The Sydenham High School (SHS) track team had a good overall showing at last week's Eastern Ontario Secondary School Athletic Association (EOSSA) track meet on May 19 and 20, and were particularly strong in the 400, 800, and 1500 metre events.

Among the midget aged girls, SHS star Nicole Armstrong was dominant, winning the 400 metres by a full 2 seconds in a time of 59.44. Nicole also took the 800 metres in a time of 2.24.34, almost 6 seconds ahead of the second place finisher, and her winning 1500 metre time of 4.54.20 was ten seconds ahead of the second place time.

Had Nicole Armstrong been racing with the older athletes in the Senior Division, her times would have placed her in the top three in each race.

Among sprinters, SHS has a very promising junior girls runner, Emelyn Fauvel, who won the 100 metre final in 13.04 seconds. Her time was fastest of any woman’s 100 metre runner in all age groups, save for her own 12.93 time in the preliminary race.

The other area of dominance for SHS was in the senior men's 400 metre race, where SHS runners swept the podium and added the 4th place finisher for good measure. Hayden Peters won the race in 50.22 seconds, Wade Embury finished second in 50.59, Kieran Doyle was third in 50.72 and Matt Fouzies ran fourth in 52.62.

Surprisingly, the senior men did not win the 4 x 400 metre Relay, finishing second in 3.23.04, almost a second behind Thousand Islands High School. Thousand Islands had held their senior men's 400 metre runners out of the individual event to focus on the 4 x 400.

The women's relay teams fared better. SHS won the junior 400 x 100 metre relay in 52.48 seconds, and the 4 x 400 metre open relay in 4:06.09

Other medalists for SHS included Garrett Fraser-Morris, 2nd in the men's 100 metre ambulatory race in 14.66 seconds; Ben Trickey, 2nd in the junior men's 400 metre division 53.15 seconds; Ben Trickey 2nd again in the junior men's 800 metre race in 2.07.77.

Kieran Doyle took 3rd in the men's 800 senior division in 1.57.89, and Nick Belore completed the junior 3000 metre race in 9.57.90, also good for 3rd place. Dylan O'Sullivan finished 3rd in the men's 3000 metre senior race in 8.45.19, and Ben Fisher came 3rd in the senior men's 100 metre hurdles in 15.96 seconds. Hayden Peters won the men's 400 metre hurdles competition in 57.34 seconds, edging out Matt Fouzie who finished second in 57.39 seconds.

In the midget girls' 100 metre division, Melanie Martin finished 2nd in 13.48 seconds. Michela Gossage finished 2nd in the women's 800 metre senior division in 2.23.98.

Lacey Tryon won the women's 1500 metre steeplechase (open division) in 5:29.21; Kayla Gibson finished 3rd in the women's 300 metre hurdles in 50.38 seconds; and Kiercy Latimer came 3rd in the senior women's 400 metre hurdles competition in 1:07.62.

In the jumping competition Celina Grey won the midget women's long jump competition with a jump of 5.04 metres as well as the triple jump competition in the same division with a distance of 10.16 metres. Finally Amanda Tibbutt finished 3rd in the senior women's triple jump competition with a distance of 10.13 metres.

SLHS medalist

Sharbot Lake High School athletes also competed in the EOSSA meet. The best finish by an SLHS athlete was Jessica hole, who finished in 2nd place in the midget women's shot put competition with a throw of 8.37 metres.

The Hinchinbrooke School of Rock has come a long way from its humble beginnings in 2005. What started as a noon-hour gathering of three students has blossomed into a structured extra-curricular program involving upwards of 20 dedicated young musicians in grades seven and eight.

The School of Rock runs from January to June each year, with rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday after school. The program can accommodate such a large number of students thanks to many generous grants from the Limestone Learning Foundation, which has allowed them to purchase guitars, basses, amplifiers, as well as sound and recording equipment. They have also received a number of donations of instruments.

Students participating in the program learn the foundations of music by playing rock, pop and country. This year's program has two bands – one for experienced players from last year's program, and one for beginners new to the program. They learn everything from The Rolling Stones to The White Stripes, Chuck Berry, Avril Lavigne and Three Dog Night. The School of Rock students and their teacher, Ms. Julia Schall, would like to invite the public to attend their end of the year concert at the Oddfellows Hall in Parham on Saturday, June 4 at 7pm. There will be performances by Army of Eight, High Maintenance and hopefully last year's rockers, HD Supply.

