Closure legality questioned

FROM PAGE A1

before the parents and I felt
they were brainwashed. She
came home saying, ‘it’s great
we're going to Carson
Graham.’

Stull, another
questioned the legality of
calling a meeting with
inadequate notice and asked
the board for a legal opinion.
Board chairman, Margaret
Jessup agreed to have the
school district's lawyer
check the legality of the
notice.

However, Jessup told the
News after the meeting that
she felt the board didn’t have
to notify anybody.

“Quite honestly you don’t
have to notify anyone, our

parent

public notice is just the
custom,” she said.
Jessup defended the

board's action of sending out
the notices with the children
but could not say if the
children had been _ brain-
washed into believing the
closure was a good thing.
“God, I don't know, 1
wasn't there, but I suppose

the parents felt the kids
bringing home the message
was not a good idea. Still, we
saved a lot in postage,”
Jessup said.

“It might very well be a
point of criticism that we
have to take.”

The board chairman said
the decision was not a
“mindless act,” saying a
quick decision was made
because the board felt it was
in the best interests of
everyone involved.

“We knew we should not
be shilly shallying around
once we knew it was the

necessary thing to do,”
Jessup explained.
School trustee Dorothy

Lynas told the meeting it was
the board’s experience in
past closures, that speed was
absolutely necessary.

“Once a tentative closure
has been announced the
school tends to die, children
are moved to other schools
and the strain is very hard on
the teachers,” Lynas said.

Lynas was also concerned
with the public reaction to
the board's action.

“The impression is that we

are taking some sort of
delight in the closing but
there is a considerable
amount of unhappiness with
the situation we have found
ourselves in. It is an un-
fortunate situation but I
think a continuing
situation.” Lynas said.

Sdll, one parent pointed
out the literature from the
National School Board
Association showed that a
one year notice of intent to

close a school, similar to
West Vancouver's School
Board policy, was  con-

sidered the best time period
when closing down a school.

At the same meeting, the
board refused to give parents
of Hamilton students total
assurance that the unique

‘““‘Mastery program,”
especially geared _ for
students who have. dif-

ficulties within the regular

school system would be
transferred to Carson
Graham.”

Pressed by parents, the
board agreed to speed up the
consultation process _ bet-
ween staff and parents at
Hamilton and Carson

Graham schools. It would be
decided during the summer
what aspects of the Hamilton
program would remain
intact and what com-
promises would have to be
made.

“We cannot mandate
Carson Graham into ac-
cepting the entire Hamilton
program, we are not
prepared to say you must do
this or you must do that, it
has to be worked out bet-
ween the administration, the
teachers and parents,”
Jessup said.

Donald Graham,
called himself a “very
frustrated” parent of a
Hamilton student, said the
parents’ concerns were not

wha

being addressed.
“Frankly I'm left with the
feeling that we are a

nuisance and you will go
ahead with doing your own
thing and then we will be
consulted in September,”

Graham acknowledged
that the board faced some
very difficult decisions and
was doing a good job, but it
was not giving the parent
enough input.

N. Shore council agenda highlights

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