By Tina Comeau
THE VANGUARD
NovaNewsNow.com
Although it will be asked at its next meeting to rescind its motion to reconfigure Maple Grove and Yarmouth Junior High, the school board staff will continue with its work to prepare for the change that is planned for September.
At its May 4 meeting board member Winnie Surette gave the board notice that at the next meeting she was bring forth a motion asking the board to rescind the motion it made at an April 20 meeting to make Maple Grove a Grade 7 and 8 school and Yarmouth Junior High a Grade 9 school beginning in September.
When Surette gave her notice of motion school board chair Faye Haley was quick to point out that board bylaws state that when a notice of motion is made to rescind or reconsider a board motion, in the intervening month nothing can go forward with the original motion unless otherwise ordered by the board.
She asked that a motion be made directing school board staff to continue to prepare for the change in advance of the board’s June meeting.
“Winnie will still be introducing her motion on June 1, if her motion is accepted and the board backs off on the whole thing than that’s fine. But if not and the board stands with the current decision, than this month is absolutely critical given the timeframe that we’re dealing with,” Haley said following the meeting.
Many people turned out to the board’s May 4 meeting to protest the school board’s decision to reconfigure the school as of September.
After the meeting The Vanguard asked Haley why the board had not waited a year to implement the school reconfiguration changes, which would allow people and the board more time to prepare for the change. Haley cited the construction of a new high school as a factor.
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While the construction of the new high school is one of the reasons behind making the change – since the new high school will house students in Grade 9-12 – Haley said there is still skepticism over when the new high school will open.
A spokesperson with the Department of Education said last week that it is hoped construction will begin in July and efforts will be made to hit the target of a September 2011 opening. But he also said realistically it may be a January 2012 opening.
Haley said if the school board waited until until a new high school opened to bring all of the Grade 9 students together, it could be problematic, particular if the new school isn’t ready for a September opening.
“Under that scenario you would have, in the middle of the school year, two groups of kids coming in from different places and expected to adjust to a new school, new teachers, new classmates, it just made more sense to build that cushion in there now,” she said.
Asked if the board is surprised by the reaction to its decision, Haley said it isn’t.
“Change is hard for everybody,” she said. “It was studied, it has been tossed around before in various ways over the years, but it just seemed like the right time given all of the things that are going on around it.”
But when asked if people may have had a different reaction to the idea if the board had widely consulted with the public in advance of a decision, and had answers readily available to questions and concerns as opposed to saying to the public, “We’re working on it,” Haley’s response was, “You may well be right.”
