Cynthia King

What an honour it was to attend the official opening of the new Stratford Elementary School. Congratulations to everyone who made the ceremony a great one. The children were incredible. They were so excited. The student rock band, Stop Drop and Roll, played “Twist and Shout” and got everyone up on their feet dancing. Lots of proud mamas and papas in the crowd!

Glen Stewart Principal, Pat Campbell, gave a heart felt speech which reminded us all of the hard work it takes to make something big happen. Her passion and insights in education are what helps make PEI a great place to learn and go to school.

The school itself is beautiful. A great music room, spacious classrooms, a fantastic gymnasium and a library that reflects the best there is to offer.

TIR broke ground back in August of 2009 and had a year to complete the building. Hats off to TIR and all of the contractors who got the job done…. on time!

Here is the Press Release:
aussi disponible en français
October 18, 2010
For immediate release

New Stratford Elementary School officially opened

Education and Early Childhood Development

The new school in Stratford is another example of our government’s commitment to building a stronger school system for our one Island community, says Premier Robert Ghiz.

“The new Stratford Elementary School is ensuring that the children in the rapidly growing community of Stratford have access to the best possible education,” said Premier Ghiz. “This modern building provides Stratford students with the space and equipment they need to get a good start in their education. This new facility clearly demonstrates our commitment to our children and education in this province.”

The new 54-thousand square-foot facility was officially opened today with all 337 students attending along with dignitaries from the community as well as local and provincial government.

“This building is a wonderful new learning space for these young students,” said Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Doug Currie. “We know how important it is to engage children in education early in life. This new facility will help to foster a love of learning for these students from day one.”

During the grand opening events at the new Stratford Elementary School, Premier Ghiz, Minister Currie and MLA for Stratford-Kinlock, Cynthia Dunsford, spoke to the student body and marked the day by assisting Stratford Elementary School Principal Derek McEwen with a cornerstone unveiling and a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“This is a great day for our students and staff,” said Principal McEwen. “Our students are enjoying this facility to the fullest. They especially love the music room and new technologies in the classroom. This school is living up to its design by ensuring a positive and healthy learning environment for both students and staff.”

The new Stratford Elementary School is modelled after West Royalty Elementary School. The school has 20 classrooms, state of the art music room, library, computer lab, gymnasium, multi-purpose room and space for teachers and for planning activities. It also boasts some high tech equipment in many of the classrooms including document cameras and a computer whiteboard capture technology called Mimio. Mimio devices, used in conjunction with a projector, turn an ordinary whiteboard into a fully interactive whiteboard. The final cost of the new Stratford school is $8.7 million.

A virtual tour of the new Stratford Elementary School will be available on the government website at  www.gov.pe.ca/eecd.

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PEI has a decent start to a Province-wide lawn pesticide ban. There is more work to do with the regulations, but for now let’s start learning about the safe ways to take care of our lawns.

Safe Lawns dot org is a great resource, and in fact, Paul Tukey, founder of Safe Lawns dot org, is traveling across PEI to help Islanders learn about organic lawn care. He is also giving a very comprehensive back story about the history of lawn pesticides and the public’s reaction to their use. He also provides some real practical solutions for those concerned about the look of their lawn. There was a great turnout at the Charlottetown session. The evening viewing of the film “Chemical Reaction” was a smaller crowd, but the film was available for sale, and I bought one, so let me know if you want to check it out. Fascinating piece of work and worth watching.

One of the ideas for applying organic fertilizer to your lawn is Compost Tea! Which includes steeping some compost for a certain amount of time and applying the liquid to your lawn. Luck for us here on PEI there is a new business starting up in Oyster Bed called “Oyster Bed Compost”. Owner, Sid Annema, is producing a high value compost tea available to the public very soon.

His contact info is:

Sid Annema
902-628-5845
sidney_annema@hotmailcom

Here is the contact info for the Department of Environment Energy and Forestry:

Officials display drawings of the new Glen Stewart Elementary School. Work on the school has started. From left: Gerard Greenan, minister of Education and Early Childhood Development; Pat Campbell, Glen Stewart principal; Bob Clow, Eastern School District Board chair; and area MLA Cynthia Dunsford. Submitted photo

