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Education cost increases by seven per cent The Simcoe County Board of Education (SCBE) passed its 1987 operating budget last Wednesday night. The $167,628,600 forecast represents an $11 million dollar, or seven per cent increase over last year's budget of $157,978,301. This year the board will get 44.4 per cent of its required revenue from provincial grants, and taxes raised by municipalities will provide 50.7 per cent of the cost. The balance of revenue comes from tuition fees, the Separate School Board's assesment transfer and other sources. This means an increase in the education mill rates for municipalities of about 5.9 per- cent over 1986. Of the 37 municipalities who collect revenue for the SCBE, Penetanguishene's FLEC has authority In a letter to the Simcoe County Board of Education (SCBE), Education Minister Sean Conway has endorsed the right of the French Language Education Council (FLEC) to decide whether to proceed with an appeal of a Supreme Court ruling concerning Le Caron, the French language high school in Penetanguishene. The Supreme Court issued an order to make improvements at Le Caron. The court order followed a law suit initiated by Jacques Marchand who maintained the school did not offer the same opportunites as those en- joyed by students in English only schools. The SCBE launched an appeal of the July 1986, order handed down by Judge Jean Charles Sirois. In one of its first acts after it was created in December, FLEC made a move to stop the appeal. Richard Boswell, Director of Education for SCBE, said a decision to halt the appeal ~ would be a matter for, the entire board. Louise Thomson However, in his letter to Boswell, Conway stated that "...the French-language council has acquired, through Bill 75, the appropriate powers to instruct the board to abandon the appeal." Conway's statement was given on the opi- nion of Deputy Attorney General Mr. R.F.Chaloner. Seeks support Louise Thomson, spokesman, for Preserve the Rights of a Bilingual (PROBE), asked members of Tiny Township council for their support. PROBE is opposing the French Language Education Council's (FLEC) decision to remove French langauge instruction from Ecole Secondaire Penetanguishene Secon- dary School over the next five years. Thomson, who addressed the council at its Wednesday meeting, has already won the support of Port McNicoll and Penetang councils. Although the members expressed in- dividual concern about FLEC's initiative, Reeve Morris Darby concurred with the rest of council when he said that it was not in their jurisdiction to vote on educational matters. Laan mill rate increase is the highest at 6.13 while Elmvale comes in with the lowest increase of only 4.39 percent. The mill rate for the Town of Midland is just below the average, at 5.88 The mill rate is established by the municipal council. Variations result from the individual councils raising more or less taxes than are required by the school board in a given year. This helps reduce wide fluctuations from year to year. This means an increase of about $54 for ratepayers in Penetang. This is based on a taxable assessment of $80,000. The budget provides for approximately 41,186 students and 2,385 teachers, caretak- ing, maintenance and other education related services such as administration and transportation. Salaries represent the greatest cost for the board at $126,974,600 or 76 per cent of the total budget. Plant maintenance and opera- tions account for 11.27 percent. The preamble to the budget stated "because of a modest, but welcome in- crease in the level of provincial grant assistance, the board has been able to make improvements to assist students and their program needs. The improvements include $1,261,200 to school's basic budgets, a 33.5 per cent in- crease over 1986. An increase of $215,000 has been made available to technical education, and the continued purchase of micro- computers will total at $980,000. Provincial grants will cover approximately 66 per cent of that cost, local taxpayers will pick up the balance of $300,000. This is the first year the budget has includ- ed a breakdown of costs for French language instruction. The forecast cost for FLEC operation is $2.911,100. The board has an average daily enrollment of 36,825 English students and 665 enrolled in French language studies. The average cost per English student is $3,283, and for French students $4,339 each. Denis Chartrand, French schools superintendent, says the higher cost of French language instruction is the result of more costly resource materials such as books. Vol. 15 No. 13, Folio 26 Tuesday, March 31, 1987 40 cents Radio Huronie signs on Canadien Francais Radio Huronie (CFRH), 96.5 on the FM dial, is on the air. After almost a_month of waiting, Radio Huronie began broadcasting at 8:10 a.m. last Wednesday morning. There was a moment of tense anticipation as the second hand swept to the top of the clock, but with hardly a pause, director Jean Guy Desroches, introduced the new station to its listeners, "...vous ecoutez CFRH, le premier emission de Penetang."' Desroches' words were greeted with cheers and applause from technician Doug Young and reporter Claude Couillard, and others in the newsroom. The introduction was Filiowad by a rendi- tion of 'Gens du pays' while Couillard took his place in the sound booth ready to give a local news report. In the meantime Young checked sound making sure a clean signal went to air. The francophone radio station, based in the Centre d' Activites Francaises building on Main St. Penetanguishene, scores first on three counts. It is Penetang's first radio station, the first time Radio Canada (CBC French Service) has turned over its airwaves to the French com- munity, as a result, the first in Canada. According to Commite Radio Huronie chairman Denis Chartrand, the only other time such a project was attempted was on the English CBC network which permitted native broadcasting in Northern Ontario. CFRH got Radio Canada's official blessing on March 8, but could not go to air untill Bell Canada made a line available to carry CFRH's signal from the studio to the transmitter site five kilometres away in Lafontaine. Young had hoped the station would begin broadcasting earlier in the week. "We had to iron out any problem with the signal and do some testing,"' Young said. On the air After waiting nearly a month, CFRH, Radio Huronie is on the air. Radio Director Jean Guy Desroches signed on at 8:10 a.m. last Wednesday morning welcoming listeners to ESPSS fundraiser a big John Arpin and Friends played to a near full: house at the Highland Inn Friday evening. The Port McNicoll born pianist was in Midland to help raise funds for Ecole Secon- daire Penetanguishene Secondary School's (ESPSS) Band. The band is scheduled to go to the Inter- national Youth Music Festival in Harrogate, Yorkshire, England in April. The fund raising event, planned by the ESPSS Band Parents' Association helped raise almost $1,000 for the trip. The evening opened with Dr. McJazz, Charlie Gall led the six-piece Dixie combo. "Jazz spread from New Orleans Scotland," said Gall noting that three of the musicians hailed from that country. Dr.McJazz opened their set with an upbeat version of the Louis Armstrong classic 'Way Down Yonder in New Orleans', followed by an easy going rendition of 'When It's Sleepy Time Down South' with the smokey sounds of Jimmy Purdie's bass saxaphone. The fourth and final number in their set, Bix Baederbek's 'Davenport Blues'; a slow tempo number recalling the Iowa town of Baederbek's youth. Dr. McJazz was followed by opera singers Guillermo Silva-Marin, tenor, and Deboah Stevens, soprano. Silva-Marin and Stevens were accom- panied by Arpin as they drew on arias and He added that the three day delay allowed himself and others to make sure CFRH would begin its first day without a hitch. Con't on pg 3 the new station. CFRH can be heard at 96.5 on the FM dial between 8:10 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. in the morning and from 5:40 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the evening. SUCCESS duets from the classical repetoire. Most notable was their duet from 'Der Fledermouse'. Arpin entertained his audience for the next set playing numbers which have made him a hit at the Chelsea Inn in Toronto. The evening closed with Arpin and Dr. McJazz on stage together; the infectious rhythm of Dixie Land Jazz mixed effectively with Arpin's easy style. Jeanette Limoges, who helped organize the event for the ESPSS Band said she was hap- py with the evening's turn-out although she had hoped there would have been more. Arpin's concert was one of a number of events to take place in the community to raise funds for the band.