REDUCTIONS IN the
North Vancouver
School District budget
will ‘‘pass the point of
toleration by
September, and unless
the Ministry of Educa-
tion backs off. iis
restraint program it
could jead to a serious
“confrontation beiween
the board and the pro-
vincial government.

By BILL BELL

Trustee Verna Smcelovsky
told the North Shore News
that ‘unless some kind of
compromise on the
1985/1986 budgets could be
worked? out with the Minister
of Education, ‘we could be
looking at going the Van-
couver route.”

“With the motion we have
already passed, asking the
Minister of Education for
enough money, well, we
could end up in trusteeship if
we continued to push it,’’
Smelovsky said. .

Board chairman Margaret
Jessup was evasive when ask-
ed what the board would do
if the Minister of. Education
did not ‘meet. its demands.

J * We'll have to’ wait and

see, but’ I’ve “now outlined -

our.problems tothe Minister
‘and requested a meeting,”
‘Jessup said.

. Those demands
-Keeping the 1985/86 budgets
at.the 1984 level, plus an in-
crease to cover inflationary
and salary increases.

_ “We are, Mr. Minister, of
the firm conviction that
‘restraint in education, as it is-
.. “projected, will pass the point
 -*“of.toleration,’’ Jessup said in
~acletter to the Minister of
“Education, Jack Heinrich.
‘In that letter Jessup told
the Minister that 102,
achers, 58 aides and clerical
aff and 40 caretaking staff
‘will: have been reduced bet-
“, seen’ September, {983 and
“September, 1985.
“**Additionally,
‘district’ Ss expenditures on
building. maintenance © will
‘“have.: been - reduced. by
-$600,000, ‘and ‘its allocation
for libraries and instructional
support. materials and sup-
plies: by - "$900, 000,”" - Fessup
Said. oo i
“These.” reductions: repre-
‘Sent al2°per cent decrease in
Operating expenditures bet-
ween 1983 and 195/86
-budget's years, while student
enrolment will decline by less
than two per cent over the
same period.”

Jessup went on to explain
to the Minister that the in-
tegration of handicap
students into the school
district, over the past nine
years made it difficult to cut
the budget any further.

‘*Reductions of this
magnitude might have been
tolerated had North Van-
couver Schools comprised
students with identical needs,
motivations and abilities who
could be taught by the lecture
method in large
homogeneous groups.

“The nature of North Van-
couver’s student population
is far from homogeneous and
is indeed, very different from
what it was a few years ago,"
Jessup said.

The letter outlined the in-
erease of handicapped
students in the district over
the years for “humanitarian

the

school board-!
confrontation coming?

include -

jinistry

and educational reasons."* learning disabled, mentally sizes. and classroom sup- drastic fluctuation in educa- :
In 1984 there were 946 handicapped, behaviourai  plies,’’ she wrote, tional funding that disadvan- ‘

students, who by government = problems, and English as a Jessup finished the letter tage one and advantage

desi gnation, were second language students. by pleading with the Minister, another generation of

categorizable as physically “We now stand to lose as to understand consequences children are in the best in-

handicapped, visually im- restraint threatens teacher of the restraint program, terests of the individual, the MARGARET JESSUP

paired, hearing impaired, morale and enthusiasm, class “We do not believe that Province or the Nation. " « Writes minister

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