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◗ EDUCATION BUDGET
◗ UNCHARITABLE ACT
Night school will be closed
Cancer boxes stolen
Student cries after hearing classes will be cut to save school district $100,000 BY NIKI HOPE REPORTER
nhope@royalcityrecord.com
BY CAYLEY DOBIE REPORTER cdobie@royalcityrecord.com
Night school students were devastated when the board of education axed night school on Tuesday, when trustees voted to cut $2.69 million from next year’s budget. A handful of the adult students, many recent immigrants to Canada, turned up at the meeting to voice their concerns about losing the program, which allowed them to work during the day and receive language instruction at night. Mayan Jalini-Rasti was so upset after trustees voted unanimously in favour of nixing night school to save $100,000, that she stood up during board deliberations to voice her outrage. “He didn’t say how many lives got changed for this number,” a crying JaliniRasti told The Record, referring to superintendent Al Balanuik’s presentation, where he said how much the district expects to save. Trustees MaryAnn Mortensen told her to contact superintendent John Gaiptman, who would help her find a solution to the night school loss. The district will offer learning opportunities through its other adult academic offerings. But the suggestion didn’t soothe JaliniRasti, who left the room shaking and on the verge of tears after she spoke. She and her two adult sons attend the program, which she says is critical in helping them learn English. Jalini-Rasti, a Burnaby resident, works in a daycare and needs to improve her English in order take an early childhood education program to enhance her credentials. District parent advisory council chair Beth Ott was also disappointed by the loss. “I think it’s a shame that people would have to do things like go outside of this district to learn English,” she said. ◗Schools Page 8
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Thief strikes: Karima Jivraj and feline friend Lynxie keep an eye on the Canadian Cancer Society donation box at Bosley’s Pet Food. The Columbia Square business was one of a dozen that had its donation box stolen.
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The Canadian Cancer Society’s annual daffodil campaign suffered a blow last week when 17 donation boxes were stolen – all from stores in New Westminster. The April-long campaign raises funds for a number of programs organized by the society, including the volunteer driver program, which provides free rides for cancer patients, and Camp Goodtimes, a children’s camp for those battling cancer. Since the campaign’s inception five years ago, New Westminster has led the pack for highest number of donation boxes in one community. This year there were 79 boxes in New Westminster, but that was until someone stole more than a dozen of them. According to police, a man in his 50s, who appeared to be of First Nations descent, about 5-8 with a heavy build and long black hair, walked into several businesses in the city and stole the donation boxes. Bosley’s Pet Food at Columbia Square was one of the businesses that had its daffodil donation box stolen. Owner Karima Jivraj said she was shocked that someone would steal from a charity. “I think it’s just wrong for somebody to come in and steal, especially from a charity,” she said. Jivraj said the suspect entered her store on Easter Monday, walked around the front counter and took the donation box. Once she realized he had made off with the box, she
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