Budget discussions continued at last week’s Sea to Sky School Board meeting, with Chair Rick Price announcing that “it’s not going to be difficult for us to achieve a balanced budget, but not a happy budget. We are not able to provide all the services we wish for our students.”
After having announced on April 14 that staffing levels and wages would be frozen as a result of belt tightening at the provincial level, Price last Wednesday (May 12) said about future budgets, “The most effective advocate to get more money for public education is through parents at the B.C. Schools Trustees Association.”
After the recent cuts in hours, representatives of the Teacher Librarian Association made a presentation to the board at its meeting at Whistler Secondary School titled “Schools without libraries are at risk of becoming irrelevant.”
Tina Sherlock of Mamquam Elementary in Squamish and Jackie Hancox reminded the board of 10 ways teacher librarians instill a love of reading in students. This creates “lifelong library users” with “the skills they need to succeed at university.”
Hancox explained how school libraries tailor their approach to suit “digital natives,” helping students with information literacy, Internet ethics, and etiquette, along with their traditional work — creating a collection which supports the curriculum.
When researching on the Internet, Sherlock asks her students, “What’s worthy information? Who has created the website? What might their bias be? How current is it? Do they work for a corporation? There’s a lot of critical thinking and they all want to use Wikipedia.”
She added, “I realize it’s expensive having two teachers in the library supporting students in their learning, but it’s well worth the money when you see how the students thrive.”
Individual schools are given guidelines regarding some of their operating budget, but teacher librarians are not protected by these formulae. The allowance for teacher librarians is completely at the discretion of the school; guarantees are only made for secondary schools, Sherlock said.
In other school board news:
• Plans to improve the entrance of Garibaldi Highlands Elementary were moved ahead, after successful examination of the building, insurance and legal requirements. Construction is planned for the summer while students are away.
The improvements will be made by a team of parent volunteers with construction, engineering and architectural backgrounds. The volunteers hope that all building materials will be donated. The board thanked members of the volunteer team led by Principal Nick Pascuzzi for their ongoing work and await the signing of the building permits in the near future.
• Rebecca Barley was appointed trustee for Winds of Change Committee, with Dave Walden as the alternate. Winds of Change is a document adopted by both the Village of Pemberton and Lil’wat Nation (Mount Currie Band) that aims to find common ground in addressing issues surrounding substance abuse in the Pemberton Valley.
• Sea to Sky Teachers’ Association president Beth Miller was the only member of the public to ask clarification questions. She requested information about service plans and had suggestions on creating a healthier budget.
