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Citizen -- 1993 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Board chairman clarifies "misinformation" To the Editor: It is not regular practice to respond to Letters to the Editor in our many local newspapers; however, I am making an exception to clarify misinformation in C. Switzer's letter published in your March 2 edition. First, C. Switzer questions Scugog Trustee Bobbie Drew's attendance at Board meetings. . Bobbie Drew is a dedicated Trustee whose attendance record at Board and committee meetings is exemplary. Second, the teaching of abstinence is indeed mandatory in Durham Board of Education schools, as stated many times by Superintendent of Education/Program Doug Wilson in response to questions from C. Switzer at Board meetings. For those young people in the 74% of teens not yet sexually active, a program of abstinence, the importance of abstinence, the strategies for remaining abstinent are taught. For those young people in the 26% of teens who are sexually active and for those teens in the first group who may at some point in time become sexually active, programs which give them accurate and necessary information on topics like birth control and sexually transmitted diseases are taught. It is necessary to offer a balanced program in order to reach both groups of young people. Teaching of a Family Life program is mandated by the Ministry of Education. To call the mandatory abstinence portion of the Board's Family Life program an "honorable mention" does great disservice both to the excellence of the program and the dedication of the teachers who delivet it throughout our system. Of the fewer than 1/2 dozen students who recently have attended our Board meetings to comment on the content of the Family Life program, some INCOME TAX PREPARATION COMPUTERIZED INCOME TAX PREPARATION by Sharon Butler 1993 Honours Graduate of H & R Block Tax Course Full Refund Cheque from the Government in as little as SEVEN DAYS Electronic Filing have stated the need for a more progressive program while others have stated the need for less information. This only underlines the need for the Board to offer a balanced program to meet the needs of its wide range of students. The Northumberland- Newcastle Board of Education has not made abstinence a mandatory part of their curriculum other than a film which has been piloted in only 2 of their schools for grades 7 and 8. According to the Northumberland-Newcastle Board of Education, the most useful resource they have used is material borrowed from the Durham Board of Education's Abstinence document. C. Switzer also mentioned the Health Fair offered February 25 to grade 7 and 8 students at Lake Vista Senior P.S., Oshawa. Again, a balanced program was offered. The five displays by Durham's Public Health Unit gave information on abstinence, self-esteem (strategies for saying "no"), self-examination for diseases such as cancer, birth control, and sexually transmitted diseases. I must clarify that pamphlets on topics like those illustrated at the Lake Vista Health Fair do not endorse or encourage being sexually active; rather, they may provide valuable information to students at a time when they most need it in order to make decisions that could drastically affect the direction of their lives. Choosing to withdraw a child from any portion of the Family Life program always has been and will continue to be an option for all parents of students in our system. They, not other members of the public trying to determine direction for all students, will make the final choice about the suitablilty of programs for their own children. It was other members of the public, not parents of students at Lake Vista, who chose to demonstrate outside the school the morning of the Health Fair. The parents who took the time to visit the Health Fair were overwhelmingly supportive of both the content and delivery of the program. C. Switzer tells us "children deserve a chance". We agree. To deny them information upon which to base critical decisions about their lives and health would be both unfair and irresponsible. The Durham Board of Education will continue to make its Family Life program available to appropriate age groups of its students. This curriculum contains the mandatory teaching of abstinence. Staff of the Durham Board are always available to give or clarify information about the content of our programs. Please do not hesitate to call them at 576-4600. Louise Farr, Chairperson, The Durham Board of Education Village Taxi replies to letter To the Editor: In response to Brian Blair's letter of March 9 (Scugog Citizen) I would like to clarify a few points. In most municipalities the rates that are charged taxis are set by their councils and Scugog is one of them with by- law 3-91, being a by-law to provide for the licensing, regulating and governing of taxicab drivers and owners. At Village Taxi the meter starts at $2.35 GST incl. and the per kilometer charge is $1.55 as per the by-law. The 'confusion about the stated start rate of $6.50 must be' the sign on the dash indicating a minimum charge of $6.50 between midnight and 6:00 AM To compare American and Canadian prices is not feasible. Taking gasoline as an example, in the US, gas averages about $1.25 per gallon. In Ontario it is 49.9 cents per litre or about $2.50 per gallon. This difference alone would justify higher rates. 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