that they had a very good grasp of a very complex Review. The delegations on June 7th provided little in the way of information that had not been heard on the Special Delegations nights. And those nights were marathons. I also note that several of the delegates on June 7th are now petitioners. The Delegations By-Law should be amended to except the PAR process from the particular Delegations rule. Having gone well beyond the paper trail to understand this PAR process, I believe that, while the Board was in breach of its Policy, the breach had no material effect on the final decision

The petitioners claim that Policy states that while the final decision on the future of a school or group of schools rests solely with the Board of Trustees, a City Councillor provided instructions to an HDSB Trustee during the June 7, 2017 final vote for closure of Robert Bateman. I have seen the news clip of the text messaging that was going on at meeting. It is clear that more than one person in the Gallery is sending messages. When I asked the Chair if there were any rules about emailing and texting during Board Meetings she said that there had been some discussion but that there were no rules. There is nothing in the PAR Policy on the subject. The Trustee who received the messages says that they were about procedure, not how to vote.

The Board system showed that Trustees that evening received over 700 emails. The Chair ignored hers as she was chairing a difficult meeting. I personally would ban the use of emails and text messaging devices during meetings. At the least they distract the user from the discussion and debate and at worst border on rudeness. The rules of decorum, to use an old fashioned word, are something that the Trustees themselves must grapple with. The frenzy of messaging on June 7th allowed the question of Board independence from outside instruction to become a public issue. But there was no verifiable breach of Policy.

 Petitioners remain concerned about the transition of medically fragile CPP students. They refuse to believe that the final decisions of the Board will maintain the Bateman program that they value so much. But part of the final decision is a commitment to build new facilities at Nelson which will be fully AODA compliant and which will replicate or bring up to today’s standards, the facilities at Bateman. The Board has pointed out that it has long experience with this sort of transfer and that transition planning has started. It is currently involved in similar transitions in other parts of the Board. In Burlington itself, M.M. Robinson has the integration of CPP students and their program well underway. The Petitioners have been totally focused on the special needs students at Bateman. The Board must pay as much attention to the English language program needs and the needs of the IB students.

The Board has found it difficult to keep the IB numbers up and has kept the English Language program alive by refusing to approve students in the Bateman catchment area for Optional Attendance at Nelson although this is common practice across the Board. Over 100 students per year make this request. These students deserve a fair and equitable education. But their voices have been largely silent and their parents’ views have not been heard in the PARC process.

The final decision of the Board, by a vote of 10 to 1 was to close a school which was on the list referred to the Director by the PARC. I find that the process was fair to all of the Bateman students and that the process was timely, transparent, inclusive and open.

Observations: Lester B. Pearson  High School

Pearson HS is the second Burlington School to be closed.

The petitioners focus their complaints around the “timely, inclusive, transparent and open” processes promised by the Board.

The petitioners claim that while the policy states that the PARC will provide feedback to the Board of Trustees, the primary method of interaction with the Trustees was by email, most of which received no response or a short acknowledgement. There was no presentation, dialogue, or documents created as an output by PARC members. The intent of the Board Policy is that the PARC will communicate to the Board as a body corporate, not to individual Trustees. There is nothing in the Policy which defines what form the PARC “feedback on the options” will take. Given the failure to reach any consensus in the PARC it is not surprising that it did not produce a document. It did, through the information in the Notes of Meetings and the refining of the Options down to 5, provide what feedback it could. There was no breach of Policy.

The petitioners claim that Policy requires that the Board will share relevant information with the public to allow opportunity for input. But some community members, when they sought information which they thought relevant to the PAR, met roadblocks and one had to file a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. The petitioner who filed the FOI request sent me the full record of his interaction with the Board, including some of the FOI materials. The Board did meet his request but one can see why the initial reaction was to question the requests’ relevance to the PAR. The petitioner wanted detailed information starting with 2007 decisions, from the Board and the Ministry, about the decision making process and the funding process for the building of Hayden SS. He wanted to build the case that the PAR should have been done in 2008. That Hayden would then not have been built and that this PAR would have been unnecessary. He believes that there was a Policy breach in the 2008/2009 school year. The problem with his position is that it has little relevance to the reality the current Board has to deal with. There was no breach of the current Policy.

 The Petitioners believe that they were excluded from some of the processes of community involvement. They use as examples that they had no input to the student and teacher/staff surveys. It might have been more inclusive to ask for PARC input, but there is nothing in the Policy that required the Board to consult on how it will consult its students and staff. The Board was correct in not sharing the teacher/staff survey with the PARC since there seems to have been a good chance that respondents were identifiable. In any case, there was no breach of Policy.

The Petitioners claim that the Board failed to look at boundary changes which would rebalance the student population. They do not trust the Board’s enrolment projections. The petitioners are correct that only 1 of the original 19 options for discussion involved no school closures. The petitioners’ rebalancing would produce schools of around 750 students. It is clear to me that all this would do was spread course conflicts and timetabling problems across all of the schools. In any case, it was the Director’s job to give the best possible advice to the Board. This is a complaint about his choices. There is no breach of Policy.

