Spruce Avenue Hybrid

Rory J. Koopmans, B. Admin., #203, 8912-156 Street, Edmonton, Alberta T5R 5Z2

March XIIth, MMX

Hon. David G. Hancock, QC, MLA, Minister of Education, Progressive Conservative, Edmonton-Whitemud

Dear David:

As I sat in the Spruce Avenue School Gym last night I was absolutely crushed. Less than 40% capacity & of those 40%, 65% were officials, media and the public from outside the riding. It was pathetic, of course this can be partly attributed II the fact that Spruce Avenue is not actually being closed, but just cannibalized, reconfigured & turned inII a strictly Junior High facility.

Now David, think of the epic battle on "DALLAS" for 13 seasons between J.R. & Bobby Ewing. With the exception of ab out 36 episodes where outside forces had control, each of the brothers controlled 51% or majority control of the firm through their non successive terms as President. So family owned so they felt responsible for making the firm grow.

My feeling is that by changing the School Act to allow for Public/Charter & Catholic/Charter Hybrids in which the schools are 51% owned by the family's would allow for greater attention to detail. The parents would care more & as a result, attendance would go up since the parents would want their kids to have the best of the best.

So the Province still runs the schools on a daily operational basis. Ie: exams, facility management, etc. But it is the parents who have final say about hot lunch programs, what teachers/admin. staff are hired and even are given a chance to coordinate curriculums. I think suburbian parents might be willing to ship their kids inward to inner city schools because having a direct power base and say in their child's education will sort of make them a defacto School Board, working in tandem with the elected Trustees as overseers.

Regards,

Rory

Source: Edmonton Public Schools.