It is my sincere hope that you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year holiday. There are a few key issues that are on tap very shortly and I wanted to ensure the information was out to as many people as possible.
Boundary Review
Taking place, Thursday, Jan 12 from 7 til whenever at Basinview School. The information can be found on the www.hrsb.ns.ca website. There has been a review committee meeting since September to review populations and boundaries. There have been a few key items that have been raised for discussion including shifting of some boundaries for Sunnyside, Hammonds Plains, Basinview, Bedford Jr. High. Kingswood and Bedford South. It is important that you have your say. Come out to the meeting and have your say. If you can’t make it, there is still time to submit your thoughts for the next Board meeting. I will be looking for feedback after the committee submits their final report before it is accepted by the full Board.
The process worked like this:
– Committee struck in September. The committee is composed of volunteers from each of the school SACs.
– Committee met throughout the Fall and formulated first draft of recommendations.
– The committee will be presenting this Thursday and include their outline of the process behind getting to this recommendation.
– Input from communities.
– Adjustments to Report.
– Presentation to Elected Board for approval.
Some of the other background material can be found in the Imagine our Schools report. I look forward to hearing back from people as we attempt to balance out some of our populations in District 7.
We will be adjusting electoral boundaries very shortly. This will not affect your school boundaries. This is merely for the purposes of representation and elections. If you want to read the report, it is here.
School Board Funding
We are waiting for our budget that was supposed to be given to us earlier this year. We are expecting a cut and have been preparing for that. We are looking at ways to cut more on the administration side without affecting the classrooms, but with the size of the cut, that will prove very difficult. I will report more on this when we hear the size of our cut for this year.
Safety Regulations
Student safety is a priority of the Halifax Regional School Board and the Province of Nova Scotia. In order for the Halifax Regional School Board to comply with Nova Scotia Motor Vehicle Regulations, subsection 175(8), we must identify students who are under 9 years of age who weigh less than 18kg (40lbs) and have a standing height of less than 145cm (4’9″). These children will be required to be secured in a child restraint system when traveling on a school bus.
This year we will begin the process with all students in grade Primary who travel on a Stock bus to and from school. They will be weighed and measured in school in order to identify those students who meet the above weight and height limits.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we proceed with the implementation of this regulation.
New Board Member for October
With the upcoming election in October, I will complete my term. If anyone is interested in learning more, feel free to drop me an email.
Website
I continue putting up regular information on www.davidfinlayson.ca. Look there for current news, announcements, good news stories and current issues.
Please follow me on @halifaxdave on twitter, where I post many current news stories around North America.
Away
I will be away for work then vacation from Jan 15- Feb 1. If there are any items of concern, please email dfinlayson@eastlink.ca. I will be checking emails every couple days. If there is anything urgent, please get in touch with staff at the Board office.
Source: http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/newsletter-from-david-finlayson-school-board-rep
