Maple Ridge News, May 21, 2014

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B.C. Views Aboriginal education or victim studies? p6

Busy long weekend Golden Ears park. p3

THE NEWS

Arts&life Horsemen put on Rendezvous. p25

www.mapleridgenews.com Wednesday, May 21, 2014 · Serving Maple Ridge & Pitt Meadows · est. 1978 · 604-467-1122 · Delivery: 604-466-6397

Dog owners still mad over park Plead with parks commission to keep off-leash area open by Phil M elnyc h u k staff reporter

West Maple Ridge residents will be hitting the roads in order to give their pooches some free-run excercise after June 10, as time runs out on the Volker Park off-leash area. For Gordon and Doris Westrand, that means driving to Pitt Meadows, or as far as Port Coquitlam so their little terrier Spud can tear around safely in an enclosed offleash dog area and hang out with his buds. “We’re lucky. We have the resources to travel,” Gordon said Tuesday after a plea by dog owners at Thursday’s parks and leisure services commission meeting to keep the Maple Ridge park open. “Those people who don’t have the resources to travel, I don’t know what they’re going to do.”

Submarine shot Bryson Roberts, 5, runs away from the dunk tank after sinking his father John, a Tyke 1 assistant coach, during the Maple Ridge Burrards’ annual WLA season-opening barbecue Sunday at the Albion Fairgrounds. See game story, p28. Colleen Flanagan/THE NEWS

See Dogs, p13

Teachers to start rotating strikes Reject province’s offer of six years, signing bonus by Nei l Corbe tt staff reporter

Teachers in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows will go on strike Tuesday as part of rotating job action across the province and as tensions rise between the union and B.C. government. The B.C. Teachers’ Federation announced the rotating strikes on

Monday as it rejected the government’s offer of a $1,200 signing bonus if the union approved a sixyear contract offer with 6.5 per cent in wage increases by the end of the current year. The escalating job action also defies a government warning that it will cut teacher salaries if a deal doesn’t get done this year. Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows acting school superintendent Laurie Meston said the job action will not yet interrupt scheduling of provincial exams, but it does disrupt students who are preparing to write

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of job action, parents ask questions and learn what it is teachers are fighting for on behalf of your children.” She added that teachers must ensure they retain class size and composition language in their contract, which was the subject of their recent court victory over the province. George Serra, president of the Maple Ridge Teachers’ AssociaColleen Flanagan/THE NEWS tion, said the plan in this next stage of job action is for the strike to Tyler Ramak, 8, holds up a sign during a protest in support of public school teachers outside MLA continue on a weekly basis. See Teachers, p9 Marc Dalton’s office on Thursday.

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them. “It is always disruptive, but it is their right to strike,” Meston said of teachers. “It’s unfortunate for the kids.” She encouraged parents who need child care for Tuesday to make the necessary arrangements. Job action is also frustrating for parents, but Kellie Marquet, chair of the district parent advisory council, is sympathetic to educators. “Our current government is trying to bully teachers, and I hope that through this next escalation

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