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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday May 18, 2007 - 5 Aquinas top priority for school board By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Members of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School's school council left Tuesday's meeting of the Halton Catholic District School Board reassured that action was being taken to deal with the unacceptable conditions within their school. School council chair Jacques O'Sullivan and Sue Prestedge, a parent on the school council, formed a delegation calling for the demolition and rebuilding of the school. They also presented the board with a DVD outlining the problems that exist with the Oakville high school that was bought from the public board for $1 in 1990. "The halls here are filled with the same high school memories as other Halton Catholic education facilities. The same awards for excellence in academics and an inordinate number of athletic awards," said the DVD's narrator. "What St. Thomas doesn't have is a building and facilities within that building to give the students what they deserve." Images on the video included cracked floors, crumbling walls and other structural damage, which the narrator says, is too extensive for simple patchwork to fix. "The problems with the physical building are bigger than that. In fact they go back to how the building was originally constructed," she said. "In some sections they used metal frames into which brick and mortar were placed. Recently those metal frames have begun to rust and collapse; meaning rain is seeping through the walls and into the interior of the school. This has meant leakage into classrooms and more repairs." The narrator also said the maze-like design of the school makes getting around difficult for students with disabilities. Other concerns included the school's aging ventilation system, which the video says is incapable of heating the entire school, leaving certain sections cold and uncomfortable during the winter. The video also explained that the facility does represent a safety hazard for students in its current state. "Just this week a transom above this door simply fell off narrowly missing a student's head," said the narrator. The video concluded with the disembodied voices of the students of St. Thomas Aquinas pleading for action to be taken. "I'm proud to be a St. Thomas Aquinas student, but I deserve better," said one. "We've always had to make due. It's time we saw some improvements," said another. As of an April 10 board meeting the Halton Catholic District School Board has been trying to get the money to make these improvements, unanimously passing a motion that charged staff with approaching the Ministry of Education for funding using a variety of new methods. "I want to assure you that my colleagues in the board and I are doing the best we can to do (right by) that school," said Oakville trustee Ed Viana. "I've said it in the past and I'll say it again. I do not want patches, I want a new school building." Viana said the board should have an answer from the Ministry of Education as to whether it will fund the reconstruction of the school by the middle of next month. Viana also said if the answer is no, the board will begin the construction of the new St. Thomas Aquinas with its own resources. Oakville trustee Anthony Danko also reassured the members of the St. Thomas Aquinas school council that their plight was being taken seriously. "We as a board have prioritized St. Thomas Aquinas and have every intention of carrying through," he said. These words translated into actions later in the evening as the board unanimously passed four motions geared towards adding weight to their funding request. These motions included one that authorized staff to proceed with the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School Replacement Project as the board's number one priority in the area of accommodation facility renewal projects. Another motion called for board approval of a Preliminary Project Budget of $32 million for the project. Despite the fact that no funding has been allocated to the project as of yet, Prestedge and O'Sullivan left the meeting satisfied. "I was pleasantly surprised that we received the great information that we actually did tonight. It sounds to me like we're moving along at a much quicker pace than even we anticipated," said Prestedge. "That's truly gratifying for both the parents, the students and the faculty of St. Thomas Aquinas because we need a new school." O'Sullivan was similarly impressed with the outcome of the meeting. "I think the board was great tonight. They did terrific job by listening to us and responding to our needs and we're thrilled with what's happened." New Owner Gerry Cockburn Welcomes you to try our delicious assortment of Food & Drinks. FREE Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Free Wireless Full Catering Service www.williamscoffeepub.com