The Petitioners claim that the Director’s Final Report was deficient in that it did not provide the compiled feedback from the public delegations to the Board of Trustees. The Director’s Report has one paragraph on the delegations. The current Board adopted a new Policy on delegations which does not require that delegates submit written presentations. I was told that a number of new Trustees thought that the previous requirement for written copies of presentations was “undemocratic”. The Board live-streamed every delegation and the videos remain on the website. Some delegates did provide written texts, others held up posters, some spoke from notes and left nothing behind. The Board is a statutory public corporation and therefore subject to the Freedom of Information Act. An FOI request for 10-year-old material was made during this PARC. I think that the lack of, at the very least, written summaries of presentations made the Director’s task of “compiling feedback” very difficult. I also believe that with the constant change in technologies the videos could become as obsolete and unwatchable as the old video tapes. This could present difficulties in the future with FOI. The real question is whether or not the absence of written detail on the delegations in the Director’s Final Report left the Trustees uninformed. The Trustees are insistent that they not only paid attention to the delegations but that many of them watched them again as they prepared for the final decision. In any case, they had expected only a very high level summary from the Director. There was a breach of Policy. The breach made no material difference to the final decision.

 The Petitioners claim that the Board breached its Policy by hearing delegations relevant to the PAR at the June 7th meeting when the decisions were made. Policy demanded that there be an interval of no less that ten (10) business days between the date of the public delegations and the final decision of the Board of Trustees. My comments regarding this item in the Bateman petition stand. The Board was in breach of its Policy, but the information provided on the 7th was largely repetitive and that which was not would have made no material difference to the final decision.

The Pearson petitioners found the process very divisive. They had wanted input from teachers but that was denied. They had difficulty communicating with their community. And they felt that the real issue was program, but that was not talked about enough.

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Program and Accommodation Reviews are invariably time-consuming and complex undertakings. In the case of the Burlington PAR it was a Review of seven secondary schools. The schools’ diverse programs and diverse student needs had to be understood. In addition, the question of empty student seats and the effect of that on program delivery had to be dealt with. This resulted in substantial quantities of data which had to be absorbed, dissected and debated over four months of the 2016-17 school year. The PARC did spend part of two meetings looking at the reality of course selection and timetabling in both large and small schools in Halton. At both meetings there was extensive discussion of the needs of Bateman CPP students. But one does sense some frustration at the limited time spent on the needs of students in the English Language Program.

As I listened to the various participants in this PAR it became clear that one of the problems the PARC had was that they were trying to discuss contentious issues in a gold fish bowl. Some members of the public clearly thought that their role was to interfere and instruct rather than observe. In addition members were definitely harassed using social media. I recommend that the Board amend PAR Policy 3.1 so that the Working Meetings of the PARC are private meetings. I further recommend that the Notes and Minutes of these meetings be made public with no attribution of specific remarks or motions to the individual member.

Among PARC members there was some initial confusion and ongoing discussion about how decisions would be made and records of meetings corrected. It was always clearly stated that their role was advisory rather than decision-making. The Chair’s interpretation was therefore that no motions or votes would take place.

Neither did the group have to reach consensus. With respect, I suggest that the Chair misinterpreted how an advisory committee, or indeed any Board Committee should operate. While it cannot make decisions for the Board, an advisory committee should be able to move motions and vote on what it will provide as advice. The records of the PARC meetings are clear and detailed and labeled Minutes/Notes. I was told that the group had agreed that they would be “approved” by email.  This has long been an accepted practice. I also have a record of two separate changes which were made at the request of a member. But there are no real Minutes.

Minutes are not “detailed” as the PAR Policy describes them. According to Robert’s Rules, which the Board uses, a Minute is a record of a decision which has been made by voting. Motions alone would be insufficient for a PARC. The Committee needs a detailed record of discussion to move issues from one meeting to the next. I recommend that PAR Policy 3.1 be amended to clarify that detailed Notes will be taken during PARC Meetings and that the advice which the PARC forwards to the Board should be approved by Motion according to Robert’s Rules.

 Board staff went well beyond anything I have seen before in their outreach to parents and the public. The main complaints about communications seem more about the style of some of the meetings than about the total effort. Some members of the public expected Question and Answer sessions whereas the meetings were clearly advertised as designed to provide information. I recommend that if the Town Hall format is used again, and many people liked it, that there be a brief session where attendees gather to get an explanation of how the evening will work and who will be providing information.

 

I recommend that any Poster Style information be in plain English, without the use of acronyms or education jargon.

 I also recommend that, at public meetings, cards be made available on which the public may write ideas, suggestions or questions to be answered on the Board website.

 A number of petitioners felt that some principals were more co-operative than others in assisting them to contact parents and that this disadvantaged some schools. I recommend that the Board’s instructions to principals about who may have access to information such as email addresses be posted on the Board website should another PAR be required in the Board.

 Many petitioners wanted teachers and EAs to be involved in the PAR process and claimed that the Board had forbidden their involvement. It is true that Senior Administration had told school staffs not to get involved and the Board’s Delegations By-Law does not allow staff to delegate in anything to do with their professional interest. One petitioner gave me a document which he stated came from the Board. In fact it was advice from the Secondary Teachers union (OSSTF) to its members on how to behave when school closures are under discussion. It advises teachers to let the local union leaders communicate any concerns to the Board. It specifically says that teachers must not have conversations or email, chat room or social media discussions with parents or students about a PAR. They should refer students and parents to school administrators. I agree with the positions taken by both the Board and OSSTF.

