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4 - The Oakville Beaver, Friday February 6, 2009 www.oakvillebeaver.com Despite criticism, public school board adopts new process Continued from page 1 The community consultation process is in response to David Cooke's report, which recommended that the board reconsider its July decision to close Linbrook, Brantwood, Chisholm and New Central schools, and renovate E.J. James and Maple Grove. Caskenette said the new process drawn up by board staff is flawed and will not likely result in a solution that is acceptable to the community. "Our reaction is, `Here we go again,'" said Caskenette. "Just weeks after the board's PARC process was roundly criticized by Dave Cooke, the new process seems to be following the same path. Cooke found serious procedural defects in the prior process and recommended that it should be a partnership with parents and the community. If it's a partnership, at least some groups in the community should have been consulted on the design of the process. What was approved is not consistent with the Cooke report or community expectations." The Cooke report did support the board's July decision to build a school in Clearview. The school board recently approved the proposed facility. Caskenette said he would like to see information about the new Clearview school made public before the consultation starts. "We understand it is a 500place pupil school, but we are asking the director (of education) to provide a catchment area map for Clearview," he said. "This would be a significant contribution forward towards transparency. We simply want to understand where the children are coming from and "The decision emanating from this process is unlikely to be regarded as fair or legitimate by the community." Greg McGinnis, Linbrook school parent Walter Used To Eat Frozen Dinners Alone what is the programming of that school before engaging in a consultation process." Cooke was appointed by the Ministry of Education to review the July decision following a petition signed by members of the southeast Oakville community. The spokesperson who led the charge for Cooke's review said he was frustrated with trustees' approval of the consultation process despite the delegates' requests. "I don't think they addressed the substance of the suggestions that were made for the process," said Greg McGinnis, who also represented Linbrook School on PARC 14. "My view is that the process is flawed." McGinnis provided trustees with a list of problems he had with the process in his presentation. Among those problems were the lack of a committee to lead the process, a survey created by consultants without public input and the absence of community members in the preparation of the final report and recommendations. "The decision emanating from this process is unlikely to be regarded as fair or legitimate by the community," said McGinnis. Denise Purcell, who spoke on behalf of the Trafalgar-Chartwell, Oakville Lakeside and Joshua Creek residents' associations, asked that trustees inform the entire community of the consultation process, not just parents with children in the affected schools. "As resident associations, we believe it is the responsibility of the school board to inform all residents in the affected community of any studies involving their neighbourhood schools, not only the parents with children currently attending public school," she said. "Whether residents are past pupils of the schools or have young children who are future pupils, they ought to be kept informed. As taxpayers, they all deserve to be recognized and given the opportunity for input." The need for transparency was a common theme among presenters. Mary McKenzie, who spoke on behalf of the school councils of Linbrook, Brantwood, New Central, E.J. James, Chisholm and Oakville Trafalgar High School, requested that as much information as possible be made public during the consultation process so that how the final recommendation is reached is clear. "There should be no surprises in the final recommendation going to the trustees," McKenzie said. Caskenette said he plans to request a meeting with Director of Education Wayne Joudrie, Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn and Ministry of Education representatives. He said he hopes this meeting will occur before the consultation process gets started in mid-February. Now he enjoys a varied menu and great company. ealtime was mostly a chore for Walter. Living alone, he would simply choose what was easiest to prepare and eat it in front of the TV. Nutrition was rarely a consideration. FREE EVENTS Fri. Feb 13: Bridge Luncheon ­ 12:30pm lunch, 1:30pm Bridge Game. Sat. Feb 14: 12:00 pm I Love Lucy Luncheon ­ Lucy Impersonator. Thurs. Feb 26: 5pm Cocktails 5:00, Dinner 5:30, Oscar Movie in our Theatre "A Night at the (1937) Oscars" Please RSVP. M At Chartwell, the chef changes the menu daily, so Walter not only gets to choose from a variety of balanced meals, but he enjoys them with a side-dish of laughter and conversation. To find out more call Chartwell Classic Oakville at 905-257-0095 or visit www.chartwellreit.ca 180 Oak Park Blvd. Oakville, ON the retirement option of choice