Chamber to meet with Near North area School Boards

North Bay & District Chamber of Commerce
News Release

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In April, the board of directors of the North Bay & District Chamber of Commerce passed a resolution requesting a meeting with the four area school boards in regards to their decision to begin the school year prior to Labour Day; a letter was directed to the Board Trustees on April 21, 2009.

After two follow-up emails to the Director's of Education, referencing the letter to the Board Trustees, on April 29, 2009 and again on May 12, 2009, the Chamber was getting concerned that we were not getting any response to an issue of such importance.

On May 13, 2009, we were provided with an email response from Conseil scolaire public du Nord-Est de l'Ontario that stated "The 2009-2010 calendars have been approved by the Ministry of Education and after many discussions within our Board and with other area boards, we do not feel it would be to our student's advantage to make changes at this point. Our decision is based on what we feel is better for the education of our students." We also received a letter by mail from the Nipissing Parry Sound Catholic District School Board stating "After due consideration and following consultations with our coterminous boards, we have decided that we will maintain the current Ministry-approved calendar for the next school year. We do, however appreciate your input and concerns and would be pleased to consider your input in the future."

President Sean Lawlor contacted Kathy Hewitt, chair of the Near North District School Board and Ms. Hewitt brought forward our concerns to her board at their May meeting, and we were pleased that the NNDS board agreed to send letters to the other three board chairs and directors of education, asking for an opportunity for the Chamber to meet with them.

Over the past few months, the Chamber has investigated many other school boards in the province, and at least 50% have decided to begin their school year after the Labour Day weekend. The number of days for the school year still remains the same and is not dependent on the start date of school. The Bracebridge Chamber had consultations with their area school boards in April and was successful in having those boards recognize the importance of the tourism and hospitality industries in their area. Subsequently, they changed their school year start to after Labour Day, overturning their initial submission to the Ministry of Education.

The Chamber wanted a meeting with the school boards to ensure that they were fully aware of the negative impact on the business community, if school were to start before Labour Day, more specifically the harmful impact on the tourism and hospitality sector. Another concern of the Chamber, is for those businesses that hire summer students and students who rely on summer employment to assist with their post-secondary education. The Chamber’s view is that students would still be needed to work for the businesses that week and students would lose out in one week of summer pay.

The Chamber was also concerned with the consultation process. Businesses are one of the largest taxpayers in the region, they were not consulted in the process and nothing has been discussed on the potential effects on business if an early school year start occurs. Those that were consulted in the form of a survey were not provided with a choice to start school after Labour Day. The only choices on the survey that was distributed to some parents and teachers were dates prior to Labour Day.

President Glen Hodgson of the OSSTF, clarified the issue regarding the role of the Ontario Secondary Schools Teachers Federation and the issue of an early start to the 2009 school year stating:

“On a recent local radio show, a suggestion was made that the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation and its members were somehow responsible for encouraging the proposed early start to the school year. This is completely incorrect.

The start date for the school year is set by the Near North District School Board and the elected trustees. Although three options were presented to Near North District School Board employees, all the choices involved a school start before Labour Day. There were no other options offered and it was clear that these were the only three being considered.

Not only do we not set the school year but we supported a request by the Ministry of Education that was sent to all school Boards asking them to reconsider an early start due to the impact that such a decision would have on local communities and businesses, especially in areas that have a large tourism sector. We understand completely the difficulties that this will create and it is important to remember that our members live in the communities, have children, spouses and friends and have been impacted by the early start of the school year as well.

Our teachers will continue to work within the system to provide the best possible educational opportunities for the students of the Near North. This is something we do every day.”

The Chamber, as well as a number of other media, have provided a poll to the business community and general public asking what their preference is for a school start date for the 2009/2010 school year. We feel that consultation is required and from a wider range of taxpayers such as the business community, parents and educational staff. The Chamber’s poll is at www.northbaychamber.com and we would also like to thank Rogers Radio, Baytoday and The Nugget for their use of their website polling.

The Chamber now has a meeting date with school board Chairs and Directors of Education on Wednesday, June 3, 2009, where the Chamber will be asking the boards to reconsider their decision and work with us to provide a viable solution that will benefit businesses and our students alike.

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