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Sunday August 6, 2000 Oakville Beaver Weekend Halton trustees to give local input on school boards association By D ennis Sm ith SPECIAL TO T H E BEAVER 2 0 0 0 1 YMCA We build strong kids, strong families, strong communities. lY o e p n is G u id e & S e r v ic e s Copyrights, labour negotiations and special education are among current issues being tracked by the Ontario Public School Boards Association. The association now includes two members from the Halton District School Board .-- Michael Ellis and Erica Andrew. Burlington trustee Ellis was recently elected as a vice-president and chair for OPSBA's Central West Region. Milton trustee Andrew succeeds him as Halton's representative on the association. "Halton now has two voices and two votes at the table," said Ellis. "There are concerns from each area of the province and when Halton has concerns it will definitely be good to have two votes." The association provides resources, training and lobbying efforts for public school boards under one umbrella organization. "It's one voice for school boards in Ontario and we have the power to lobby the government collectively for school boards," said Ellis "I defi nitely think we get looked after better as a group." Association supporters say the group's lobby ing has saved boards many millions on special education, debenture funding, early childhood education and other areas. Ellis noted the organization has work teams reviewing educational developments and evaluat ing how they will affect individual boards. The Burlington trustee cited the following items as key concerns for the association. · Labour negotiations - OPSB A provides com prehensive negotiating information and is trying to get boards to develop common bargaining positions. "We're trying to bring boards together regard ing negotiations," said Ellis. "We want to get negotiations moving on a province-wide basis." The LabRnet service provides information about collective agreements at all Ontario boards and plus labour relations training through trustee conferences. · Copyright - Fees paid by boards on learning materials is another big issue. OPSBA officials say their negotiating has saved boards more than $3 million in licensing over three years. "The association was able to get a better deal than we would've received on our own," said Ellis. · Hydro deregulation - School boards are large hydro consumers and the association is trying to get an overall deal to save boards money. · Special education - The association formed a team to provide figures for special education needs in an effort to obtain improved funding from the provincial government. Legal advice, awards, student scholarships, conferences for trustees, staff and school board chairs and a web site with educational informa tion are other services provided by OPSBA. Ellis said he wishes more Halton trustees would attend association conferences, but he feels the organization is appreciated. The Halton board pays $67,000 annually to the association through dues from the administra tion budget, said Ellis. "It does not affect class rooms or students." In a recent report, OPSBA president Liz Sandals said the association is a leader in pre senting both views and needs of public school boards to the provincial government. D e liv e re d to y o u r d o o r in t h e O a k v ille B e a v e r F r id a y , A u g u s t 11 t h ·M flrC frS 'W * « 0 t-xtetto H ·P U a · T u iO * ·juJo ·A etobks ·D o n e e ·O ·Murstty ·he ·Q y m n a # * * ·S o vco .\U tx e < * * * * ·P c n o n d iT rr a w * S Y M C A A i 'ofO A K V iaE Call us or drop by for more details: 4 10 Rebecca Street 845-3417 We build strong kids, strong families, strong communities. 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