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D8 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday November 15, 2000 Business To reach this section call 845-3824 Fax:337-5567 Businesses nominated for excellence Customers of local companies have nominated 101 businesses to receive 1 of 5 Oakville Awards fo r Business Excellence for 2000. The annual awards are a joint pro ject of the Rotary Club of Oakville West and the Oakville Chamber of Commerce. The five award categories, with the number of nominations, include: Entrepreneur of the Year (12); Manufacturer of the Year (9); New Business of the Year (7); Retailer of the Year (23) and Service Provider of the Year (50). "We're starting the millennium on a positive note," said Mary Cardamone, organizing committee co-chair. "This is the second year in h row that we have topped 100 nominations. I think that speaks very well for the quality of our business community." Nominees will be evaluated by a panel of independent judges. Awards will be presented to the win ners at the gala awards dinner on Feb. 6, 2001 at the Rattlesnake Point Golf Course. Guest speaker for the event will be Sheldon Levy, outgoing President o f Sheridan College. Proceeds from the dinner support the Oakville Awards for Academic Excellence, a secondary school schol arship program operated by the Rotary Club of Oakville West. Tickets are $130 each and may be reserved by calling 467-7900 or faxing details to: 467-7907. Photo by Julie Fairrie A V A N T E O P E N S : Fashion forward is the name of the game at the new Avante shop at 302 Lakeshore Rd. East. They recently opened their doors and marked the occasion with a ribbon cutting. Taking part here are: (1 to r) Pam Tabri, M ayor Ann M ulvale, Anna Cammarata (owner), and Vicky Scarfo. Single again? Some facts you should know. New service helps companies y manage donations, sponsorships G ran tS trea m 's w e b -b ased service brings o rde r to tim eco nsum ing process By Nancy Alexander SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER With over 80,000 registered chari ties in Canada, how do you decide where your dollar will go? If you're one of those individuals who has difficulty saying no, it may simply be a matter of writing a cheque to anyone who shows up at the door during the dinner hour. A similar situation can often prevail in corporate offices where requests for donations can number in the tens of thousands annually. Attempting to bring order to what can sometimes be a rather haphazard process is the goal of GrantStream, a new and innovative Oakville-based company. GrantStream offers a unique, webbased service that is designed to change the way corporations manage their donations and sponsorships. Richard Pringle, chief of marketing and strategy for GrantStream, stresses that this is not a software company, but a service company with a unique tech nological component. "We offer a combination of profes sional expertise and exclusive technol ogy to help high-profile corporations manage the huge volumes of grant requests that they receive every year," he told the Beaver. Pringle explained that one of the pitfalls of dealing with so many requests is that is that there is no time for inves tigation. Each charity has be be taken at face value. "GrantStream wants to help corpo rations take a different approach," says (See `Software' page D7) If you have recently experienced a change in lifestyle you need to plan for your financial future. Merrill Lynch has just introduced Women & Wealth: A Financial Handbook fo r You and Your Money. Learn everything you need to know about: · M anaging your financial future · A ccum ulating assets to achieve goals · Planning for a com fortable retirem ent Call Nicholas Godfrey Financial Consultant (905) 337-5449 for your com plim entary copy. Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. Member - CIPF Meet the Team A C O N T I N U I N G SERIES P R O F I L I N G T H E STAFF OF " C A N A D A ' S BEST C O M M U N I T Y N E W S P A P E R " Richard Greig Richard is the newest addition to the advertising sales team, bringing years of retail manage ment and advertising sales experience to the department. Having been with the paper only a short time, Richard has already noted the comradery and team spirit evident in the advertising department and throughout the building. "By always staying focused on the customer, The Beaver makes it possible for me to work hard for my clients and get results." of Mohawk College and has completed an impressive list of professional development courses and seminars. His retail background and training have enabled him to assist his retail clients in develop ing effective marketing plans. In his spare time, Richard enjoys traveling, recreational cycling and golf. Richard is a graduate O a k v il l e Photo by Ron Kuzyk Beaver LYIN G D O W N O N T H E J O B : Mayor Ann M ulvale checks out one of the tanning beds at Malibu Tan. The facility recently opened under the ownership of Debbie Barney, seen here checking out the equipm ent C AN AD A'S BEST C O M M U N IT Y NEWSPAPER 2000 C C N A Better Newspapers Competition Cannect buys Delphi Solutions C anned Communications Inc., an integrated communications provider, has acquired Delphi Solutions Holdings Inc. of Markham, effective immediately. Financial details have not been dis closed. "This acquisition creates a unique telecommunications company offering greater choices to customers through an increased product portfolio, superb ser vice and quality, as well as expanding Cannect's presence across Canada," says Cannect's president and CEO George Horhota. "The integration of both com panies will accelerate our growth nation ally through a broader customer base and enhanced