It is not about the children

Posted By Wayne Parkhurst, Hermon

Posted 3 months ago

To the editor::

In response to your letter titled "Trying to manage a declining enrollment" in Oct. 16, 2009 issue of Bancroft This Week, the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board claim that the only way to correct Bancroft Public School's over sized class room was to remove the five Grade 6 students from Hermon Public School to make a smaller more manageable classroom.

When in fact after a parent council meeting held at Hermon on Oct. 26, where June Rogers attended (she was also invited to a public meeting on Oct. 1, which she did not attend or give a reason why) she was asked why students that were attending Birds Creek Public School and should be going to BPS were not required to go back to BPS. Her response was that Birds Creek did not have a teacher that BPS could have. Another question was why not bring BPS students to Hermon, coming from Bancroft would be a shorter bus ride as there is a bus from Hermon that goes to the boundary at 8:00 a.m. every morning. Rogers answer was no, without an explanation why.

June Rogers repeated that the children are her main concern, yet balancing the books is the only thing they really care about. The more students the more money and now that enrollment is down instead of downsizing at the board office they would rather take away teachers from the

students and make triple grade classes and move students to different schools decreasing the quality of education. Maybe its time the HPEDSB rethink how they balance their budget and not destroy the future of our children.

PS- according to Rogers' own numbers, Bancroft Public School could have been re-organized within. The students and teacher from HPS could have remained at Hermon

Wayne Parkhurst

Hermon PS parent