RSS students head to Japan this month

By David F. Rooney

19 Revelstoke Secondary students are travelling to Ono Cho, Japan, from March 18 until March 25.

“This is a fantastic experience for our students — and the (three) adults accompanying them as well,” Trustee Alan Chell said at the school board’s last meeting on February 15.

Students from Revelstoke and Ono Cho have been travelling back and forth across the Pacific for several years now.

In other news, the School District will host a Ministry of Education open house on rural education on March 10.

The ministry is seeking information regarding the definition of a rural school, the positive impacts of a rural school on the broader community and ways schools are used.

Given the lopsided nature of the provincial population — most of the population, including students, are concentrated in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island — school districts in the Interior have to struggle to keep the ministry focused on their needs.

Trustees approved an amended budget of $14,188,912 for the 2016/2017 school year. The budget includes changes that have occurred since the budget was adopted on May 25, 2016. Those changes include increased enrolment and an increase in ministry grants due to that, increased benefit costs and higher employee salaries.

Please activate the YouTube player below to watch the school board meeting: