Around Town: Independent schools, Festival prayer, TWU in court . . .

BCTF president Jim Iker doesn’t want any public money going toward independent schools. Photo from BCTF Facebook page.

The head of the Federation of Independent School Associations (FISA) says private schools – more than half of which are Christian – should not be blamed for funding shortfalls in the public education system.

During a May 20 interview on NEWS 1130, Peter Froese said that private schools – except for the university-prep schools, which charge high tuition – would close their doors if the $340 million-per-year in grants were eliminated. Their children would then have to go to public schools, and costs to the government would go even higher.

Froese was responding to articles such as Why Are BC’s Independent Schools Getting So Much Money?, posted on The Tyee May 17. Accompanied by a photo of St. George’s School – an elite school on the west side of Vancouver, quite atypical of most private schools – the article pointed out that feelings are already running pretty high, in some quarters, against private education:

BC Teachers’ Federation posts on Facebook – more than a dozen in May – usually get a few dozen likes or shares. But one recent post hit a nerve, inspiring over 8,600 shares, 6,300 comments and reaching about 600,000 people so far.

”This year, B.C. gave $358 million to private schools, including those for the super-elite. Meanwhile, Osoyoos is being forced to close its high school because of government underfunding,” read the text superimposed on photos of St. Michael’s University School, where tuition for Canadian students runs upwards of $21,000 a year . . .

Writer Katie Hyslop said:

. . . half of B.C.’s 60 public school boards are grappling with deficits that reach a combined $84 million. They are closing schools and cutting programs, including supports for vulnerable students.

And the public appetite for funding private schools appears to be waning, at least among the parents, educators and trustees in districts like Vancouver, Chilliwack and Okanagan Similkameen – which includes Osoyoos – that are facing budget shortfalls.

Peter Froese is the head of FISA.

She then pointed out some of what Froese stated on NEWS 1130:

Independent schools are getting more money – a budgeted $358 million last year – because they are attracting more students. Peter Froese, executive director of the Federation of Independent School Associations of BC, said that independent schools have seen an increase of 15,000 students since 2005/06, while public schools have lost 60,000 students.

However, Hyslop notes, “that’s not how the teachers’ union sees it.” BCTF president Jim Iker wants the students – and the grants that come with them – returned to the public system, hoping that would allow for the restoration of some services he says have been lost to budget cuts.

For the full Tyee article go here.

On May 25, the debate went national on CBC Radio’s The Current, under the heading Should taxpayers fund private schools? Host Anna-Maria Tremonti interviewed Jim Iker along with Deani Van Pelt, director of the Barbara Mitchell Centre for Improvement in Education at the Fraser Institute and Charles Ungerleider, professor emeritus of education at UBC. Basically, Van Pelt favours independent schools, while the other two don’t.

Iker said:

We believe that all taxpayer-raised money should be going to public schools. We believe that public schools as well as public services are the cornerstone of our democracy . . .

When Tremonti pointed out that supporters of public money for private schools say it is more cost-effective because the government pays less per student, he avoided the point and said:

Well, you know, that’s not the issue. Our goal as a society is to make sure that all of our children, all of our youth, have access to a strong public education system. . . . Parents have the choice. They can send their children to private schools. We don’t have an issue with that, but we don’t believe that any public dollars should be used to subsidize private schools.

Go here for the full 20-minute interview.

Pray for Lower Mainland / Festival

Festival of Hope leaders gathered on the stage.

The Festival of Hope was launched March 31; an evening of prayer is set for May 29.

“The most important ingredient in a successful Festival is prayer!” So says the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association of Canada (BGEAC), which is overseeing next spring’s Festival of Hope.

Thus they are encouraging local Christians to come out to Westside Church this Sunday (May 29). Worship and Prayer for the Lower Mainland & the Festival of Hope will take place from 6:30 pm.

They say:

As Christians come pray with faith and believing God for the lost in their community, God hears and meets us where He is needed. Without prayer, it is simply human efforts. With prayer and faith, it is people we love and care for coming to salvation through Christ. It is lives being transformed! To pray and to see those prayers answered through the Festival is a blessing and a privilege.

Every aspect of the Festival directs believers toward prayer – determined, heartfelt, ceaseless prayer. So, please be in prayer for Franklin Graham, our team leaders and, most importantly, that the Word of the Lord be spread throughout the greater Vancouver area.

To sign up for the Festival Prayer Team, contact [email protected].

