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April 25, 2012
A division of
Vol. 27 No. 33
COMOX VALLEY RECORD Your community. Your newspaper. www.comoxvalleyrecord.com
fightback.ca
BCTF vote threatening school activities
DUCHESS DIRTY
Renée Andor Record Staff
Spring has sprung and gardeners are busy. ■ B9
OLYMPIC BOUND
Southern Utah University distance runner Cameron Levins of Black Creek is on his way to qualifying for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London after running a 13:18.47 in the 5,000-metre run at the Mt. SAC Invitational in Walnut, Calif. The time earned him a Canadian Olympic A+ Qualifier time. Levins’ time beat the required 13:20 mark necessary for Canadian Olympic qualification by just over one and a half seconds. To do so, Levins had to maintain lap splits of at least 64 seconds.
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Effective immediately, Comox Valley teachers will not perform extracurricular activities, which will cause some cancellations. The BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) conducted a provincewide vote from April 17 to 19, in which 73 per cent of teachers voted to rescinding their involvement in extracurricular activities until the end of the school year. School District 71 superintendent Sherry Elwood told the Record the district will have to look at each activity on a “case by case basis,” but at this point, she is sure some activities will not be able to go ahead. “The district will work with principals and vice-principals planning to provide as consistent an approach as possible to manage this, however we are certain that not all extracurricular activities will go ahead,” said Elwood. Tonia Frawley, Comox Valley District Parent Advisory Council (DPAC) chair, spoke to Comox Valley parents at a meeting Monday evening and said the situation is frustrating for everyone. “It is a frustrating time for everyone involved,” said Frawley. “There are so many events being affected by this next level of action. The way graduation ceremonies will look this year, whether or not kids will get to go to camp, as well as track and field, just to name a few.
GRADUATION CEREMONIES might be affected by a BCTF decision to withdraw from extracurricular activities. FILE PHOTO BY ERIN HALUSCHAK
“Every teacher, school and district will vary from each other, which is why there aren’t clear, cut answers at this point for our parents.” Elwood said parents can check school websites their children attend for updates, and they can watch for school newsletters on how individual schools’ plan to
deal with their extracurricular activities. Comox District Teachers’ Association president Steve Stanley said Comox Valley teachers generally support withdrawal from extracurricular activities, and hopes those who don’t agree will still withdraw. “We hope that teachers will
Missing woman’s vehicle located Erin Haluschak Record Staff
An extensive search at the base of Mount Washington continued Tuesday morning after the vehicle of missing 75-year-old Saanich woman Shirley Burstall was found late Monday afternoon. Paul Berry, manager/president of the Comox Valley Ground Search and Rescue team, said about 40 searchers are searching the ground and water for Burstall, who was last seen April 5 in Ladysmith at a gas station.
“It’s a pretty contained search,” said Berry to media Tuesday. “Everything we understand about her is that she is an avid hiker and very fit for her age. We’re trying to determine the direction of travel.” He added there is no indication how long the vehicle had been abandoned, but said as last contact with Burstall was about 20 days, it could have been there for some time. Berry noted some members of her family are at the search location, while more are flying in from Calgary.
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“It is not uncharacteristic for her to hike, but it’s not the sort of area she would have hiked in,” he said, and added with ski season wrapping up over the weekend and the area active with logging, there is a lot of traffic in the area. Burstall’s family said she had decided to get away for a few days, and mentioned to her daughter she may head to Tofino. She is described as a five-foot, seven-inch white woman with short brown hair and a medium build. photos@comoxvalleyrecord.com
writer@comoxvalleyrecord.com
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respect the vote, respect the feelings of their colleagues even if they don’t agree with it,” said Stanley, adding there could be consequences from the union for teachers who continue with extracurricular activities. This withdrawal from extracurricular activities extends to the end of this school year; and any future action would face another provincewide BCTF vote. Stanley noted teachers may participate in activities like sports and graduation ceremony planning, but only if work is done during regular school hours. He added many SD71 schools hold annual Grade 7 camping trips, which will be hard for teachers to attend during regular school hours because of the locations. “If they’re going to go ahead with overnight camping trips it’ll have to be parents and administrators involved and not teachers,” said Stanley. Teacher involvement “becomes difficult because most of these trips go to Hornby or Quadra Island so it’s difficult getting in and out, so it’s probably going to be stopped or dropped.” Elwood added teacher withdrawal from extracurricular activities is a philosophical issue for many teachers. “We are aware that this is a deep philosophical issue for teachers and that it can create tension for all involved,” said Elwood. “Many teachers contribute hundreds of hours of voluntary time to their schools and to the district, and their contributions create positive experiences for our students.” Stanley said the impact of Bill 22 on classrooms is a larger issue for teachers than extracurricular activities. “We know kids and parents are going to be disappointed but we believe that once the impact of Bill 22 is felt in the classroom next year, kids are actually going to be hurt by it, their chances of success are going to be diminished by the larger class sizes,” said Stanley. “We feel that’s a more important issue than whether they get to play basketball or whatever the sport might be.”
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