 CONCLUSIONS

 School closure decisions are best made at the local level because school boards understand the local community and the needs of all of the local students. Elected school boards are directly accountable for meeting student needs.

I greatly appreciate the advice and input from the petitioners. It is clear that they are devoted to their children and care deeply about their education. I also want to thank the Board, both Administration and Trustees, the Principals, the Ipsos Facilitator, the Student Representatives and the PARC for their assistance.

I understand the depth of feeling in the Bateman and Pearson communities about the decision to close their schools and transfer their students and programs.

Nevertheless, I believe that the Board has acted responsibly to resolve multiple problems in terms of fair and equitable program delivery to all Burlington secondary students. They have also removed most of the empty seats.

The Burlington PAR , while it was divisive, was also very open to the community:

  1. The PARC process did allow for extended discussion as both the meeting length and the number of meetings was
  1. The Trustee liaison attended all PARC meetings. Board Planning Staff were present at all meetings to provide information and advice. The Director attended several meetings as did many Trustees. Trustees and Senior Administration participated in all of the Public
  1. Senior Staff visited every school to inform teachers and staff. There were 7 Special Information meetings, one in each school, to inform the public. And the Board heard 59

I have viewed almost 24 hours of Board Meetings at which the Director’s Final Report was discussed and debated. I believe that the Trustees were attentive to the petitioners and the issues they presented. The meetings in total show Trustees who are confident that a good Transition Plan for special needs students can and will be developed. They know that such a plan is being successfully implemented at M.M. Robinson. They also grapple, through questions and debate, with the broader issue of the program needs of all Burlington secondary students. The final decision, while difficult, was made following a transparent process by well-informed Trustees. The final vote to close 2 schools was 12 to 1. I note that the two Student Trustees voted in favour of the Director’s Recommendation.

Based on my review and consultations, I conclude that, while there were violations of the Board PAR Policy, they were such that they had no material effect on either the deliberations of the PARC or on the final decisions of the Board.

Respectfully submitted,

Margaret Wilson

 

 

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Wilson report: board's review process was open to the community and equipped trustees with the diversity of perspectives and information needed.

Newsflash 100By Staff

January 10th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Ministry of Education has received and accepted the results of an examination into the accommodation review process undertaken by the Halton District School Board that resulted in the closure of two secondary schools in Burlington.

Margaret Wilson PAR Admin Review

Margaret Wilson

Independent facilitator Margaret Wilson’s report highlights that the board’s review process was open to the community and equipped trustees with the diversity of perspectives and information needed.

In September 2017, the Ministry of Education approved requests for an administrative review of the accommodation review process related to Robert Bateman High School and Lester B. Pearson High School. Wilson, a former Registrar and CEO of the Ontario College of Teachers, consulted with the local accommodation review committees, the school board and people who participated in the process.

Decisions about student accommodations are the responsibility of locally elected school boards. Boards are required to develop accommodation review processes that comply with the government’s Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline, which emphasizes consultation, transparency and local accountability. Administrative reviews help communities and boards fulfill those core principles.
Quick Facts

The Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline mandates minimum timelines for consultation and inclusion of the local community through representation on the Accommodation Review Committee and through public meetings.

The guideline helps direct boards during pupil accommodation reviews, which are required in most circumstances when a school closure is considered.

The ministry has no authority to overturn pupil accommodation decisions or delay their implementation.
Margaret Wilson has extensive experience in the education sector, including 17 years as a classroom teacher and more than 20 years in senior executive positions at teacher federations and education organizations. She has served on many Ministry of Education committees and task forces, and has previously been an independent facilitator for Administrative Reviews of school boards’ accommodation review processes.

 

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Does the Board of Education have a Plan B if the Ministry tells them the PAR has to be re-done?

SwP thumbnail graphicBy Pepper Parr

January 9th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Does the Halton District School Board have a Plan B should the Ministry of Education tell them to do the Program Administrative Review (PAR) all over again because they didn’t get it quite right the first time?

If the Ministry of Education does decide there were flaws and errors in the way the PAR was done by the Halton Board and believes it has to be re-done – it isn’t likely to be done in the very near future. The Ministry has all but admitted that the process they created was flawed and they put a hold on any new PAR’s being done.

If the process does get revised it will take many months for the bureaucrats to figure out what was wrong and then make the changes. The process of involving public groups has already begun.

PARC Jan 27 full group

Could there be a do-over of the PAR exercise. Pearson and Bateman parents hope so – Central high school parents are happy with the outcome.

Assuming the Halton Board is told to re-do the PAR – that would mean going through the process all over again. The Ministry does not tell the Board to close a school. The elected school board are the people who make that decision.

What does the Halton Board do in the meantime?

LBP George Ward

George Ward, a Pearson high school supporter thinks the Director of Education to have a Plan B.

George Ward, a parent going door to door to convince parents to fight back said he has been told by the Director of Education, Stuart Miller that there was no Plan B – they were moving forward on the assumption that they would not be required to re-do the PAR. Good luck on that one Mr. Miller.

If there were a Plan B – what would it look like?

