No laughing matter

BY MARC LALONDE

marc.lalonde@transcontinental.ca



Parents at Wilder Penfield elementary school in Dollard des Ormeaux knew their children needed a new playground at school and when you want something done right, well, sometimes you’ve got to do it yourself.

Holding a comedy night starring MC Neil Janna, the school’s parents packed the house — the school’s gym, actually — last Friday and raised $6,000 to repaint game squares and lines, add playground equipment, sports equipment and whatever else the kids may need to let off steam in the schoolyard.

“They need something to keep them busy. We’re going to use it for new basketball nets, to buy equipment both mobile and immobile, like basketballs, volleyballs and looking for permanent structures as well,� said event organizer Manuella Manglaviti.

The parents’ committee polled the kids last year and worked off the wish list from the compiled consensus, she said.

Manglaviti said there was one question she just couldn’t answer, however. Why do parents have to raise funds for public schools that already tax parents once to pay for services — recess included?

“We don’t know why. Our understanding is there is no money, no funds available for this equipment,� she said.

Manglaviti said parents were willing to foot the bill and managed to have a good time doing it. The MC managed to raise another $300 by auctioning off a skipping rope from the school’s lost-and-found bin.

“It was really a nice event to bring parents together. We don’t really have any activities that are just for the parents,� she said, adding the parents were eager to make sure the money ended up paying for the playground.

“Parents have a right to know where their money goes, and that’s where the parents wanted this money to end up,� she said.

Money is tight

Lester B. Pearson School Board chairman Marcus Tabachnick said money is tight around the board and that with aging buildings come higher renovation costs.

“We have 60 buildings and we have a long list of items that need upgrading, but playground equipment ranks below infrastructure costs in terms of importance. Where there are joint programs that exist with the government and we’re always open to deals with the community, like at Purcell Academy (where the provincial government and a West Island car dealership teamed up to pay for new equipment at the institution), and every year, schools have to make choices. No matter what, it is always time to upgrade something,�

he said.

Pearson board member and former Lakeshore School Board director general John Killingbeck said the trend in educational circles is to encourage more parent-school partnerships along with those that already exist between government and the school boards.

“I think where we’re heading is into increased collaboration between governments and school boards and school boards and parents working together. To have good facilities, you need good financial resources. Eighty-five per cent of our government funding goes to salaries, and there’s a vision that our personnel are highly qualified resources for attracting students, and the more we encourage teacher leadership in helping kids

discover a love of physical education and running around, the better off they’ll be,� he said.

‘Take ’em outside’ philosophy

Pearson teachers union president Serge Laurendeau said with the new physical-education norms, students see students get two hours a week of gym time, but schools are still only getting the bare minimum from the government.

“The board is limited in the amount of money they can give the school, and I don’t think the government will allow for any special programs — basically they’ll give over enough to fund basic physical education programs and that’s it,� he said, adding that the yards become more important with more kids in gym class at the same time.

“The philosophy is, whenever possible, that the teachers take the kids outside, if it’s nice.