The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Second FI entry point carries hefty price tag by Bob Mitchell Special to the Beaver 9 | Wednesday, November 27, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com There will be no second starting point for French Immersion (FI) students in Halton public schools -- at least for the time being -- after a plan to offer it for Grade 5 for the 2015-16 school year was deferred because of its significant financial impact. Halton District School Board (HDSB) trustee Jennifer Hlusko urged fellow board members not to approve the proposal because of the "significant" costs. Adding staffing and transportation costs, along with other required expenditures, Hlusko said introducing a second FI entry point would cost nearly $4.3 million. "I didn't know we had that kind of money and if we do, there sure are a lot of other things I'd rather do with it," Hlusko said at last Wednesday's board meeting. "Are we actually going to introduce a new program with this kind of expenditure?" Hlusko said she didn't think there was a need for a Grade 5 entry for French Immersion, even more so, if it would cost $4.3 million annually. Associate Education Director Jeff Blackwell said Hlusko's interpretation was a "worst case" scenario. "Until students sign up and we know their transportation needs, it will be very general," Blackwell said. Staffing costs represent $3.2 million of the $4,230,880 financial impact, according to the staff report. Of that, transportation costs would be roughly $514,000. No automatic conversion of schools by Bob Mitchell Special to the Beaver Schools won't be automatically converted to French Immersion (FI) if English-only enrolment dramatically decreases, Halton District School Board (HDSB) officials decided last Wednesday. Instead, three different options will be considered by trustees if there are 23 or fewer students enrolled in their grades. Under the plan, schools will have the op- tion of blending their Grades 1 and 2, or triple grading their Grades 1-2-3. A third option -- and the last resort -- is to redirect Grade 1 students to a neighbouring school. A boundary study will also be undertaken where low enrolment patterns emerge in either English or French programs in three consecutive grades for two consecutive school years. The approvals should also end rumours see Twenty-three on p.11 Although shocked by the costs, Milton trustee Donna Danielli voted against the deferral, insisting introducing FI in Grade 5 was part of the overall FI strategy. "I look at this as an entire package. We wanted to strengthen our core French and offer different options for French Immersion. I truly believe if this does not go through then we're not going to see a reduction in our French (demission) numbers and a lot of what we have passed isn't going to be as effective," Danielli said. "You have to offer a second entry point for French Immersion so parents don't feel panicked.... I have a real fear of this slipping off the table if it's deferred and the public thinking it's been a bait-and-switch." Blackwell said the money would be found during the annual budget process. Trustees will re-consider the Grade 5 entry point in April after a further financial report is provided by staff. "What we have provided is the absolute worst-case scenario. The staffing costs could be zero or they could be $360,000," education director David Euale said. For now, Grade 1 remains the only entry point for students wishing to take FI in Halton public schools. A minimum of 25 students would need to be enrolled for the Grade 5 starting point under the proposed program, which would be offered in all four geographic areas in Halton. Several trustees wanted to change the second starting point to Grade 4, but Blackwell said there would be additional "significant" staffing costs if they started it in Grade 4. Blackwell said moving to Grade 4 would also result in one less year for parents to consider what was best for their children as well as having one less year for students to hone their English language skills. "The Grade 5 entry point for FI with a 50-50 balance of English-French allows students to achieve 1,260 hours of French instruction by the end of Grade 8 and makes them eligible for Grade 9 extended French," Blackwell said. SEXUAL ASSAULT & VIOLENCE INTERVENTION SERVICES (SAVIS) OF HALTON · Free anti-violence presentations to businesses/associations/schools · Free confidential counselling · Free 24-hour support line - anyone may call: 905.875.1555 905.825.3622 · Toll free: 877.268.8416 · www.savisofhalton.org