Right now the plan the HDSB has is to close two of the city’s seven high schools – Bateman and Pearson. Bateman will close its doors in June of 2020 and Pearson is to graduate a class in June of 2018 and then close the doors.

The Board has begun preliminary construction planning for Nelson high school which is to take in much of the existing Bateman program.

There are some very strong reasons for not closing either school.

Bateman offers a program that isn’t available anywhere else in the Region. It is unique and serves a demographic that needs special help and consideration. Many, perhaps most, people were just not aware of the program. The parents with disadvantaged and dearly loved children tended not to talk about program at their school.

PAR banner

Despite the sign – the Bateman high school parents didn’t see their school at risk of being closed.

They weren’t aware that their school was at risk despite the many warnings that were coming out of the school board administration.

Senior staff at the school board admit that communicating with the community is not one of their strong points.

pearson-nursery-playgropund-full

Playground at the nursery co-op attached to Lester B.Pearson high school.

Pearson high school is a school that was “purpose built”; it was intended to be a small high school with a community component built into it. The Nursery, a best practices model, is supported financially by the city. Losing this school would be a terrible loss – to close it because the makeup of the feeder elementary schools were reconfigured is just poor management. The trustees have to bear the responsibility for that happening – they failed to give the Director the policy he needed to run things differently.

To be fair to Stuart Miller, the current Director of Education, has had to work with was on his plate – the big mistakes were made by his predecessors.

The trustees don’t bring all that much to the table in the way of communicating for their constituents. The members of the Halton District School Board have difficulty with seeing the bigger picture and giving the Director of Education policy that he can work within.

There is a bit of a silver lining – the trustees now have a new chair and vice chair. Andrea Grebenc of Burlington, the new chair and Tracy Ehl Harrison, the vice chair have an opportunity to change the quality of the decision making and to do the job trustees are elected to do.

Out of chaos and disappointment it is possible for creative leadership to come up with solutions that not only solve an existing problem but create a path for a new direction.

In February of 2017 the Board of Education staff brought the trustees up to date on where things were with the need for an administrative office that would meet current needs. The Singleton building on Guelph Line has to either be replaced or undergo a major upgrade. There are nowhere near enough meetings rooms – staff borrow an office that isn’t being used for a meeting.

HDSB property

School board property – not enough space and a building that needs an upgrade.

There is no lunch room. When staff decide to have a lunch they clear off a number of desks and lay the food out on the surface.

There is so much traffic in the building that the stairwell gets crowded and people have to turn sideways when passing another person.

The space is not adequately air conditioned.

The Ministry of Education will not fund a new administrative structure.

Within all this there is an opportunity for this Board of Education to come up with an idea that breaks new ground, meets both an administrative need, satisfies the demands and hope of a community that wants to keep its high school and retains a very valuable nursery operation.

How does the Board of Education do all that?

Five level bldg

They are just concepts – but they drawings suggest there is some thinking taking place.

Sell the property on Guelph Line – the Board can do that because it is not a school. Build a new administrative office on the Lester B. Pearson site that would include the high school and the nursery and make all of it an integrated centre similar to the exceptionally popular and well run Alton complex.

Halton would have a complex of buildings that reflects the direction education is beginning to go in.

The complex in Alton combined a high school with a library and a state of the art recreation centre. Pay it a visit sometime – it is packed most evenings. The library is almost a mini community centre.

Halton ranks amongst the best with the grades the students get. It is a wealthy community that knows how to take care of those less fortunate.

Miller in a huddle with Grebenc

Director of Education with the newly elected chair of the Halton District School Board.

But – what has the Board done in the last five years that is memorable?  They opened Hayden high school which is the most popular in the city – all the students want to attend. It has far to many portables.  Grouping several services in the one location works – the Board has an opportunity to do that again – redevelop the Lester B.Pearson site in a radical way.

Trite as the phrase can be – there is an opportunity for the trustees to think outside the box. Andrea Grebenc and  Tracy Ehl Harrison, the Chair and the Vice chair, have an opportunity to create a school board that leads in the truest sense of that word.

Related news stories:

The Board of Education has been talking about a new administrative structure.

SwP thumbnail graphicSalt with Pepper is the Gazette publishers’ opinion column

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'I can do something about that' didn't make it to the PARC meetings; a failure in leadership.

SwP thumbnail graphicBy Pepper Parr

January 4th, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

In the not too distant future Burlingtonians will learn what the provincially appointed Administration Review facilitator Margaret Wilson has to say about the Program Accommodation Review process that was used to close two of Burlington’s seven high schools.

How did this city get to this messy place?

The Gazette believes a large part of the reason was Marianne Meed Ward’s failure to lead.

How did a natural leader fail to lead when it really mattered?

SaveOurWaterfront- Meed ward

Meed Ward is a very astute politician – she chooses and issue and sticks with it asking people not just to vote for her but to trust her telling people: “I can do something about that”.

I have watched Marianne Meed Ward develop as a politician since 2010. I sat in on a few of her early 2010 election campaign meetings. I was given an opportunity to be part of the team that was going to run her election.

dfer

Marianne Meed Ward delegating as a citizen – before she had been elected to city Council.

I have watched Meed Ward appear before council as a citizen delegate; she was tireless, deliberate, focused and consistent.