Photo: The EcoTeam, supervised by Ms. Randle, is made up of senior students Gordie Grewal, Brittany McQuigge, Racheal Kellar and Katelyn Ronfeld.Once more, NAEC has been certified as an EcoSchool. Inspectors visited the school on May 6 to do an audit of NAEC’s Eco-practices and determine their level of participation.

One of the initiatives the EcoTeam took this year was to buy water bottles for all the students in the school. This was done in order to discourage students from purchasing plastic bottles of water. Plastic water bottles are made from oil-based products, and the extraction of oil can be damaging to the environment. In addition, the waste plastic produced is very hard to break down and adds a large amount of material to the waste stream.

NAEC’s EcoTeam was awarded two grants this year, which enabled them to turn this plan into reality. The first grant was an elementary outreach grant from Limestone District School Board ($500). The second grant was a Green Apple Grant from Metro ($1000).

The EcoTeam produced educational videos about water issues and presented them to the school on May 4, before giving out the water bottles. Both videos and bottles were well received by elementary and secondary students alike.

Students are encouraged to write their names on the bottles and to continue to use them at school and home. Some students have already used the school engraver to put their names on their water bottles, and students can be seen carrying their water bottles in the halls.

Principal Angela Salmond remarked, “The EcoTeam has worked hard to promote awareness of water issues. Our local geography is closely tied to water, so we must be mindful of our water use. The videos the team produced were very educational.”

With over $15 million in the bank and a team of architects from Kingston and Toronto on the job, the design committee for the new JK-12 school at the current Sharbot Lake High School site held public consultations last week.

Ray Zabac from Shoalts and Zabac (Kingston), and Terry White from the Venton group (Toronto), were on hand, as were officials from the Limestone District School Board (LDSB)

“We have not looked at the site in too much detail, but from what we've seen and from the template provided to us, we believe this project is very workable,” said Ray Zabac. “Probably the best site to put the new school on is the parking lot. We realize this will create a parking issue for the year when the building is being constructed.”

Terry White presented some preliminary options that the architects have developed, which will fit an elementary wing, a secondary wing, and an administrative hub into the current parking lot. The architects have met with Central Frontenac Township staff to make sure the permitting process is completed in time, and they said there has been a high level of co-operation.

“They appear to be quite willing to work with us. For example, in order to fit everything in the building, we might be looking at a third storey in one section. The township has a height limit of 10.5 metres, which would limit us to two storeys, but the township says they can change that in this case. This is a kind of flexibility we don't usually see in the city,” said Terry White.

Among the school's attributes will be a full-sized double gym, which is lacking in the current building.

After hearing from the architects, and the school board administration, the 50 or so participants at the meeting split into groups to provide their input into the design and functions of the new building.

When the groups reported back, a number of issues were raised, including the lack of a music or dramatic arts room in the initial plans.

It was also mentioned that while the elementary and secondary sections of the school need to be distinct, the hope is that some of the advantages of the secondary school, such as shop and technical classrooms, would be available for the younger students.

“There should be a maximum amount of space for the students. Not too many architectural touches,” said Anne Howes, a community member on the design committee.

Another group was concerned that the school should accommodate both school needs and community needs, as well as the North Frontenac Little Theatre.

“It is important that the building is beautiful; that it reflects our landscape, our heritage, outdoor spaces, fields, garden, art work and sculpture,” said the reporter from one of the groups.

It was also mentioned that artefacts from the two schools that will be closing, Hinchinbrooke and Sharbot Lake Public School, be integrated into the new building.

The design committee will meet for the next few months behind closed doors and a draft design will be presented to a public meeting later in 2011.

The principals of the schools that will be integrated into the new building, including David Allison (Sharbot Lake Public School), Emily Yanch (Hinchinbrooke), and Heather Hyatt (Sharbot Lake High School), are all on the committee, as is the school trustee for the region, Anne Goodfellow. Members of the public with ideas and concerns about the new building are encouraged to contact them or their local parent council

However, as was pointed out by Peter Lynch, Manager of Financial Services for the LDSB, the basic parameters of the project have been set by the Ministry of Education.

