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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010
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RCH set to grow
First day is big day District has waiting lists for full-day kindergarten BY NIKI HOPE REPORTER
nhope@royalcityrecord.com
Royal Columbian expansion plans sent to province BY THERESA MCMANUS REPORTER tmcmanus@royalcityrecord.com
Royal Columbian Hospital has submitted a concept expansion and renovation plan to the provincial government that would address the “huge need” for space at Royal Columbian Hospital. Fraser Health has been working with the Ministry of Health Services to finalize and submit the site concept plan for the redevelopment of Royal Columbian Hospital. “Right now we are in the business planning stage,” said Brad Foster, senior consultant with capital projects for Fraser Health. “We are looking at a couple different scenarios.” Foster said all of the scenarios call for expansion on the existing Royal Columbian Hospital site. The scenarios could include expanding existing building upwards or building new towers. Foster said New Westminster is an important part of the hospital’s constituency, but the hospital serves the entire North Fraser area and plays a role in provincial health care. ◗Hospital Page 4
Jason Lang/THE RECORD
A big step: Heather Corbett and son Jonathan are getting set for Jonathan’s first day at school. Jonathan will be one of the first students in full-day kindergarten.
Five-year-old Jonathan Corbett’s trek to kindergarten this fall won’t just be a personal milestone, it’s also a landmark year for public education in this province. The Sapperton schoolboy will be among the first class of the provincial government’s phased-in shift toward providing full-day kindergarten for fiveyear-olds. This year, only some schools will offer the program, but by the fall of 2011 every school in the province will have full-day kindergarten. “Full-day kindergarten is probably one of the most important social policy initiatives that government has introduced over the past 30 years,” superintendent John Woudzia told The Record earlier this year. Jonathan’s mom, Heather Corbett, said her son is prepared for the full-day experience. “Jonathan is definitely ready because he’s been at Montessori (preschool) for two years. He’s been going five days a week, so he’s ready,” she said. But Corbett said full-day kindergarten might be a challenge for children who’ve had no classroom time. “I definitely feel for parents whose kids haven’t had any preschool at all. I think it will be a long day (for them),” she said. Local parents, for the most part, are embracing the full-day option. Sandra Pace, the district’s director of instruction, wrote in an e-mail to The Record that there was “substantial” interest in having full-day kindergarten and there are currently waiting lists at the four local schools that offer it. At Queen Elizabeth Elementary in Queensborough, the district noticed a slight increase in enrolment of students ◗Kindergarten Page 8
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