technical expertise as we expand into nine new communities, where Delphi Solutions already has a leadership position." Delphi Solutions is one of the largest providers of telecommunications sys tems and associated services to business es across Canada. It has annual revenues of over $35 million and has over 240 employees in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Victoria, Vancouver, Ottawa, Halifax, Oakville and three other communities. "This is a very positive step forward for Delphi Solutions, our employees and customers," adds Delphi Solution's pres ident and CEO Clive Huizinga. "The synergies and philosophies of both com panies are very similar." In fo rm a tio n fo r P aren ts Less h e lp fo r students M o r e cla s s e s to te a c h A d d in g a n e x tra d o s s to e a c h te a c h e r's w o r k lo a d w ith 2 0 to 4 0 m o re students to p r e p a r e a n d m a r k fo r g iv e s e a c h te a c h e r a to tal o f 1 5 0 to 2 1 0 students T h e O n t a r io te a c h in g lo a d is h ig h e r th a n in 2 3 o th e r in d u s tria liz e d co u n trie s A ll students s u ffe r b e c a u s e th e re is s im p ly less tim e a v a ila b le fo r e a c h stu d en t. F e w e r te a c h e rs , s u p p o rt s ta ff a n d re s o u rc e p e rs o n n e l T h e re h a s b e e n a cut o f a b o u t 1 5 p e rc e n t to th e n u m b e r o f te a c h e rs This m ean s te a c h e rs m ust te a c h o u ts id e th e ir sub ject a r e a a n d fe w e r teach e rs? are a v a ila b le to ru n e x tr a c u r ric u la r ac tivities. C uts to s e c re ta ria l a n d cu s to d ial s k iff, e d u c a tio n a l assistants a n d p ro fe s s io n a l s u p p o rt staff, m e a n fe w e r's e rv ic e s fo r students a n d p a re n ts . . F e w e r d e p a rtm e n t h ea d s T h e s e e x p e rts h a v e a lw a y s g u id e d n e w cu rricu lu m im p le m e n ta tio n a n d h e lp e d n e w te a c h e rs Just w h e n this h e lp is n e e d e d m ost, th e n u m b e r h as b e e n cut. T ea c h e rs a n d students a r e th e losers. T e a c h e r s h o rta g e s '··w C h r o n ic ip o e r fu n d in g a n d d e m e a n in g b f te a c h e rs h a v e led to th o u s a n d s o f p r e m a tu re re tire m e n ts . S p e c ia lis t in sub jects such as co m p u ters, m a th a n d te c h n o lo g ic a l e d u c a tio n a r e c h o o s in g m o re lu c ra tiv e c a re e rs . Students a r e the losers. F o r fiv e years, the Harris government has imposed severe funding cuts and yi^S m A e s s change on our secondary schools. These changes take a w a y from the time teachers have for individual students and at the same time, add to ocher w orkload and erode teacher morale. The cumulative effects are aggering an d in fact are creating more obstacles to students learning. Teachers as professionals an d parents w h o s e children are losing out, must stand up and say: Enough is enough! Let teachers teach. Contact y o u r local MPP, school bo ard trustee, Mike Harris (w ebprem @ gov.on.ca] o r Janet Ecker (janet_eckerco@ontfa.ola.orgl to express y o u r concerns For more information, check out Curriculum a n d testing N e w c u rric u lu m T h e im p le m e n ta tio n h a s b e e n has ty, w ith o u t a ll m a te to u t s u fficien t t e a s e r tr a in in g . P ro fe s s io n a l jd c fro m n in e to f o t ^ p e r y e a r just w h e n in -s e rv ic e is n e e d e d m o s t to le a r n ·iculum a n d assessm ent m e th o d s . S tu d en ts Vrho b e g a n th e n e w g r a d e iculum last y e a r w ill b e g u in e a p ig s fo r fo u r y e a rs , b e c a u s e c u rric u lu m w ill b e in tro d u c e d in e a c h y e a r S om e, students h a v e n o te x tb o o k s o n d m ust w p rk fro m p h o to c o p ie d m a te ria ls o r s h a r e Textboo ks w ith o th ers G r a d e 1 0 te st o f re a d in g a n d w r it in g ' , 0 m B ec au se this is a fu tu re m a n d a to r y g r a d u a tio n r e q u ire m e n t, te a c h e r a n d student p re p a r a tio n is n e e d e d . A t leas t fiv e to 1 0 h o u rs m u st b e ta k e n fro m o th e r cou rses to p r e p a r e fo r a n d w rite th e test. T h g test is to d e te r m in e w h ig h students n e e d e x tra h e lp b u t th e g o v e rn m e n t h a s m a d e n o p ro v is io n fo r th a t. In fa c t, th e re a r e fe w e r te ach e rs a n d m o re students, m a k in g re m e d ia l a s s is ta n c e ev en m o re d iffic u lt. Thi^ y e a r's g r b d e n in e m o th ,te s tin g w ill in te rru p t co u rse s, ta k e u p to a w e e k a w a y frp m to pics o n th e re q u ire d c u rric u lu m , d e m a n d s ig n if ic a n t p re p a r a tio n , a n d ib e re a s e stress fo r students. S h o rte r e x a m p e r io d _____ , T h e e x a m p e r io d re d u c tio n fro m 1 5 to 1 C Tdays h a s le s s e n e d tii fo r p r o v id in g students .with e x f r a n e lp a n d to r m a r k in g . W it h o n ly tty e exam d a y s a t th e e n a o f a sem ester m o re students fa c e m u ltip le e x a m s o n th e s a m e d a y a n d student stress fro m " c ra m m in g " in crease s.. N e w a s s e s s m e n t m e th o d s T ea ch ers n o w g r a d e b y levels ra th e r th a n i a n d in co n s is ten t tra in in g fo r te a c h e rs in ne a n d progress*#. > A T h e re h a s b e e n in s u ffic ie n t tim e sthods o f assessing s tu d e n t w o r k N e w r e p o r t c a rd s Teachers h o v e h a d to d e a l w ith s o ftw a re n ig h tm a re s , in s u ffic ie n t a n d in a d e q u a te c o m p u te rs , a n d h o u rs m o re w o r k p e r class. This tim e is ta k e n a w a y fr o m o th e r ac tiv itie s th a t d ire c tly b e n e fit students. > A A message from Ontario's public high school teachers and educational workers O.S.S.T.F., District 2 0 § Halton V---- '·