“The template is for a 69,000 square foot building with five regular classrooms for secondary students, 10 smaller classrooms, a full-sized 6,400 square foot gymnasium, two tech rooms, science rooms; all the facilities a good JK-12 would offer,” Peter Lynch said

The budget for the project is $15.7 million.

“That's a lot of money but still quite a challenge because of the site and what needs to be in the school,” he added, “and with site and demolition costs taken out there is $13.9 million for construction.”

Although the idea of co-locating other community facilities with the school was mentioned when the project was first envisioned, any additions to the building would have to be funded by a business, community group, or the township, and thus far no one has come forward.

Peter Lynch said that the timelines for completing the design and doing all the preliminary work so a construction project can proceed in time to complete the project in two years and three months will be tight, but that the school board is planning to complete the project in time for the 2013-2014 school year.

“This year's grade 9 students will graduate out of the new school,” he said, “and there is a lot of excitement in the school about this.”

Prince Charles Public School in Verona, North Addington Education Centre in Cloyne, and Sharbot Lake Public School, are three of 600 schools from across Ontario that will be offering full-day learning, five days a week, for four and five-year-olds starting in September.

According to a government media release, the program, which was launched on Tuesday, January 12, will have both teachers and early childhood educators working “together to help four and five-year-olds learn during the regular school day. Schools will also offer extended day programs, before and after regular school hours, which will be led by registered early childhood educators. There will be a reasonable fee for these programs, and subsidies will be available for some families, based on financial need. Fees will be determined locally by boards.”

All told, there will be eight schools in the Limestone Board that will start up the program next fall, including Centreville School in Stone Mills Township and Perth Road School in South Frontenac as well as three urban Kingston schools.

Maple Grove School in Lanark Village (in the Upper Canada District School Board) will also offer full-day learning for Kindergarten students.

According to a Limestone School Board media release that came out shortly after the announcement, certain criteria were used to determine which schools would be chosen. These include: “availability of space; community need; existing child-care programs –availability of reasonably priced child care and before and after school care programming; student achievement.”

On January 15, Hinchinbrooke Public School hosted a combined New Year’s and Well Wishes Karaoke dance for Kylie Babcock and her family. Kylie's sister, Taylor, is a grade 3 student at the school. Students enjoyed practising their vocal talents to the delight of the student body and staff. All proceeds for the dance will be donated to the Babcock family along with well wishes from all students at the school. Thanks to Joe and Marg's store for canteen donations and Hinchinbrooke's Student Council for their hard work and dedication towards this event.

There are six schools in the Limestone District School Board that participate in a program called the Youth Philanthropy Initiative, which is sponsored by the Toskan-Casale Foundation. Sharbot Lake High School (SLHS) is one of those schools, and last fall in the grade 10 Civics class, 16 two-member teams were formed to research and promote a charity with a local reach.

The teams prepared presentations on the charities, and after the presentations were made, the four top presentations were selected. Four finalists then did their presentations again at the beginning of January, and the winning team was presented with a cheque for $5,000, which was made out to the charity they had been promoting.

“This is the third year we have been participating in this program,” said Civics teacher Randy McVety, “and one of the things I like about it is, it shows the students how charities work and helps to encourage them to volunteer themselves. And the fact that there is real money at the end of it for one of the charities, adds something very real to it.”

The teams that made the finals spoke on behalf of Martha's Table, Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind, the Kingston Youth Shelter, and the St. John’s Ambulance Therapy Dog Service.

Kelsea Babcock and David Riddell chose Martha's Table for their presentation. They had never heard of Martha's Table before (like most of the teams they found the organization after doing a google search) but “We really liked the fact that they were such a grassroots organisation,” said Kelsea Babcock. “They charge something like $1 a meal for people in Kingston who need one, and they are open 5 days a week,” said David Riddell. The students also mentioned that Martha's Table has a clothing program.

Cody Pichie and Jessica Cadieux chose the Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind. “We wanted to do something with animals,” said Jessica Cadieux, “and the guide dogs provide a great service for people who really need them.”

“It costs several hundred dollars to train a dog,” said Cody Pichie, “and it all starts with fostering them.”

Pichie explained that guide dogs are raised by volunteer foster families for the first six months, where they receive basic training before being sent for more advanced training. Jessica Cadieux said that it is a goal of hers to foster guide dogs in the future.

