"Everything" is on the table as Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school trustees face a possible $6 million deficit for next year, according to trustee Ken Clarkson.
Boisterous cheers filled Garibaldi Secondary's gymnasium Thursday afternoon (Dec. 13).
Heading into the holiday season, here's something a little different, which "we just can't get enough of. and which, ironically, is especially in demand at Christmas," said School Trustee Ken Clarkson.
Trustee Eleanor Palis said she was "upset" when she read a recent letter from the Maple Ridge Teachers Association that said "MRTA members are not feeling supported by their trustees and have asked us to bring that message to you."
As teachers from Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows head into their first ever two-week spring break, tensions continue to mount about their labour dispute with the provincial government.
"My resolution is to be more grateful. I will start by being grateful that I no longer feel compelled to make diet resolutions that end Jan. 28. Kidding aside, I am truly grateful to be living in our beautiful community and I would like to wish everyone a healthy and happy 2012 filled with many reasons to be grateful."
Coverage of two elections and a referendum filled the pages of The TIMES for a good chunk of 2011.
Mike Murray was chosen to chair the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school board.
Maple Ridge elected two new people to the board of education in Saturday's civic election.
The relationship between the school boards and teachers is probably at its lowest in nearly 40 years. Let's face the reason: We have an inept bargaining system in this province and a lack of local control.
Relationships, respect, working together, lack of funding, and lice - these were some of the topics that came up at the school trustee debate at Whonnock Lake Centre Tuesday evening.
Maple Ridge Teachers' Association has come out endorsing two school trustee candidates.
Nominations closed on Friday for the Nov. 19 civic election with two men vying for the mayor's chair in Maple Ridge, and one woman and two men vying for the corresponding position in Pitt Meadows.
The Nov. 19 election has drawn in a plethora of candidates with 21 already vying for Maple Ridge council and 11 for Pitt Meadows council.
School board chair Ken Clarkson once commented to me that allowing excellence to flourish in education allows for best practices in teaching. He went on to muse that it might be time for another Royal Commission on education to overhaul and revamp our education system.
Parents and children are getting supplies, new shoes, and clothes ready for what should be an exciting new beginning - back to school. But with the discord in school administration, everyone is left with uncertainty of what the coming school year will hold.
Safety could be rewarded with a free ice cream cone from McDonald's as the 11th summer of Summer Safety Smart Cards program is launched. Members of the Maple Ridge fire department, and the RCMP Community Policing team will be out and about keeping our community safe during the summer months, and rewarding good behaviour.
Money alone won't guarantee a good education, according to the minister of education.