Dear Premier Campbell:

I am writing to ask that you address the funding shortfall of the Vancouver School Board.

I live in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. And yet, the standards at my daughter’s 100-year-old school are abysmal. Her classroom is in the basement of a brick building rated at extremely high risk of falling down in an earthquake. There are no plans in place to address this. There are broken windows, which apparently the school board has no money to fix. And the funding provided by our PAC already exceeds the funding provided by the government.

My daughter is in kindergarten this year. Her class includes several children with special needs. They are lovely children, but if funding for an aide is cut (as the school board is suggesting), I don’t see how any student is going to learn in that classroom.

The board is also considering lengthening the school day in order to cut several days from the calendar. I’m sure we call all agree that no student is going to learn more in an additional 14 or 16 minutes of school every day… just as we adults would accomplish no more by adding a quarter of an hour to the end of our already busy workdays.

I’ve always felt dedicated to the public school system. And I know that it can help my daughter become a bright and confident child – if her school doesn’t fall down first.

Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
Tanya Kyi