When she was elected I watched her begin the process of bringing city council around to a better way of operating. Her colleagues did not make it easy.

During the period of time after a car accident that resulted in a concussion that Meed Ward was not fully aware of, I watched her struggle through a city council meeting and then drove her home – it wasn’t that she couldn’t walk – she knew she shouldn’t.

That same evening all the members of city council were being entertained for a holiday event at the home of a Council member whose application for a property severance had been denied by the Committee of adjustment. The decision was appealed to the OMB at considerable cost to the city.

Meed Ward said she had not been invited to the event.

Visual - city council full

Councillor Meed Ward has always wanted what council does to be on the record. She makes her colleagues stand up and be counted – and they don’t like it one bit.

I vividly recall watching Meed Ward put her colleagues through five recorded votes at a city Council meeting. The Councillor closest to her philosophically, John Taylor, sat there rolling his eyeballs. Meed Ward wasn’t budging one inch; she wanted those Councillors to be on the record.

I watched Meed Ward mature as a politician. She has been described by some as divisive – and to some degree she was – but not to the majority of the people in her ward. They believed she could walk on water.

Meed Ward held frequent ward meetings. I recall one during which she blurted out that she “loved her job” and she did.

During her first few months in office she got a call from a constituent about some garbage on the street – Meed Ward drove out with her van and picked up the garbage.

During her first six months as a city Councillor the City Clerk had to point out to her that she had used up her postage budget. She used up much of her coffee and donuts budget well before the end of the fiscal year. Her job was to send out information and meet with people, which she did.

Often, whenever ward 1 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward appears at events with the Mayor she sounds more "mayoral" than the man who wears the chain of office.

Ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward has had her eye on the job of Mayor from the day she filed her first set of nominations papers. The public should get a chance to decide if she is what the city needs next October.

She told her colleagues that that they should be paying for their parking – and that city staff should pay for their parking as well. Council didn’t agree with her – that didn’t faze Meed Ward – she said she was going to remit to the city the value of the free parking she was getting.

During the first election in 2010 Meed Ward had made it clear that she wanted at some point to be the Mayor.
She decided in 2014 that her children needed her at home and so she ran again in ward 2 and was handily re-elected.

With the 2018 municipal election in October expect to see Meed Ward running against the current Mayor.

The Gazette doesn’t agree with everything Meed Ward does but she is much, much closer to what a politician people in Burlington want to see representing them.

Meed WArd at PARC

Ward 2 city Councillor and Central high school parent Marianne Meed Ward at a school board PARC meeting.

Which gets me to the point of all this: Where were those leadership skills when it came to Meed Ward’s service as a member of the Program Accommodation Review Committee (PARC)?

That group of fourteen people was desperate for some leadership. Meed Ward could have given the group a strong sense of what needed to be done.

What went wrong?

PARC with options on the walls

PARC members deliberating with options on the walls

The members of the PARC certainly knew who she was. There was some concern expressed over a member of city council taking part in a Board of Education matter.

The Gazette didn’t have a problem with Mead Ward taking on the assignment. The Central high school parents asked her to represent them and given that she had a child attending the school she qualified.

We believed that Meed Ward knew the difference between the two roles she was playing. She was doing what the Mayor should have done. Mayor Goldring took the weasel position of sending his city manager to the PARC – James Ridge displayed a significant lack of knowledge when he said the school board should not sell any school property. Once a property is declared surplus the Boards of Education are required to sell property.

It was pretty clear by the second formal PARC meeting that they were stumbling. While the Board of Education Superintendent who was tasked with running the PARC had a lot of rules that he imposed those 14 people were bound by any of them. They had no input in the creation of the rules and began to realize that they were being manipulated.

To this day I don’t understand why someone: Steve Cussens , Steve Armstrong, Lisa Bull or Cheryl De Lugt – anyone, didn’t invite everyone over for a BBQ and have a frank and open discussion. The opportunity was there – they didn’t take it.

Central and MM question at PARC Feb 9

PARC members ranking the various school closing options that were put in front of them.

Without the leadership that was needed the best the 14 PARC representatives could do was protect the school they were representing.

The chance to take the high road was missed. They ended up hurling invectives at each other. The Bateman people panicked when they saw their school as marked for closure and claimed the Central parents had thrown them under the bus.

Whatever opportunity there was for a consensus was lost; the people power Meed Ward talks about wasn’t seen at any of the PARC meetings.

There is a phrase that Meed Ward uses when she talks about why she got into public service: “What inspired me to seek public office in the first place – “I can do something about that!” And she certainly does something as a city Councillor.

She just didn’t follow that direction as a PARC member.

There was from the very beginning an option that would have solved the immediate problem; options was #7 – do nothing, don’t close any of the high schools. The option wasn’t worded all that well and had a bit of a battle to remain on the list.

Some PARC members thought such an option voided the whole purpose of the PAR process while others felt very strongly that the public had the right to voice an opinion on whether or not they wanted any of their high schools closed.

Mead Ward chose not to take that option and run with it using her formidable skills to rally the other 13 people to that position.

The PARC could have, indeed the Gazette believes they should have, arrived at a consensus – option # 7 was there for them.

MMW typing

PARC member Marianne Meed Ward directing school board trustee Leah Reynolds on how to vote during some of the procedural issues.

