SSRSB Superintendent supports new Education Plan

Nancy Pynch-Worthylake

The Superintendent of the South Shore Regional School Board is reacting to the Education Minister's new Kids and Learning First plan. Nancy Pynch-Worthylake says its too early to tell how the plan will impact schools because they don't know their upcoming budget yet. Still, Pynch-Worthylake says there are some positives in the plan.

"We're completely supportive of changes in the math curriculum and we've been asking for that for some time. We have a lot of work going on, on the South Shore, in grade nine with inquiry-based learning, so we're very happy to see that. We certainly support attention to school mental health."

The plan, introduced late last week by Ramona Jennex, includes 39 initiatives, totalling a $6.7-million investment over three years to:


-- bring more services for kids and families into schools in every county

-- begin a Discovering Opportunities program for struggling Grade 9 students

-- introduce a manufacturing trades course linked to shipbuilding

-- double the number of schools offering skilled trades courses

-- triple the number of students taking courses through virtual school and double the number of its courses

-- expand career development support, including more career coaching workshops for parents

-- introduce a new grants program to allow more community groups to use schools for physical, cultural and education activities

For more information on the Kids and Learning First plan, visit www.ednet.ns.ca .

NS Gov't will Pave Rough Section of Highway 14

It's some good news for motorists who travel a rugged section of Highway 14 near Chester. A nine kilometre stretch from Canaan Road to Kaizer Meadow Road will see some fresh paving this summer. The section was a late addition to the province's five year highway improvement plan last year. Area Manager for Lunenburg and Queens County Matt Covey speaks on behalf of the Department of Transportation. "It does have very high traffic, as we all know the surface is very poor and those two factors are why we are going there instead of somewhere else," Chester-St. Margaret's MLA Denise Peterson-Rafuse says 1,300 kilometres of roads have been paved over the last two years with another 500 kilometres planned this year. Nova Scotia's first ever five-year paving and highway plan was released in 2010 and is entering its second year.

Bridgewater man wins truck through NFL contest

Nothing like winning a truck while watching the Super Bowl. Bridgewater native Neil Thompson is the new owner of a 2012 Nissan Frontier after it was announced in a commercial break during Sunday's big game. Thompson is the grand prize winner of the Nissan NFL Score More Contest. The truck is valued at over $38,000.

Windsor Road in Rough Shape

The Municipality of Chester is asking its residents to take their concerns surrounding the condition of the Windsor road to their MLA. The municipality has been trying to get sections of Highway 14 re-paved for years with no success. Warden Allen Webber says council has written numerous letters to the province indicating the poor condition of the road. He says its now up to residents to individually contact their MLA. "We don't mind taking the calls, but people have to understand that we are not the authority responsible for road maintenance, road construction, repaving, snow removal and that they are way better served by calling their local MLA themselves because the more she hears in this case from them personally, the better chance of action," Webber says the road has been high on the municipalities priority for as long as he can remember.

Mining & Forestry Need Government Promotion: Baillie

We told you a few days ago a quartz mine in Shelburne County has been forced to cease operations because of poor world market conditions. Black Bull Resources owns the White Rock Mine and has been losing money. Now, the province's Conservative leader Jamie Baillie says there's been little support from the Dexter government for resource industries. He's calling on the government to provide breaks on taxes and power rates for rural industries in general. Ballie would also like to see increased government promotion of the mining and forestry sectors on the South Shore and elsewhere in the province.

New Head Officer At Barrington RCMP Is A First For Province

   There's a new head of operations at the Barrington District RCMP. What's special about it is the fact Sgt. M.J. DeLuco is the first woman to command an RCMP district in the province, in charge of finances, the budget and being the face of the Mounties in the area. DeLuco has already headed up the RCMP office in Windsor Town and Windsor Rural and she's also been based in Nunavut. She takes on her new role beginning today at the Barrington District RCMP office.