The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, M ay 27 ,2 02 1 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca newsroom@theifp.ca IndependentAndFreePress @IFP_11 WHO WE ARE Publisher Kelly Montague Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Distribution Representative Kim Mossman Real Estate Kristie Pells Regional Production Manager Manuel Garcia Halton Media General Manager Jason Pehora CONTACT US The Independent & Free Press 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-873-0301 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Fax: 905-873-0398 Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at theifp.ca Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail lpolar@miltoncanadianchampion.com or call 905-234-1019. OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT THEIFP.CA A female cardinal visits a backyard in rural Georgetown. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. Tony Fortunato photo SNAPSHOT PETER WATSON Column It's time to rethink post- secondary education in Ontario. This has been accelerat- ed by the pandemic, but be- fore that there was a defi- nite need for an upgrade. Doug Ford's govern- ment acknowledged that our long-term-care facili- ties are not able to hire the sufficient number of qual- ified staff to care for our el- derly. His solution is free edu- cation for those wanting to train for that occupation. That raises the question of other skills that are needed in our society. There is a demand for workers with advanced training in science and technology. Many other skill sets are required as well. Education is our foun- dation. Our province needs to reprioritize educational funding. Ontario should provide free post-secondary educa- tion for the four years fol- lowing high school. That would be extended to six years depending on our needs and opportunities. We pay the cost of high school. That is not even close to meeting current day needs. Will the cost of extend- ing the length of free educa- tion be staggering? Yes. Will the cost of not ex- tending the length of free education be staggering? Absolutely yes. Enhanced education makes economic sense. Ontario will be able to offer the goods and servic- es to those who live in our province. Plus, we will be able to compete interna- tionally. Business revenue will increase and so will gov- ernment taxes. A well- qualified workforce will have higher earning power and they too will pay more taxes. Prioritize education. Make Ontario "A Place to Grow." Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP®, R.F.P., CIM®, FCSI offers a weekly financial plan- ning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. IT'S TIME TO EXTEND FREE EDUCATION PAST HIGH SCHOOL It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, we have launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This article is part of that project. Halton is an increasing- ly diverse and complex mu- nicipality with changing needs. In recognition of that ongoing evolution, Metro- land's Halton Division newspapers -- the Burling- ton Post, Oakville Beaver, Milton Canadian Champi- on and Georgetown/Acton Independent and Free Press -- have formed a community advisory coun- cil to help us better under- stand the issues facing our residents, readers and business partners. Earlier this month, we invited a group of commu- nity leaders from across the region, asked them to talk about what issues were most pressing in Hal- ton, and brought them to- gether to share those thoughts with us. The first meeting of the Halton Advisory Council was held May 13 in a virtual roundtable. We asked three ques- tions: 1. Beyond the pandemic, what is the issue facing Halton Region that con- cerns you most? 2. What role would you like Metroland to play in addressing that issue? 3. What is the role you would like the Metroland to play in Halton Region overall? Members of the commit- tee were frank with their thoughts, and what we heard was eye-opening. The wide-ranging con- versation hit on several touchstones -- trust and transparency in local me- dia, diversity and Inclu- sion, development and In- frastructure, post-COVID health issues including mental health and surgery backlog, and violence against women including domestic abuse and hu- man trafficking. The council will branch off into subcommittees to delve into these topics. We expect editorial ini- tiatives will offshoot from these subcommittees, and you will hear about them in future instalments of this monthly column. Stay tuned. Karen Miceli is manag- ing editor of Metroland's Halton community newspa- pers. We welcome your ques- tions and value your com- ments. Email our trust com- mittee at trust@metro- land.com. HALTON ADVISORY COUNCIL TO DELVE INTO LOCAL ISSUES COMMUNITY LEADERS GATHER IN VIRTUAL ROUNDTABLE, WRITES KAREN MICELI SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT THEIFP.CA KAREN MICELI Column