Students share exchange trip experiences
At its January 8 meeting, Powell River Board of Education trustees heard a presentation from Brooks Secondary School students about an exchange visit to Immanuel Kant Gymnasium in Tuttlingen, Germany.
The visit, which took place from June 29 to July 27 2019, followed fundraising efforts between November 2016 and June 2019. According to the presentation, 19 Brooks students visited Lake of Konstanz, Freiburg, Stuttgart and Munich, in addition to Tuttlingen.
One student said she formed “lifelong friendships” with local students during the visit, and another said he hoped to “explore all of Germany” this summer.
Three students from Germany have expressed interest in studying at Brooks for a year, with one having already confirmed they will attend next year.
Film festival to organize camp and screenings
Trustees heard a presentation from Powell River Adventures in Film Camp organizer Tai Uhlmann, who said the camp, scheduled for March 5 to 8, gives students the opportunity to engage in the filmmaking process and craft one-minute films to be screened at the Patricia Theatre. The camp will be followed by a series of film screenings at Powell River schools.
According to Uhlmann, 25 students took part in last year’s camp, including 14 sponsored by the Rotary Club of Powell River, one by the Sunshine Coast Film Society, and nine by the Powell River Digital Film School. The festival is looking for additional local sponsors to cover the $450 early-bird (until January 25) enrolment fees for as many students as possible.
Uhlmann said the camp gives students a “wonderful opportunity” to “work collaboratively” with professional film makers.
Trustees agreed to form a committee to vet a shortlist of proposed films for the school screenings in the coming weeks, so as to ensure their appropriateness for students.
Secretary treasurer’s report
Secretary treasurer Steve Hopkins said that despite material changes in staffing levels and enrolment from School District 47’s March 2019 draft budget to the December 2019 final budget, “we are in a good financial position.”
“The budget that we’re working under, like it has for the last few years, has provided more increased services, on the level of board surplus,” added Hopkins.
He said that come February, the district “won’t rely on that surplus” but will be “funded by the money we have.”
However, he added: “I’m a little concerned about the funding review, given it’s still unknown…knowing funding factors are going to change when we’re in March. So in the spring, as we start planning for next year under that new criteria we’ll know that we’re in a position to not necessarily have to make material changes in our own model, we’ll have all of next year to work out the logistics of how we might have to adapt, if at all.
“It might be considerably different, it might not be much different at all.”
Asked by a public attendee what the district’s current approximate surplus was, Hopkins said: “At June 30th going into the school year it was about $1 million, of which about six hundred [thousand] of it was earmarked for things that were in the budget and services that we have.”