Leah Woodcox and Jessica Nedow looked into the Kingston Youth Shelter. “We wanted to look at something that was for young people,” said Jessica Nedow.

“There are many people at our school that have had troubles, and the shelter is something they might need to know about,” said Leah Woodcox.

Woodcox and Nedow learned about the shelter via emails with people who work there. “Confidentiality is important to them. They shelter about 250 - 300 youth a year,” said Leah Woodcox, “it's an important service for Kingston and the region.”

Emma Maloney and Erica Goodberry made the winning presentation on behalf of the St. John's Ambulance Dog therapy program. “We wanted to find a charity that used animals,” said Erica Goodberry. “The dogs go to hospitals for people who are dying, to Alzheimer's patients, and children's centres. They provide psychological stability for people,” said Emma Maloney.

“There is a certification service,” added Erica Goodberry. “The dogs need to be calm, not aggressive.”

There are about 40 dogs and 35 volunteers that are active with the program in Kingston. The $5,000 will go to the program to help cover ongoing costs, such as training and mileage for volunteers.

Sara Porisky, a program co-ordinator with the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative, was on hand when the presentations were made to present the cheque to the winners.

Lynne Young, a co-op teacher at SLHS, said that it was a great experience working on the program this year. “I am also looking forward to going to Toronto in the spring. There is a day planned for all of the winning teams from across the province, and I am looking forward to going with the girls and perhaps their families as well.”

“The program gave out over $1 million last year. That’s a lot of money for students to control,” said Randy McVety. 

Five months after receiving the final report from a Program and Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) into the future of the Sharbot Lake Family of Schools, the senior staff of the Limestone District School Board have released their response.

Both reports call for the building of a new Kindergarten to grade 12 school and the closure of Sharbot Lake Public and High Schools as well as Hinchinbrooke Public School in Parham, but under the PARC report Land O'Lakes Public School would remain open. Under the recommended option of the senior staff report, Land O'Lakes would be closing as well. Of the current schools in the family, only Clarendon Central Public School in Plevna would remain open.

As well, while the PARC report left open the possibility of an alternate location for the new school, the senior staff report recommends that the school be built in Sharbot Lake, on the site of the current Sharbot Lake High School.

During the PARC process, a compelling case for locating the new school in Parham was made by a parent member of the committee, Lesley Pickard, and the report left open the possibility of locating the school there.

The PARC report and the senior staff report will both be presented at a public meeting on March 2 at 7:00 p.m. at Sharbot Lake High School. Subsequently, a final decision will be made by the Limestone School Board's trustees.

“I'm certainly disappointed with the senior staff report,” said Jaime Riddell, one of the co-chairs of the Parent Council at Land O'Lakes. “I think that after going through the whole process it's quite evident that from the get go they were in favour of closing schools, and building one mega school. Their proposal does not guarantee that a new school will offer more programs, so I see no reason to support it.”

The senior staff report recommends that “the Limestone District School Board consider the new school as a possible site for a Choices at Seven program or an extended French program”.

The PARC recommendation calls for a school with a capacity of 488, while the senior staff recommendation calls for a school with a capacity of 652 students.

Each project foresees a funding shortfall for the board, as they will cost more than the province has committed towards the project. The board is hopeful that the province will provide $1.6 million in additional funding to fully cover the demolition of the current Sharbot Lake High School, but even so, if they follow the PARC recommendation the board will need to find $2.47 million for the project, and if they follow the senior staff recommendation it will cost them $2.36 million.

Operating costs are also comparable under the two models.

One advantage to the senior staff proposal would be that the cost of upgrading the older schools to current standards, which is on the school board’s ledger with the province, would be greatly diminished because the schools would be closed.

But these monies, which are called RECAPP costs in the educational jargon, have no effect on the annual budget of the school board.

The senior staff report has been posted on the board website, Limestone.on.ca, under the Accommodation banner.

The report will be considered by the Parent Council at Land O'Lakes Public School, and Jamie Riddell said he is hoping council will encourage community members in Mountain Grove and the surrounding region to attend the March 1 meeting. 

Central Frontenac Council stands up for LOLPS

On the eve of the final public meeting before trustees from the Limestone District School Board will decide the fate of all of the schools in Central Frontenac, Central Frontenac Council has taken a stand in favour of keeping Land O’Lakes Public School (LOLPS) in Mountain Grove open.

