LKDSB budget, AC poll, bike rodeos, London blaze

Morning Coffee – By Aaron Hall

Bike rodeo upcoming in Wallaceburg

The Wallaceburg Cluster of Chatham-Kent Drug Awareness Council is holding a Bike Rodeo on Saturday, June 24.

The event will run from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Chatham-Kent Community Health Centre parking lot on Dufferin Avenue in Wallaceburg.

A bike and helmet are required to participate.

FREE hot-dogs and drinks will be given to the participants.

Bikes and door prizes will be given out as well. The draws take place at 11:45 a.m.

The event is also sponsored by the South Wallaceburg Action Team.

LKDSB approves budget

Lambton Kent District School Board (LKDSB) Trustees approved a balanced budget totaling $291.11 million for the 2017/2018 school year during the June 13 Board Meeting.

The revenue forecast is based on the Grants for Student Needs (GSN) education funding model, which determines the LKDSB’s operating and school renewal grants provided by the Ministry of Education.

The 2017/18 budget was developed based on a projected enrolment of 21,482 students, which includes 14,396 elementary and 7,086 secondary students.

The LKDSB has 1,354 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) teachers, along with 266 teacher assistants and 95 early childhood educators.

The total staff complement for the 2017/18 school year will be about 2,320 FTE employees.

Modest wage increases and support for staff professional development; class size investments for full-day kindergarten and Grades 4-8; and support for special education students have resulted in overall budget increases.

The LKDSB has also received increased funding to support student transportation and community use of schools.

The LKDSB capital budget for school condition improvement, school facilities renewal, capital priorities and child care is $31.77 million, which includes ministry investments for capital renewal at the Great Lakes Secondary School and Plympton-Wyoming Public School permanent sites.

While the overall provincial funding per pupil remains stable, the LKDSB’s funding continues to be negatively impacted by declining enrollment.

Through the School Board Efficiencies and Modernization (SBEM) Initiative, the Ministry of Education continues to encourage school boards to address underutilized school space. Additionally, changes to the Ministry Top-up Funding under the School Facility Operations and Renewal Grant will result in a lower number of LKDSB schools that will be eligible for funding in future years. This also marks the final year for the Geographic Circumstances Grant, which provides additional funding for rural and small communities.

“We are pleased to approve a balanced budget for the 2017/2018 school year, as we continue to prioritize investments that support student success, while maintaining fiscal responsibility,” said LKDSB Chair Jane Bryce.

The budget year is from September 1, 2017 to August 31, 2018.

AC poll question

The first heat wave of the season has subsided, and the heat warning issued by Environment Canada has ended as well.

It didn’t take us very long to crack during this heat event, as we had the central air kicking in our house by Saturday.

We usually try to hold out as long as we can without turning it on, obviously to save on cost, but to also try and enjoy the fresh air blowing through the house… but this latest heat wave made it feel like the middle of August, not June.

Were you able to withstand the heat?

Or did you crack, like us?

Let us know by voting below:

[polldaddy poll=”9768289″]

If you have a suggestion, story idea, column idea, or if you want to say hello… drop me an e-mail at aaron@sydenhamcurrent.ca.

Photos of the day

Here are a couple of pictures supplied to us from the Tupperville Bicycle Rodeo that took place on Saturday, June 10, 2017.

The event was put on by Tupperville Neighbourhood Watch, in partnership with many local sponsors.

Special Constable Randi Hull of the Chatham-Kent Police Service assisted with this event.

Weather forecast for Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Today – A mix of sun and cloud with 40 percent chance of showers and risk of a thunderstorm. Wind becoming east 20 km/h this morning. High 29. Humidex 34. UV index 9 or very high.

Tonight – Partly cloudy. 60 percent chance of showers overnight with risk of a thunderstorm. Wind east 20 km/h becoming light after midnight. Low 19.

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