The best Meed Ward was able to do in terms of leadership came after the PARC had been disbanded was to send a text message to a trustee with directions on how to vote, while the trustees were deliberating before the final vote to close two high schools.

MMW message to Reynolds

A parent took a photo of Meed Ward’s iPad screen during a school board meeting that clearly showed she was instructing Reynolds. In one line, Meed Ward wrote; “DON’T VOTE IN FAVOR” and in another, “Do not uphold the Chair’s ruling.”

It was not Meed Ward’s finest hour. Many people expected better.

Salt with Pepper are the opinions of the publisher of the Burlington Gazette.

 

Related content:
If there was ever a time when real leadership was needed the above this was it; the PARC infighting was getting dirty.

Meed Ward had to decide how she wanted to position herself once the Director of Education released the final report.

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Rory Nisan: 2018 - it is not enough to hope from the comforts of the couch.

opinionandcommentBy Rory Nisan

January 2nd, 2018

BURLINGTON, ON

 

“May you live in interesting times” — an English expression commonly attributed as a Chinese curse, and an appropriate characterization of the situation in Burlington at the beginning of 2018.

LBP cardWithout a doubt, 2017 was a year of some turmoil in our community. Two of our schools are on the chopping block and the campaign of the Halton District School Board to close schools come hell or high water has without a doubt been a source of civil conflict in our community.

And more recently, Burlingtonians have contended with drastic proposed changes to the city’s official plan, causing outrage among many (and satisfaction for others) as Burlington feels the effects of development agendas.

For those who are engaged on these issues, we enter 2018 with some trepidation. Will the approval of 421 Brant street stand? Will more proposals for sky scrapers at the bottom of Brant street come forward?

Will the 5-2 vote on the Brant street building be mirrored by a 5-2 vote in favour of the new Official Plan?

Miller Diane addressing Wilson HDSB

Margaret Wilson listening to a delegation during the Accommodation Review of the HDSB decision to close two high schools.

Similarly, what will Margaret Wilson’s Accommodation Review of the HDSB Trustees’ decision to close Pearson and Bateman high schools contain?

As easy as it would be to be fearful for the future, I see many reasons to be optimistic. We are busy people: families, commuters and active retirees, among others. We could be forgiven for not always having our fingers on the pulse of local politics. After all, Burlington is one of the best cities in which to live in Canada.

I am truly impressed at how many stood up for what we believe in this year. I have been most active with the Save Pearson team and many of us were not engaged between elections prior to this issue coming forward.

That has all changed.

Now, moms and dads, alumni and grandparents are working together towards common aims. There are bonds forming, political and social, that will carry us into 2018.

We are seeing Burlingtonians coming together across cultural lines as well. Burlington is changing fast — it has never been as diverse. We could either become more inclusive, or more exclusive — neutrality is tantamount to giving permission for xenophobia to creep into our society. After the Mosque attack on 29 January 2017 in Quebec, we organized a vigil for the victims at city hall. The hundreds of people who attended and signed the condolence book were proof that Burlingtonians want and will take action towards a more inclusive city.

After that, we wanted a more happy occasion to celebrate inclusion and diversity, and so with the support of a dozen faith groups we pulled together the first-ever One Burlington Festival. We celebrated our different cultures and faiths with food, music, dancing and games on 22 August. I am excited to help make it an annual event with another One Burlington Festival in August 2018.

Finally, membership on the City of Burlington’s Mundialization Committee has afforded me the chance to meet several younger Burlington residents. I was never anywhere near as engaged as they are in their high schools years. It has been gratifying to mentor some of the younger members of UN Subcommittee in particular. They are truly impressive and now, at 35 years old, I am finally understanding why it is often said that youth are the future. I aspire to be as focused and determined to be an agent of change as these students.

2018The next 12 months promise plenty of excitement. First, in June we will have a provincial election, which will bring fevered campaigning through the spring. Then, Burlington will hold its municipal election on 22 October along with the rest of Ontario. This one looks like it’s going to be interesting, with multiple competitive candidates for the Mayorship, and a strong probability that city council will not be fully re-elected as it was in 2014.

What I will look for in 2018 is how Burlingtonians will build on the actions taken this year to fight for the city we want, with the schools we want, the downtown we want, and the roads and transportation we want, all coming together to build a city fit for purpose in 2020. I am hoping that a 2020 vision emerges through citizens’ engagement and that the upcoming elections unify Burlington rather than divide us, and put us on a path towards the kind of city we deserve.

Of course, it is not enough to hope from the comforts of the couch. It is critical to take action to be a part of the change that one wants to see, and that is what I will do.

Will you?

rory closeupRory Nisan is a long-time Burlington resident and Lester B. Pearson High School alumnus. He has been an active member of the Save Pearson community organization.

 

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Boxing day has a long history; one that we do not share with our neighbours to the south.

background 100By Pepper Parr

December 26th, 2017

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Let us not rush back into the real world quite yet.

Christmas was festive, fun, and family – the day after has become a holiday with a quaint tradition that is celebrated in the Commonwealth countries that reflects the class tradition of the times.

The first mention of Boxing Day as a tradition is believed to be in 1830. It was the day that the Upper classes gave a “box” to people like post-men, errand-boys, and servants of various kinds.