In a letter to the trustees, which was drafted by township CAO John Duchene, endorsed by council at their meeting on Tuesday night, February 23, and signed by Mayor Janet Gutowski, the township took a stand in favour of the option that was proposed by the publicly constituted Program and Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) last August, and against the option that was proposed by senior school board staff on January 27, 2010.

Under the PARC option, Hinchinbrooke Public School in Parham, and Sharbot Lake Public and High Schools would close, to be replaced by a comprehensive school in Sharbot Lake or another location. LOLPS and Clarendon Central Public School in Plevna would remain open.

Under the senior staff option, LOLPS would close as well, in addition to the others, and the new school would be built at the site of the current Sharbot Lake High School. Clarendon Central would still remain open.

Both options require some added support from the province in addition to the monies that have already been committed for a new school in the area.

In their letter, Council says “ ... We must disagree with the notion that the school consolidation approach is cheaper and will result in a better teaching and learning model.”

The letter goes on to challenge some of the numbers used in the senior staff report, including the construction cost for the school that is recommended in the PARC option, which the township’s calculations, based on figures supplied by school board staff, show to be $213,000 less than the senior staff report claims they would be.

But the crux of the township’s argument is summed up in a bullet at the bottom of the first page of the letter: “It may also be noted that Land O’Lakes has the largest enrolment of all public schools in Central/North Frontenac, sits on the largest property of any school, is the newest and is in the best condition …. Why closure?”

The letter also talks of the investments the township has made in the vicinity of Land O’Lakes Public School, including bringing in high speed internet in conjunction with the City of Kingston, upgrading lighting and change rooms at the outdoor rink that is located near the entrance to the school, and making major repairs to the road that joins the school with major roadways to the north and southeast.

Also, a project is in the planning stages to establish a new recreation facility, including a ball field, a playground and extensive trail development, on lands that abut the school.

In discussing the letter around the township table, Councilor Gary Smith, who is the township representative to the Program Accommodation Review Process and worked on the letter, said, “It is important that we make our position known at this time. We now have a Minister of Education, Leona Dombrowsky, who knows Sharbot Lake High School, and there have been a lot of questions raised about the school closing process”.

Councilor Frances Smith said, “I agree we should send the letter but I’m afraid it is too late. I think the decision has already been made and the meeting is really all about telling the public what has been decided by the school board staff.”

“It is the trustees, who are elected officials, who will make the decision in the end,” said Mayor Janet Gutowski. “I strongly support this letter.”

The only objection to the letter came from Philip Smith from Hinchinbrooke District, with support from the other Hinchinbrooke representative, Bill Snyder.

“You all are suddenly jumping up and supporting Mountain Grove, but why was it to hell with Parham? It seems to me this is a constant theme that runs through everything right now.”

Gary Smith said, “When we made our initial letter last June we defended all the schools, but the situation has moved. While we can’t save two schools there is a possibility we can save one.”

The mayor and three councilors, (Smith, Smith, and Purdon) supported sending the letter, while Bill Snyder and Philip Smith did not support it. Councilor Norm Guntensperger, who teaches at LOLPS, had declared a conflict of interest and did not take part in the debate or the vote. Councilors Harvey and Matson were absent.

The mayor will attend the meeting, which will be held on Tuesday March 3, 7pm at Sharbot Lake High School, and she is expected to read out the letter at that time.

Parents and community members from Mountain Grove and Arden are expected to attend as well. 

Fire Master Plan – Fire Chief Mark MacDonald, along with Deputies Art Cowdy and Bill Young, brought the long-awaited Fire Master Plan to council on Tuesday, February 23. “The good news,” said MacDonald “is that we are on the right track. We’ve put ourselves in good shape in terms of equipment, training and buildings.”

The fire plan includes maps and charts showing the 8km and 13km radii from the fire halls, which are important in terms of meeting standards, and talks of the department’s plans for “superior water shuttle accreditation” which could bring insurance savings to those residents who live where the fire crews can deliver lots of water quickly.

