Following are the board highlights from the School District 27 (SD27) meeting held on April 26:
RCMP academy
SD27 trustees have endorsed a recommendation from its education committee for an RCMP Academy.
The school district will now work with the RCMP in hopes of setting up an academy for senior students next year. It would involve about four-and-a-half days of training during spring break.
Trustee Pete Penner says the RCMP has been running the program successfully in Prince George and Quesnel, so the trustees thought it was appropriate to offer one in Williams Lake.
Interested students from Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School may also attend, and Penner notes this might involve the schools arranging a car pool and possibly the use of a dormitory at Columneetza Secondary School.
He notes that working in the RCMP is a good career opportunity for youths, but adds the potential benefits for these students is two-fold.
“Even if they don’t go into a career and if it changes their impression of the RCMP or the police in general, then it’s doing some good.”
School fees disputed
The agenda item regarding school fees produced some lengthy discussions.
Penner notes a legal opinion from a Victoria-based lawyer indicated that anything required for a course can’t be charged to students.
The trustee adds the issue was further complicated by the collection of grad fees, book deposits and the like, which are not directly related to completing a students education, but do create a hardship for some parents.
“We don’t have enough money to pay for all the grad fees and everything. If you’ve got 150 grads at $100 a piece, that’s $15,000.”
Trustees talked about whether this is the best use of the school board budget, Penner says, adding a hardship clause is already in place for students whose families can’t manage the fees.
The board’s investigation into the issue is ongoing.