It was a present, a gratuity given at Christmas to people who had provided a service. In Great Britain the custom for tradesmen to collect “Christmas boxes” of money or presents on the first weekday after Christmas as thanks for good service throughout the year. The tradition goes back as far as December 1663.

Boxing day - regency

It was a different time, a different era when class differences defined everything. The Boxing Day tradition came out of that era.

The tradition was linked to an older British tradition – servants of the wealthy were allowed the next day to visit their families. The employers would give each servant a box to take home containing gifts, bonuses, and sometimes leftover food.

In South Africa as recently as the 1980s, milkmen and garbage collectors, who normally had little if any interaction with those they served, were accustomed to knock on their doors asking for a “Christmas box”, being a small cash donation, in the week or so before and after Christmas.

The European tradition, which has long included giving money and other gifts to those who were needy and in service positions, has been dated to the Middle Ages, but the exact origin is unknown. It is believed to be in reference to the Alms Box placed in areas of worship to collect donations to the poor.

Boxing Day became a secular holiday that is traditionally celebrated on 26 December, the day after Christmas Day. 26 December is also St. Stephen’s Day, a religious holiday.

In the UK, Boxing Day is a bank holiday

In Scotland, Boxing Day has been specified as an additional bank holiday since 1974In Ireland – when the island as a whole was part of the United Kingdom – the Bank Holidays Act 1871 established the feast day of St. Stephen as a non-movable public holiday on 26 December. Following partition in 1920, Northern Ireland reverted to the British name, Boxing Day.

In Australia, Boxing Day is a federal public holiday. The Australian state of South Australia instead observes a public holiday known as Proclamation Day on the first weekday after Christmas Day or the Christmas Day holiday.

In New Zealand, Boxing Day is a statutory holiday; penalty rates and lieu time are provided to employees who work on Boxing Day.

In Canada, Boxing Day is a federal statutory holiday. Government offices, banks and post offices/delivery are closed. In some Canadian provinces, Boxing Day is a statutory holiday that is always celebrated on 26 December. In Canadian provinces where Boxing Day was a statutory holiday, and it falls on a Saturday or Sunday, compensation days are given in the following week.

In the United States, 26 December is not observed as “Boxing Day”.

The tradition has become a massive sales push that has people lining up outside large chain store operations as early as 5 am waiting for huge discounts, usually on electronic items that are positioned as loss leaders to attract customers.

Boxing day at the Eaton Centre

Boxing day at the Eaton Centre – packed.

The CTV television network reports that in 2010 Boxing Day sales totaled $1.8 billion. The tradition has become a shopping holiday that has become Boxing Week

Many retailers open very early (typically 5 am or even earlier) and offer door buster deals and loss leaders to draw people to their stores. It is not uncommon for long queues to form early in the morning of 26 December, hours before the opening of shops holding the big sales, especially at big-box consumer electronics retailers.

In recent years, retailers have expanded deals to “Boxing Week”. While Boxing Day is 26 December, many retailers will run the sales for several days before or after 26 December, often up to New Year’s Eve. Notably, in the recession of late 2008, a record number of retailers were holding early promotions due to a weak economy. Canada’s Boxing Day has often been compared with the American Super Saturday (the Saturday before Christmas) and Black Friday.

From 2009 onward Black Friday deals become more prominent among Canadian retailers to discourage shoppers from crossing the border to the USA when the Canadian and USA dollars was close to parity, and this has lessened the appeal of Boxing Day in Canada somewhat as it was overtaken by Black Friday in terms of sales in 2013.

Boxing Day is not and has never been a shopping holiday in the USA.

In some parts of Canada, particularly in Atlantic Canada and parts of Northern Ontario, most retailers are prohibited from opening on Boxing Day, either by provincial law or by municipal bylaw, or instead by informal agreement among major retailers to provide a day of relaxation following Christmas Day.

A tradition that came out of a social class based society has evolved into a week-long shopping spree.

It isn’t just about shopping; sports events have become major Boxing Day events.

Boxing day - soccer

Major European leagues may enjoy a winter break when players can put their feet up over the festive period. But it’s all go in the Premier and Football Leagues. And that means plenty of action for armchair soccer fans.

In the United Kingdom, it is traditional for both top-tier football leagues in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and the lower ones, as well as the rugby leagues, to hold a full programme of football and rugby union matches on Boxing Day.

Originally, matches on Boxing Day were played against local rivals to avoid teams and their fans having to travel a long distance to an away game on the day after Christmas Day.

This is probably much more than you wanted to know about the holiday we celebrate today.

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Five year old Damian De Freitas made an Honourary Fire Chief

News 100 redBy Staff

December 23rd, 2017

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Five-year old Damian De Freitas and his family joined Burlington Fire Chief Lazenby and the firefighters at Headquarters for a behind-the-scenes tour of the Fire Department. This wasn’t a quickie tour – Damien was the winner of Family Fire Escape Plan Contest which made an Honourary Fire Chief.

Fire chief Jr as desk

Damian De Freitas seems to like the Fire Chief’s office – and the hat fits.

