The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

2454 South Service Rd, Oakville 905.469.6220 minioakville.com MINI Oakvilles 2010 Halloween Sales Event Hurry in... before all 2010 models disappear. Ask about special incentives on our 5 remaining demos. Lease a 2010 MINI in October and we pay your 1st months payment! Financing from 0.9%* Leasing from 2.9%* Service Includes 3 years, 50,000 on all remaining 2010, purchased by October 30*! *See in-store for details Save a Pumpkin, Carve a road 3 W ednesday , O ctober 20, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m By Hiba Kesebi SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Three of the four candidates vying to replace Philippa Ellis, who is not seeking re-elction as Ward 3 trustee for the Halton District School Board, agree on one thing: information concerning schools in the area is not being communicated to the public. Two years after the decision was made to close down four schools in southeast Oakville, residents of the area still have some concerns. While Ann Harvey Hope, Georgette Bolger and Jeffrey Percival all promise to address these concerns through proper communi- cation, only one will hold the posi- tion of Ward 3 trustee. Sherif Guorgui, the fourth candi- date, was not available for interview. Georgette Bolger Bolger, an Oakville resident for 25 years, says shes passionate about education and thats why shes run- ning for trustee. Shes worked on several projects for the Ministry of Education with schools across the province and con- ducted audits for the ministry in both English and French to improve literacy in schools throughout Ontario. Shes also managed cur- riculum development in French and established summer school pro- grams in France and Germany. In 2001 Bolger received a certifi- cate from the Government of Canada for her volunteer efforts. Bolger vol- unteered with the Hilary Weston Organization for Youth in its First Connections program. The program was established in 2003 to provide career development for at- risk youths in Toronto, London and Ottawa. Bolger says she would bring a lot to the community, if elected trustee. My priorities would be excel- lence in education and schools that provide a healthy learning environ- ment where parents can send their children with the confidence that theyre being taught in a caring, safe environment, she said, adding that her main emphasis would be on communication. Ive listened to a lot of parents as Im going door to door and one thing that I would like to work very hard on is communication that is transparent, said Bolger. Ann Harvey Hope History seems to be repeating itself for Hope. The 45-year-old mother of two said shes lived through the things that Ward 3 chil- dren are going through. I lived in Erin Mills when they were building schools and moving kids, she said. I went to five schools in five years. I know it (school clo- sures) from being a student and I know it from being a parent. Hope moved to Oakville from Nova Scotia 11 years ago. Her first volunteer job was with the Oakville Symphony Orchestra and since then shes been schoolboard liaison for Linbrook, secretary of the treasurer for the school councils at Linbrook and E.J. James, a member of Parks 14 committee and a member of the E.J. James and the Clearview Residents Association. If elected, shell be pushing for more communication and more co- operation from the community. Ive been at the board table in the board room when the board is discussing why things dont work and I know for a fact that communi- cation is not always clear to the res- idents about why things arent done when they should be or who it is to blame, she explains. Hope says she plans to have forums, family of school meetings, a trustee website and handouts to cre- ate more awareness of school issues within the community. Jeffrey Percival Percival, a lawyer specializing in litigation law, said he decided to run because he wants to ensure that the remaining four schools in southeast Oakville are sufficiently resourced so that students continue to excel. He believes lack of communica- tion tore the community apart dur- ing the 2006 debates about school closures in the area. I do think there is still a strong undercurrent of dissatisfaction with the school closures, so the next trustee has to listen to concerns and try to reconcile positions as much as possible, says Percival, who has two children attending elementary school in the ward. He plans to do this by engaging the entire community not just parents of school-aged children in open discussions. The trustees role is to listen to the concerns of all members of the community, take them up to the board, advocate for them, and most importantly explain back this is why something can or cannot be done, he said noting that his background in communications and journalism makes him well suited to advocate for residents of Ward 3. If elected, Percival 38, says the first issue he would like to examine is whether or not the ward wants to implement full day kindergarten. The program is currently imple- mented in James. W. Hill Public school. Four newcomers vying for vacant Ward 3 public school trustee post Thirteenth in a series Georgette Bolger Ann Harvey Hope Jeffrey Percival