The City of Vernon isn’t backing down over West Vernon Elementary. Council’s meeting agenda Monday includes discussing the likely
closure of 
the school. Mayor Wayne Lippert says he’s greatly disappointed with what he sees as a lack of consultation from the Vernon School District.“We hope to come up with a game plan to work with the school board,” he said. Lippert points out that the district’s facilities report doesn’t take into account community interests or this council’s desire to rejuvenate the central core through high-density, affordable housing. “We want to make sure the information they are using is correct and reflects the direction we’re taking,” he said.
The school board is expected to announce Feb. 20 the school will close although the North Okanagan Regional District is demanding a decision be delayed so there can be consultation with local government. Bill Turanski, school board chairman, doesn’t believe a delay will occur.“Anything is possible but not unless there is some startling revelation that will solve our problem,” he said of declining enrolment district-wide and tight financial conditions. Turanski continues to insists that the district has done everything possible to be open, including providing a copy of its long-range facilities report to local municipalities in 2005. He says there was no response from them.
“They either chose not to read it or it was tossed into the garbage barrel.” Trustees held the last of three input meetings with West Vernon parents and other residents Thursday. Turanski says the turnout was smaller compared to the other two sessions. “The ideas (to keep the school open) that came forward weren’t new. They were a rehash of the ideas proposed before, but we will review them,” he said. Turanski hasn’t seen any options that make him confident the school can remain open. And he believes the small turnout Thursday is a sign that most parents are starting to accept the situation. “It seems like the writing is on the wall,” he said. Lippert is adamant that the school district must start treating the city and other municipalities as partners and actively involving them in issues revolving around schools. “I hope we’re not too late for West Vernon but there could be other schools affected in future,” he said.
_______________________________
Feb 11 2007 EDITORIAL http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/
The Vernon School District is extremely defensive when its actions are questioned by other
jurisdictions, especially with the likely closure of West Vernon Elementary. Every time the City of Vernon or North Okanagan Regional District express concerns about school closures, district officials state they’ve had a very open process and it’s the other jurisdictions that have been sitting on the sidelines. Yes, NORD and the city could have been more proactive early on, but remember that it’s the school district threatening to shut down a school. The onus is on trustees to do whatever they can to ensure the community knows about the situation. And in the case of the city and NORD, they are another level of government and should be treated with some consideration. Why didn’t the school district raise the issue with the city months ago? Perhaps there could have been options considered if there was enough time. Instead, the trustees launch some public sessions a month before a decision on closure must be made. Such a tight timeline is unacceptable. And the trustees couldn’t have been oblivious to the frustration the West Vernon issue would cause among local civic leaders. It was just a year ago that the district was accused of not consulting properly over the Whitevale closure. Obviously they’ve learned nothing from that experience. And for those trustees who think closures aren’t the concern of the city, they are misdirected. Schools are an integral part of a community, and in this case, closure could sidetrack attempts to revitalize Vernon’s downtown. It may be too little too late for West Vernon, but it won’t be the last closure as enrolments drop. Hopefully, the district will be a little more open the next time around.
No comments:
Post a Comment