“Damian was so excited when he found out he won the home escape plan contest. The Burlington Fire Department was so wonderful. Our family really enjoyed the tour, information and gifts we received—all with a personal touch. ”

The City of Burlington Fire Department recently hosted Chief-for-a-Day family fire escape plan winner, Damian De Freitas, at Fire Headquarters.

The Burlington Fire Department held a contest for all Burlington students to create and submit a fire escape plan to help children learn the importance of family escape planning. The fire escape plan from five-year-old De Freitas was randomly selected from the entries received in October for Fire Prevention Week.

De Freitas was given his own set of firefighter bunker gear. He and his mother Katelyn, father Kevin and sister Claire were invited to tour Burlington Fire Headquarters at Station No. 1 with Fire Chief Dave Lazenby.

The station tour included:

Fire chief Jr suited up

Damien being shown the ropes by several of the fire fighters.

• The fire training classroom
• Chief Lazenby’s office
• The Burlington Fire Department boardroom
• Simulation Command Post training room and truck
• Halton Emergency Services dispatch
• Burlington fire trucks, equipment and tools
• Pizza lunch with the Station 1 fire crew.

Lazenby had explained to the participants in the contest that a fire can double in size. That is why having a home fire escape plan is one of the most important things you can do for your family. Draw a map of your home with all members of your household. Be sure to include every level and room as well as stairways and hallways. Practice your plan twice a year, once at night and once during the day using different ways out.

Fire chief Jr in lunchroom

Honourary Fire Chief shares lunch with the fire fighters while his parents look on.

Damien’s Mom, Katelyn De Freitas, said “He was so excited when he found out he won the home escape plan contest, he will be sleeping in his Fire suit tonight

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Georgetown resident was the one millionth 2017 visitor to a Conservation Halton location.

News 100 greenBy Staff

December 23rd, 2017

BURLINGTON, ON

 

It’s a day Jamie Leslie isn’t likely to forget.

She was at Kelso/Glen Eden with her Dad, Dave day on Friday when she was declared the one millionth visitor in 2017 to a Conservation Halton location.

The visits number includes those who have enjoyed recreational programs and services at Crawford Lake, Hilton Falls, Kelso / Glen Eden, Mount Nemo, Mountsberg, Rattlesnake Point and Robert Edmondson.

The Conservation people have been working towards that millionth visitor number for some time. Chief Administrative Officer Hassaan Basit and Director of Parks and Recreation Gene Matthews made the target number a must for the year.

Jayme Leslie millionth visit Cons Halton

Georgetown resident Jayme Leslie was the one millionth visit to a Conservation Halton location.

Jayme, a Georgetown resident, received a gift package which will give her and her family the opportunity to keep enjoying our parks in 2018 and beyond. The package included a Glen Eden Season pass for 2018-19, a Halton Parks Membership for one year, merchandise and maple syrup from Mountsberg.

Basit, who is intense, but not the kind of guy that goes over the top with his comments. On this occasion however he got excited and said: “As we approach the end of the year it is fantastic to be able to celebrate a milestone like one million visits and we would like to thank everyone who came to enjoy our beautiful conservation areas.”

Visitation at Conservation Halton’s conservation areas has grown steadily over the past few years. In 2013, visits went over the 800,000 level, and last year almost reached 1,000,000. During that time period, the number of visits to Hilton Falls, Mount Nemo and Rattlesnake Point has more than doubled as people are enjoying the scenic views from those parks which are each along the iconic Niagara Escarpment and other activities like hiking, mountain biking and rock climbing.

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City of Burlington asking for feedback on playground structures.

News 100 yellowBy Staff

December 22nd, 2017

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Not the best time of year to ask people to find a couple of minutes to respond to a city survey. Things are so busy that the supermarket in my part of town is going to be open until 11 pm tonight.

Nonetheless – know this: The City will be replacing 14 playgrounds over the next two years and is encouraging families who use the specific parks to complete a survey to say which kinds of playground features would be most wanted.

Beginning Dec. 28, 2017, city staff will be at nearby recreation centres asking for input.

The online survey is HERE and will be available until January, 31, 2018.

Park survey

Location of the 14 parks that will be upgraded in 2018

Playgrounds to be replaced in the next two years are:

1. Brada Woods Park, 5196 Brada Cr.
2. Breckon Park, 4471 Spruce Ave.
3. Brittany Park, 1370 Headon Rd.
4. Champlain Park, 2101 Mountain Grove Ave.
5. Cumberland Park, 562 Cumberland Ave.
6. DesJardines Park, 1811 Imperial Way
7. LaSalle Park, 50 North Shore Blvd.
8. Maple Community Park, 750 Maple Ave.
9. Maplehurst Public School, 481 Plains Rd. E.
10. Optimist Park, 2131 Prospect St.
11. Sheraton Park, 594 Sheraton Rd.
12. Spencer Smith Park, 1400 Lakeshore Rd.
13. Sycamore Park, 3157 Centennial Dr.
14. Tansley Woods Park, 4100 Kilmer Dr.

Chris Glenn, director of Parks and Recreation explains that: “The survey results will be used to create plans for the parks that will be specific to that park. Talk to your kids about what kinds of play structures they like. Ask them if they prefer straight or curving slides, monkey bars, poles, swings and other fun, interactive equipment.”

The survey questionnaire runs 17 pages – we will run it again in the New Year when you have more time for this kind of thing.

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