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PORT PERRY "WEEKEND STAR" -- FRIDAY, MAY 26, 2000 - 3 Durham board targets funding inequities By Rik Davie Special to the Star The Durham District School Board is among the low- est on the provincial funding scale, and officials are at a loss to explain why. Members of School Community Councils on hand at a recent meeting to introduce the first draft budget for the 2000-2001 school year were given reports that show other comparable boards in the province receiving more funding than Durham. The Durham board is currently receiving per-pupil funding levels that leave it 70th out of 72 boards in the province. The average per-pupil grant figures issued by the Ministry of Education stands at $6,351.17; the Durham board is currently receiving $5,871.53 per pupil. Police warn of phone scam targeting area By Chris Hall Port Perry Star A London telemarket- ing company has target- ed local businesses in a telephone scam that claims to be drumming up support for provincial police services. Durham Regional Police report that a local business was contacted recently by a telemarket- ing firm from London and offered a fingerprinting kit, a police newsletter and a business-card size ad in a magazine for $259. The newsletter was supposedly entitled "Our Provincial Police News", and frequently referred to as OPP News, making it sound like an official release from the Ontario Provincial Police, said Const. Dave Mann, an officer with the Durham Regional Police. "It gives people the impression that it is somewhat affiliated with the Ontario Provincial Police, which it is not," said Const. Mann. "After agreeing to pur- chase the package, the local businessman called the OPP, who said that in no way do they endorse the newsletter." When a courier arrived a few days later, the businessman refused to take the package or hand over a payment. He was later contacted by an official from the telemar- keting firm, say Durham Police, adding that "the two exchanged words" and hung up. "They're trying to sell people on supporting police, and on the finger- print kit. The kit's sup- posedly for the safety of your children. You can take their prints, and, if anything happens in the future, you can provide police with their prints," said Const. Mann. "With "your $259 you also get a small ad in the newsletter, or if you're a small in-home business you get a deal at $125." What the London firm is doing is not illegal. "What they're doing might be wrong, but it's not illegal. They're not identifying themselves as police or as a police ser- vice, they're just provid- ing news about the police," said Const. Mann. A\ ECT SCS 14 CRY 8 § ASRS Bd ROBERT G. EC il (612991 SY § (O1 00) Sl / = 1/2 mile N. of Thic eo Rd. (905) 655-4411 | WEEKEND SPECIALS Friday, May 26 - Sunday, May 28 PERENNIAL STELLA D'ORO Daylily 1 gal. pot ANNUALS FIBROUS BEGONIAS Flat ©)@©) ©) reg. $11.00 Ron Trbovich, Superintendent for Finance, said that his staff has been doing comparisons with other similar boards to Durham, and the figures "simply don't add up." Durham is receiving $59 million based on a projected enrollment of 63,090, while a similar board, Waterloo Region, will receive $59.2 million based on an enroll- ment of only 56,878. The report lists five other similar boards that all receive more funding than Durham. Meanwhile in this region, it is feared that money from reserves will have to be used to prop up such programs as special education and technology spending, which face a budget crunch. Mr. Trbovich said that questions to education ministry staff in the past have led to little in the way of answers. "This is not satisfactory so we have prepared this pro- file of funding for trustees information," Mr. Trbovich told the crowd of SCC members, who are angry over cutbacks and a lack of new schools in the region. Another financial officer with the board, Steve Parfeniuk, told the finance committee meeting that "in some cases we are receiving amounts of $5 per-pupil less than nearly identical boards." Scugog trustee Bobbie Drew, who sits as co-chair of the board, said the matter has been raised in talks with local MPPs, including Minister of Education Janet Ecker, with no clear answers forthcoming as of yet. "We will not drop the matter, certainly," she said. "We have had to make cuts in the delivery of special education and technology to our students and we will pursue this until we get a satisfactory explanation or a funding change." ~ at the back of the store ~ F day, May 26 dl" 9am. - 7pm. i Saturday, May er ~ discontinued styles and end of lines ~ * pants & shorts ® t-shirts ® dresses ® shoes - ® summer co-ordinates ® bathing suits ® accessories FOR MEN, WOMEN AND KIDS FINAL SALE - plus. in-store specials all week long!! BR@ | 8 Queen Street, Port Perm 5-985.) [NOC IS i B FA 4 4 -- LA