TWU in court

Trinity Western University (TWU) will be back in court again next week as it continues its quest to establish a Christian law school. It will appear in the BC Court of Appeal June 1 – 3. In January, a TWU release said it was “ready to go back to court to defend law school graduates.”:

Trinity Western University is ready to go back to court to defend its graduates later this year. Last month Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson struck out a decision by the B.C. Law Society to reject graduates of TWU’s proposed School of Law, and restored an earlier decision that accepted TWU qualifications. He cited improper procedure and a breach of religious freedom. The Law Society of B.C. filed an appeal [January 5].

“We had hoped the Law Society of B.C. would let Chief Justice Hinkson’s decision stand, but we were prepared for an appeal,” said Earl Philips, the executive director of TWU’s proposed School of Law. “The decision to approve a law school graduate must be based not on the personal views of society members, but on the law and evidence. For this reason, we believe the court will continue to rule in favour of TWU.”

The university’s plans to open a law school have drawn attention from critics of its Community Covenant. One section asks students to abstain from sexual intimacy outside of traditional marriage. [TWU spokesperson Amy] Robertson believes the objections stem from misunderstanding. Several LGBTQ students attend the university, and TWU does not inquire about sexual orientation during the admissions process.

This spring, the highest courts in Nova Scotia, Ontario and BC have been asked to decide whether their respective provincial law societies can exclude lawyers from practicing law in their provinces if they were educated at TWU.

The Nova Scotia hearing took place April 6 – 8, the BC Court of Appeal will be June 1 – 3 and the Ontario Court of Appeal June 6 – 8. All three cases will probably end up in the Supreme Court of Canada.

May 2016

Public Lecture on Pope Francis's Encyclical Letter Laudato Si': On Care for Our Common Home – May 26, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
The Tourist Company – May 26, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Marc Dupont: In His Presence – May 26, 2016 - May 27, 2016 at 7:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Church Leaders Forum: Cultivating a Culture of Dare – May 27, 2016 at 9:30 am - 12:30 pm
Chapel: Unified – May 27, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Ignite Maple Ridge – May 27, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Blessed are the Peacemakers: Concepts and Tools for Better Conflict, with Darrin Hotte – May 28, 2016 at 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Irresistible Community: Small Groups Leadership Training Broadcast Conference – May 28, 2016 at 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Neighbourhood Garage Sale – May 28, 2016 at 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Soul Gospel: Featuring Canada’s Queen of Soul, Dawn Pemberton and choirs from Sarah McLachlan School of Music – May 28, 2016 at 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
New Beginnings Concert: Fundraiser Concert for Refugees – May 28, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Soul Gospel: Featuring Canada’s Queen of Soul, Dawn Pemberton and choirs from Sarah McLachlan School of Music – May 28, 2016 at 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Worship and Prayer for the Lower Mainland & the Festival of Hope – May 29, 2016 at 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Switchfoot in Concert – May 29, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm
First United: 9th Annual Golf Tournament for the Homeless – May 30, 2016 at 1:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Dying Well: Panel and Discussion – May 30, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 8:45 pm
Faith & Justice Roundtable: Housing & Displacement Crisis – May 30, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Cindy Aalders: And a Little Child Shall Lead Them: Children as Spiritual Guides in 18th Century England – May 30, 2016 at 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
NightShift Charity Golf Classic – May 31, 2016 at All Day
Religious Freedom Protest for TWU Law School at Vancouver Law Courts – May 31, 2016 at 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Faith Rising: The Church Responding in the Middle East – May 31, 2016 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Jun 2016

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1 comment for “Around Town: Independent schools, Festival prayer, TWU in court . . .”

Michael says:

June 6, 2016 at 7:48 am

Let’s just spell this out: of course private schools are in part to blame for this situation. Christians are too precious to send their kids to public schools these days. Their kids are too special to rub shoulders with those scary heathens. Visited any church lately? Kids’ churches tend to be filled to the brim with out-of-touch, spoiled kids all attending private Christian school.

And if you wonder why Churches are not growing, and why churches are increasingly irrelevant to the “unchurched”, this is a big, big, big reason why.

Also, if you don’t engage in the public system, don’t be surprised when they public doesn’t understand Christians, or have any love for Christians. Why should the public love Christians? And wake-up Christians: the kids from public school, they are nicer. One year we volunteered with a group of kids from public school and a group of kids from private Christian school . . . guess what? If you tell your kids they are special, then they act like they are special.

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