Glebe Report

Major renovations needed at Glebe Collegiate
By John Smart
Parents, students and
school board trustees gathered
in the Glebe Collegiate
auditorium May 15 to hear
reports from the Glebe Modernization
Committee on the
current needs of the school.
Major renovations are needed
at Glebe and the process
will now begin to formulate
a case that can be presented
to the administration and
trustees of the Ottawa Board
of Education for their approval.
In May, 1984, a full examination
of Glebe's physical
facilities was carried out
by Principal Allan Wotherspoon
and a committee of
staff,students and parents.
They found that Glebe's major
needs were for additional
facilities for physical
education, for the music programme,
for the library and
for climate control throughout
the building. They also
indicated major deficiencies
in present facilities for
staff as well as a number of
new classroom facilities
that were needed.
Since the Wotherspoon report
two years ago, Glebe has
only received money for one
item on their list, $300,000
for improved access to the
building for the handicapped.
Major renovations recently
undertaken by the OBE at
Ottawa Technical High School
and at Nepean cost several
million dollars and are usually
done in phases over a
three or four year period.
There is no doubt about
Glebe's claim on the Board's
attention. With a current
enrolment of more than 1600
the school houses more than
10% of the OBE's secondary
school students. There is
no reason for anyone to put
up with inadequate facilities.
First-class reputation
Glebe has a first class
reputation for its academic
programmes and the Board has
been asking more and more of
the school in recent years,
increasing the number of
programmes at the school.
The school receives requests
for cross boundary transfers
from all over the city and
cannot accept those that do
apply from outside its boundaries.
The administration
and staff of the school,
therefore, have every right
to expect physical facilities
that match their first
class work with the students.
As the Glebe Modernization
Committee said to the Board
in their letter of 29 April,
1986: "It is the struggle
to maintain this excellence
in a seriously deteriorating
physical environment which
is the core of our concern."
What happens next? The
Glebe Modernization Committee
is continuing to meet
and welcomes your help.
(Contact Brian Huggins at
232-0286) Trustee Brian
McGarry and I have promised
our help in convincing our
trustee colleagues, as has
Trustee Marjorie Loughrey
who attended the May 15 meeting
and is a long time
friend of the Glebe.
Fall budget
Crunch time will come
N EWS
later in the fall on 1986
when the superintendents
form their budget recommendations
for the trustees and
in early 1987 when those
recommendations are either
approved or defeated by the
trustees for the 1987 budget
year.
Financial pressure
The OBE is under heavy
financial pressure and more
help from the province is
needed for renovations like
those needed at Glebe. In
the next three years the
province intends to extend
funding to Grade 13 for the
separate schools and to create
a francophone school
board for Ottawa-Carleton.
In the process the Ministry
of Education should not forget
the needs of the older
public boards and I hope
they won't.
John Smart is an Ottawa
School Board Trustee.
Well-known Glebe pianist
to be featured at NAC
Well-known Glebe pianist
Christina Petrowska will be
a featured soloist with the
National Arts Centre Orchestra
at the National Arts
Centre on Saturday, June 21,
at 8 p.m.
The concert will be part
of a series of concerts presented
by the NAC and Espace
Musique and called "Now Music/Present
Musique". Petrowska
is the music director
for Espace Musique.
Petrowska will be performing
Alexina Louie's piano
concerto which will be the
second half of the program.
Alexina Louie's orchestra
piece was performed at the
Expo opening gala for Prince
Charles and Princess Diana.
Christina Petrowska has
had a busy season, with many
performances for the CBC.
She has been invited by the
Canadian High Commissioner
and London International
Arts Management to give a
recital at Wigmore Hall in
London, England during the
1987-88 season. She will
also do several other concerts
in England as part of
the tour.
On Sunday, June 8, young
Glebe students of Petrowska
will give a recital in the
Loeb Building at Carleton
University.
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