Whltby Frae Press, Wednesday. Decomber 13 .195Page 5 Durham school board hires 'rat officer' By Mark Reesor The Durham Board of Education is considering hiring a fuil-time 'granta officer' to ferret out new sources ofcash, Standing coznmittee voted Monday to establish the position as a one-year pilot project - provldlng the person bringe ln enough grant money to offset their estimated $40,000 salary. *The full board will make the final decision next Monday. A varlety of speclal grants from the federal and provincial governments, businesses and local organizations are offered each year, states Bruce Walker, touperintendent of education and community services, in a report. With governument cutbacks, the grants - often given to fund special projects - will be more crucial than ever, according ta Vndals dcean up the damage iSy Mark Ileesor. Teenagers who spraypaint graffilti may. find themselves cleaning up the damage they or other vandals have caused. Constable Mitch Miller, one of the Whitby foot patrol officors, says four youngsters who spraypainted in the Pringlo Creek area recontly ended up doing just that. "The ldds were extremely coopers4tive... and pretty remorsEÎful (so) wo worked in conjunction with the Town of Whitby and inatead of going through youth court, we bad the kids volunteer a day each," he says. "(Three of them) gave up a. PA day and cleaned Pringle Creek Park; they swept up all the glass, cleaned the river and so on." .The other teen strung 120 sets of Christmas lightB through downtown Whitby on a PA day. Another group ofkidds who were involved ini a shoplifting spree will probably ho shoveling snow for seniors in the Otter Creek area this winter, Martin says. Community service seems ta have more ýof an impact on kids than goingtbrough youth court, ho Whitby mian faces several, charges A 63-year-old Whitby man faces Eric Clarke Drive was arrosted mischief under and assaulting assault, threatoning and weapons Dec. 7 and charged with assault, police - he took a swipe at one of charges in. connection with two threatoning bodily bann, the officers while in custady, police recent incidents. possession of weapons dangerous, say. iiuzmeutat ase, an .I.-year-oia woman was accosted at Dundas and Centre streets whilo walking home around noon Dec. 1. The suspect frightened the victim by talking "in a sexual manner" and at one point produced a knife and asked her "if she wanted some of this," say police, who -add she wasn't physically harmed and managed ta )roak loose and run away. The suspect is aIse charged with throwing a brick through the kitchèn window of a- Craydon Road residonce wbile apparently trying ta, collect a debt. Joseph Raymond LaFantaisie of Man burned at BMW A 49-yearý-oId Oshawa man suffored severe burns te bis hands and face Monday afternoon in an industrial accident, at BMW's Whitby"head office. Police say the victim, an employee of Ainsworth Electric of Pickering, was working on a broakor box at the 920 Champlain Ave. facility when there was 'a flash lire and perhaps a minor explosion. The victim was taken te Osbawa General Hospital and later transferred ta Wellesley Hospital in Toronto where he's lsted in good condition. Doctors at Oshawa General felt the victim may requiro plastic surgery. The tire was conflned ta the box and there was no serious damage, police say. Ontario Hydro and the Ontario Ministry of Labour were notified and a ministry investigatar was sent ta the scene. says. 'The crime and the punlshfment are more directly related. A lot of first-time offenders are just going ta get probation. The judge tells them 'well, you've got ta be good for, 18 months.' and they're going 'okay, this le not a big deal.' 'This way they're actually doing sometbing; they're helping the community out, they're giving up one of their PA days - which they're not used ta doing - and it's more of a direct type of purdsbment."f Walker. The board bas received grants in prevlous years, helping ta pay for computer hardware and software, employment retraining and energy conservation, for example, but there's been no central coordination, he said. SThe officer would be responsible ,for findling the grants, lnitiating and assisting with applications and developing policy and procedures, he said. The need for new sources of money is "soîf-evident if we are ta maintain and enhance programs ta, meet the needs of our learners," said Walker, who notes savon éther boards 'ho survoyed, including Scarbourough, Pool and North York, ail have grant officers. The contract or conditions for continuing the -position should include a stipulation that increased grant- revenue should offset the coot of the officer's salary by "a significant amount," Walker stressed. De,-fer Fer-De-Car Fer-.Na-Na-,Na- Na-Na- N-a-ýNinety Days.. ......***.m.. (Sung to da tune of "Deck da Halls") Plus a large selection ofpreviously owned Saturus! A Different Kind of Comi-pwany' A Different Kind of Car 1520 Dundas St. E.., Whitby* (905) 430-2350 ANNOUNCEMENT TRAFALGAR CASTLE SCHOOL .welcomes Mr. J.D. Sims, B. Comm,, LL.M., Q.C. as the new Chairman of the Board. Mr. Sims has. been a longstanding member of the Whitby Community-, the home of his law practice Sims, Grady, Thomson & Babbs. He has served as an Officer on numerous local boardis-and associations and is Past President of the Durham Region Law Association- and Whitby Ail Saints Resident Corporation. Mr. Sims is also a former Durham Region Public School Trustee. His vast experience wiIl be. of great benefit to Trafalgar Castle School. We look forward to his strength and leadership. s e 1