TERESA WRIGHT
The Guardian

Bulldozers and construction crews are busy hauling mounds of red Island dirt from the field next to Glen Stewart now that construction of a new elementary school for Stratford is underway.
Cabinet approved the new school in June as part of the recommendations in the Eastern School District’s controversial School Organization Plan.
That report proposed closure of 11 of the district’s 43 schools, eight of which were approved for closure by government in June.
Unlike most schools in the province, Glen Stewart’s student population has been climbing steadily. As a result, the school has been bursting at the seams for years.
The school’s capacity is 600, but there are currently 647 students attending the school, not counting teachers and other staff.
The new 54,000-square-foot facility being built will relieve this overpopulation by taking all the students and staff in Grades 4-6 and housing them in their own separate school.
After enduring years of overcrowding, this new school is happily embraced by parents and teachers at Glen Stewart.
“Before this, I was hearing quite a bit of concern from parents and different groups that had formed to try and make the government more aware of the problems at Glen Stewart,” said Stratford MLA Cynthia Dunsford.
“People have been very excited in anticipation of the start of construction and now people are happy it’s finally underway.”
Glen Stewart principal Pat Campbell said one of the biggest challenges her staff has faced in the last several years has been in trying to find enough teaching space in the overpopulated school.
“We have 34 homerooms this year, so that space has been exhausted,” she said.
“This decision to build a new school is an exciting one for the town of Stratford, a growing community, and one that we need to be proactive in looking ahead about so that we have educational facilities that meet the needs of the community.”
The new school will have capacity for 420 students. It will be a standalone school, complete with a gymnasium and its own resource and staff rooms. It’s being built using the design of the West Royalty Elementary School, costing government an estimated $8.7 million.
That cost was not contained in the province’s five-year capital budget, but Education Minister Gerard Greenan said the money has nonetheless been found.
“Because of our government’s decision to move kindergarten into the public school system, we had to make special allowances for some new construction.”
The money is not, however, coming out of the Education and Early Childhood Development’s budget, he added.
“Requests for that money went through the provincial treasury and treasury approved it,” Greenan said. “It’s special (warrant) — it does not exist in our current budget.”
Watching the construction crews hard at work on the future site of the new school, Campbell couldn’t contain her excitement. Crews only began working on the project last week, and already the basic layout of where the school will stand is taking shape on the grounds.
“It’s unbelievable — just last week we looked out on the field and now it’s starting to happen,” she said.
“This is something that we’ve dreamed about.”
Construction is set to be complete for the 2010 school year.

Left to right: Tom Hayward; Carolyn Bertram, Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour; Kevin Jenkins, Mayor of Stratford; Gerald MacDonald, PEI Soccer Assoc.; Cynthia Dunsford, MLA Stratford-Kinlock; Wayne Hooper, ACOA; Alan McIsaac, MLA Vernon River-Stratford.

Island soccer players now can hone their skills in any weather conditions as the province’s first indoor soccer facility has officially opened in Stratford.

Thanks to investments from the Government of Canada, the Province of Prince Edward Island, the Town of Stratford and the PEI Soccer Association, the new 46,500 square foot regional complex now provides an ideal location for competitions and high-performance training for players, coaches and referees.

“Our government is committed to working with our provincial and community partners to build the necessary infrastructure for Islanders and encourage participation in sport,” said the Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency). “This project will create the potential for sports governing bodies to spur growth in soccer while also producing economic benefits through the hosting of regional events.”

The nearly $4 million facility, which is conveniently located adjacent to four existing outdoor soccer fields, is a clear span, self-supporting insulated steel structure, providing an obstruction-free interior and featuring an artificial turf playing surface.

Soccer has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years on Prince Edward Island. Demand for access to the complex is expected be high as there are currently 6,000 soccer players on PEI, and that number is expected to continue growing in the next few years.

“This new PEI Regional Indoor Soccer Facility is an investment in the health and well being of Islanders and will serve residents of our One Island Community for many years to come,” said Honourable Carolyn Bertram, Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour. “I am sure many Prince Edward Island soccer players are anxious to play on this beautiful artificial turf surface.”

“Everyone involved in the sport of soccer on PEI is going to be impressed with this facility,” said Gerald MacDonald, PEI Soccer Association President. “As a result of the tremendous cooperation among all levels of government and the support of our Island soccer players, it is now a reality and will serve players across the Island well into the future.”

The Government of Canada, the Province of Prince Edward Island and the PEI Soccer Association each contributed $1,328,600 to the project.

“We are very pleased and excited to have the new indoor soccer facility located in the Town of Stratford, where the largest soccer club in P.E.I. is located,” stated Mayor Kevin Jenkins “The Town of Stratford contributed the land, $150,000 and tax relief for five years to the facility to support our local soccer community and to generate economic activity in the Town.”

I had the privilege to attend part of a Town Youth Particiation Strategies conference this weekend in Charlottetown. The invite came from the Stratford Youth Can Do Facebook site.

Let me tell you about Stratford YCD.

On their website YCD is described as “a not-for-profit youth group open to Stratford youth between the grades of 5 and 12. YCD’s focus is to provide a safe drop-in centre for youth with plenty of volunteer activities in and around their town.

We are involved in dozens of volunteer projects including Canada Day, food drives, youth recreation programs, Stratford Days, and the Red Cross Red Shield Appeal. YCD also runs the canteen at the Stratford Business Park soccer fields.”

And all of this is true, but it is only a very small part of the bigger picture.

What the website does not say is how dedicated and enthusiastic their members are. Or how much fun they have and how YCD has helped the youth of Stratford grow into healthy, secure and contributing members of their community. What the website does not mention is that their incredible coordinator, Tanya Craig, has helped to create an organization that does so much good for our community of Stratford. That her insights and instincts have made a difference in the lives of young people.

YCD is engaged in helping to keep our community strong. They take part in everything that happens in Stratford. They have found a way to become sustainable by reaching out and developing relationships and partnerships that will last.

So what does this mean to the youth in Stratford?

It means that young people have a place to go and feel welcome no matter who they are. It means that young people will learn from each other and from leaders in their community. That they will have positive role models. It means being in a play or helping to organize a youth dance. Working alongside one another toward a goal and experiencing success and failure. It means having fun and making friends. It means healthier youth and healthier adults. It means that our young people will feel like they belong somewhere and will want to continue to contribute in the growth of their community.

Youth can do all that and more.