NEW WARDEN PAGE
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UTRCA IN FLUX
STRATFORD VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 18
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23 FREE
DECEMBER 12, 2025
A Passion for People
Hear better. Age better. Live Better. Call today! Lucas Dasilva Hearing Instrument Specialist, Reg’d AHIP Clinic Co-Owner
SHERRIE ROULSTON
Real Estate Broker email: sherrieroulston@royallepage.ca Direct: 519-272-3578
Stratford’s only local and independent provider
Shelly Gansevles Office Administrator, Clinic Co-Owner
519.271.HEAR (4327) communityhearingcare.ca 370 Ontario St, Stratford, ON N5A 3H9
Local school boards post mixed EQAO results AMANDA MODARAGAMAGE Times Reporter
After recent reports that nearly half of Ontario’s Grade 6 students failed to meet the provincial standard in math, the Huron Perth Catholic District School Board (HPCDSB) and the Avon Maitland District School Board (AMDSB) say it’s not all bad news. Ontario Education Minister Paul Calandra released the latest Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) testing data, noting only 51 per cent of Grade 6 students met the provincial standard in math this school year. “When I got results, it frustrated me and made me quite upset,” Calandra said during a press conference early this month. “If we were doing it right, then we wouldn’t have 50 per cent of our students not meeting provincial benchmarks.” In a media release, the HPCDSB said 68 per cent of its students in the primary division met the provincial standard in math, 55 per cent of junior division students met the standard and 51 per cent of Grade 9 students achieved the standard. The AMDSB reported that 67 per cent of Grade 3 students met the provincial math standard, 52 per cent of Grade 6 students met the standard and 47 per cent of Grade 9 students met the standard. Though math scores throughout the province were not as strong as expected, both AMDSB and HPCDSB CONTINUED TO PAGE 2
(CONNOR LUCZKA PHOTO)
In a winter wonderland befitting the holiday season, the 2025 Santa's Parade of Lights wound around Lake Victoria on Dec. 7. For more photos see page 12.
Aisin Canada Inc. secure $2.2 million in provincial funding to protect over 500 jobs
CONNOR LUCZKA
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A local manufacturer has received a huge investment from the Government of Ontario in direct response to U.S. protectionism. Aisin Canada Inc. has secured $2.2 million through the Ontario Together Trade Fund (OTTF), a fund specifically created in response to U.S. tariffs. This investment will create 30 new jobs and further protect 530 local positions.
“It’s great to see that onshoring production to Ontario and Canada – and the good-paying jobs that come with it,” said Perth-Wellington MPP Matthew Rae in a Dec. 5 announcement at the Stratford facility on Wright Boulevard. “I know our government is doing everything in our power to ensure that we can continue to support businesses across Ontario and the employees that they employ.” As Wayne Robert, president of Aisin Canada Inc., told reporters, the Stratford location has never had layoffs, CONTINUED TO PAGE 2