Message from U Hill Principal

You may have had the opportunity to read the Vancouver Sun today (Saturday) and maybe you came across the article about the Fraser Institute’s Report Card on Schools. The reporter did a brief telephone interview with me and I am quoted several times in the article. Of course, not everything I said was included but she did connect the two issues that are currently a high priority at U Hill today.

Number one - Our students, thanks to parent support and hard work by teachers, perform extremely well on provincial exams. Our graduation rate is exceptional. I am proud of our students and how hard they work and how well they do. Although this is a good thing, our students are often under extreme stress to perform well and this can lead to disturbing behaviours. If a student is average, they can feel depressed; if a student feels they are not going to do well enough on a project or exam it can lead to academic integrity issues; teachers have found that students will often harangue them for “that extra mark” if the student feels that 96% is not quite good enough! These are issues that the staff are constantly struggling with. As I said to the Vancouver Sun, I do not really like the Fraser Institute rankings because it is a very narrow focus (provincial exam results) and does not focus on the whole student. Every single one of our students has strengths and weaknesses and it is important that we recognize each student as individuals and encourage all students to be their best - whatever that may look like.

Number two - Our aging, overcrowded, inadequate facilities was the second issue that is a priority at our school. We currently have over 50 students on our wait list and it is increasing daily. I am very concerned about all of the neighbourhood area students who will not be able to attend here next year. I am concerned that the facilities that our students work in on a daily basis are a challenge and, at times, inadequate. The Board will make its decision on June 19th as to whether a new secondary school will be built. There is a small group of parents who are diligently working on this issue and I encourage you to contact them if you would like to help. You can e-mail Charles Menzies (cmenzies@interchange.ubc.ca) or Birgit Eder (eder.warren@shaw.ca) or you can check out the following website: http://rebuilduhill.blogspot.com Also, our VSB liaison Trustee, Carol Gibson will be at our next PAC meeting on May 28th to discuss this issue. I hope you can come.

The juxtaposition of these two issues is ironic. At one of the recent Educational Facilities Review meetings, a speaker referred to U Hill as being a “crappy” school... and then one of our parents responded with, “U Hill is not a crappy school, it is a crappy building. The teachers, the students and the parents work hard to make the school a successful, positive environment for all students”. This report makes it clear that the heart of a school is not the building, it is the people. However - can you imagine how much better it would be if only we had adequate teaching and learning facilities?