The plan also talks about the fire halls. MacDonald said that three of the four stations are good, but the Hinchinbrooke station is “at the end of life” and should be replaced over the next few years. In order to alleviate the problems that can be caused by the train tracks in Parham and Tichborne if trains are blocking the intersection when crews are on a call, MacDonald said that a new station should be built on the other side of the tracks.

The Henderson station, which is now out of commission, could be bought back if fire fighters could be found in the vicinity.

Council received the plan for information, and will consider its implications and get back to the fire chiefs.

The 2010 proposed fire budget was discussed as well. It is up over 2009 because of the inclusion of a new pumper for $240,000+. Council will consider that purchase when they work through the budget later this month and into April.

Marine storage building rejected – An application by John Keen for a zoning amendment to permit a marine storage building on an undersized lot on Big Clear Lake was rejected, based on the opinion of the planner and the conservation authority.

Sydenham Eagles won the final KASSAA senior girls volleyball match against KCVI at Queen’s on Feb. 21. Photo courtesy of Rob Kendrick.

Sydenham High School’s senior girls’ volleyball team gave it more than their all on Feb. 21 at the Queen’s University ARC court in Kingston.

A supportive crowd from Sydenham attended the game, and after having a pre-game moment of silence to remember Gavin Davis-Young the Sydenham High School student who passed away tragically in a car accident last week, the girls focused on the challenge that lay immediately ahead: meeting KCVI in the final match of the KASSAA (Kingston and Area Secondary School Athletic Association) playoffs.

The Sydenham team stands tall, with three players over six feet, and plays a totally different style than KCVI. “KCVI is a team that goes for the corners and likes to keep digging at the ball, which is not the kind of game that we play. We are a power team and our strength is in playing transition offence and what it all comes down to for us is communication between the players,” said Sydenham coach Brian Rombough.

Undefeated, the Sydenham Eagles Senior Girls Volley ball team take the KASSAA trophy at their final game against KCVI at Queen's

Though the two teams’ styles are different, both fought hard in a match that seemed to get closer set by set.

The Eagles came out strong in the first set taking an early lead and holding it for a 25-14 win.

In the second set KCVI battled back, returning some tough shots and leading for the first half of the set. But the Eagles clawed their way back, eventually tying it up and then taking the set 25-23.

In the third set the Eagles dove, rolled and skidded, trying to return some tough balls from KCVI. This seemed to frustrate the Sydenham squad, causing them to lose some of their focus. KCVI played hard, making some incredible returns and gaining points in the corners to capture the third set 25-21, forcing a fourth.

The fourth set was very close but in the end the Eagles came back bigger and harder than ever, regaining their focus and concentration. They clinched the last few points in some spectacular blocks, making hard returns and amazing volleys to win the match 3-1 and claim the KASSAA trophy.

Following the medals and trophy presentations I spoke to coach Rombough about the game.

“KCVI played a great game and is really well coached. They played great defense. We started losing focus after the first set and gave KCVI hope, which is a dangerous thing to give to an emotional team. I strongly believe that you have to take hope away from the opposing team somewhere between the 9 and 15 point mark. That’s a crucial part of the game.”

Jennie McNichols, the Eagles’ setter, said, “It definitely wasn’t my best game; I tend to get really nervous but the team fixed that. I’m very excited for the win and can’t wait to play at EOSSA.”

The Sydenham Eagles will play next at the EOSSAA (Eastern Ontario Secondary School Athletic Association) tournament in Pembroke on Feb. 23, where they will face Fellows High School in their first match.

Coach Rombough sounds confident.

“We have a big blocking team and are a power team that likes to play big. We play a lot better against hard-hitting power teams. We like matching power with power, which is what we will be coming up against at EOSSA. Our team just has to stay focused,” he said.

In other volleyball news: Before losing out to the Sydenham Eagles, KCVI ended the KASSAA season for the Sharbot Lake Panthers on February 18.

The Panthers took the first set of that match 25-19. In set 2 the Panthers ran into trouble serving and passing the ball and KCVI took it 25-20. According to Sharbot Lake coach Bryan English the team “seemed to lose their urgency in the third” and lost 13-25.

In the fourth the Panthers rallied together and tied it up 18-18 but ended up losing the match 3 sets to one. Nonetheless Sharbot Lake had an impressive season and will be heading into EOSSA, where they will compete in the small school division. They are confident that they will be able to advance to the provincial playdowns.