Parent Meeting Coming Up!

Well, the PAC meeting last night went well I heard and the school is going to initiate a meeting for parents to sit down with the school board and reps from WorksafeBC and Pacific Environmental.  That's great news.

As soon as we hear about when the meeting is scheduled for we'll post that info here. 

There are lots of questions many parents would like to ask the folks from these companies. 

If you have a question you'd like an answer to, why not post it here.  The more questions we have, the more answers we'll get and the better we'll all feel. 

I received some emails from parents over the summer with questions that I had never thought about and I'm so glad someone else had. 

And as a side note, many parents have let me know how appreciative they are of this blog being set up.  And so I say "You're welcome".  This really was created because there were so many parents emailing for information, wanting to know who or where to go and in a world with this kind of technology I just thought why not create a sort of virtual coffee shop or comfy lounge where all parents can go to.  And the options for what this can blossom into are endless.  We, as families of Peace Arch Elementary are a community unto ourselves which I think is really great and special.  So, let's celebrate that, stick together and use this for all the wonderful possibilities it can offer.  My future thoughts are that we could eventually have a listing of any and all parents who own their own businesses and want to provide that information to the rest of us, community news briefs, meeting updates, you name it.  If you have a suggestion please share it with everyone here. 

Thanks again and enjoy, this is for everyone. 

Have Questions? Want Answers? Have something You want to Discuss?

Many parents are just starting to find out about the asbestos and mould issues at our school.  So, my apologies to those parents who might find some of these posts confusing because there may not be a lot of back story here to catch up with. 

There are also a lot of parents who have been keeping up with all these issues since springtime. 

So, please, please, please ask your questions in the comment box below and one of the parents that can answer will!  And if not, then it's an even better question that we can ask at the parent meeting to be held hopefully soon! 

Also, this site has been set up for all of us and if there is an issue or concern or question relating to our school, our kids etc. and you would like to share or discuss it with the parent population, then post it here too and we can start an post topic with what everyone and anyone wants to discuss.  That's what this is for after all!  :) 

Poll of Kids Who Have Been Sick

A few parents have asked about coming up with some sort of poll or something to find out how many kids have been getting sick during the last year or so.  Not your common cold or flu but the unexplained symptoms that a lot of kids have experienced while at school so here it is.

Of course this may or may not relate to the school but there is no harm in finding out if there is a common denominator going around because I know a lot of parents felt perplexed last year not being able to explain why their child was getting sick so much. 

My story in brief is this:  One of my children had unexplained rashes, naseau, vomiting, headaches off and on all year last year.  Only at school.  They would disappear during school breaks and there wasn't one symptom all summer long.  We have recently gone for allergy testing and will visit the doctor soon to talk about the results and I'll post them here. 

I received about 3 emails from different parents last year saying very similair things about their kids.  I'd just like to know what is causing my child to be sick like this.  Is it stress?  Is it environmental? Is it an allergy? 

Has your child had any unexplained symptoms or been sick and you can't explain why? 

Use the comment box below to share anything you'd like. 

One Parents Story of Asbestos Cancer

Printed with permission from the author

I am writing to thank you for what you are doing regarding this issue.  I am also very concerned about this and am willing to keep my child out of school in September if the situation is not rectified appropriately, and by that I mean 0 levels of this dangerous and life threatening particle in the air. 

I personally knew someone who died of mesothelioma.  She herself never worked around asbestos but her late husband did and she shook out and washed his clothes every day, THIRTY years before she got this horrible cancer.  She was a wonderful and vibrant actress in our community, not yet 60, and she was dead within six months of being diagnosed.  At the time, I researched this type of cancer and found that there is not a lot of research or treatment available because the victims of this cancer die so quickly that studying mesothelioma is not really possible.

Please let me know what I can specifically do to help in this battle.
Thanks again
Kelly McHale

What do we know about asbestos?

It would be interesting to know what we all think we know about
asbestos.

Here's some of the things I've found out in the last few months:

There is no safe level of airborne asbestos particles even though there is a legally allowable level of airborne asbestos.  Why is this? 

It has been written that even a single exposure to asbestos can be lethal and cause cancer.

When asbestos is properly sealed and not disturbed it is not dangerous. 

Do we know the source of all the asbestos leakages at our school?  This has been a question posed by parents and WorksafeBC since the springtime.  I have still not seen a definitive answer to this question anywhere.  Have I missed it?

In early September two parents sat down with the principal of our school to ask for a meeting.  The meeting was denied but another interesting fact arose.  The parents were told that the asbestos in the school would leak again.  Will it leak in your child's classroom?  How long will it go unnoticed?  If a child or teacher accidentally steps on or disturbs the asbestos dust on the floor it becomes airborne and unseen by the human eye.  Who will be negatively affected then?

In conversations with WorksafeBC over the summer we were told that WorksafeBC would accept a zero leakage level only, as should the parents and that the school needs to prove to us, the parents that they have ensured they have done everything possible to make sure there are no more asbestos leakages.

The weep holes along the bottom of the exterior walls of the school were put there during construction of the school to provide ventilation in the walls.  Now that the weep holes have been sealed (only some of them were actually, many unsealed walls were discovered by some parents who brought it up to the school and the inspector came and could not explain why they were left unsealed--they were supposed to be sealed shortly afterwards), does this present a double edged sword?  If sealing the weep holes prevents asbestos leaking, will it prevent proper ventilation and therefore if moisture becomes trapped in the walls what happens?  Mould?


How do we get the answers to these questions?

What are your questions?

Why Do Parents Want a Meeting?

Several parents have written letters to various levels of our school and district requesting a meeting with the parents and all those requests have been denied.

But why do we want a meeting?  In the sampling of emails posted here the reasons are clear.  We want a face to face meeting to address these issues with the right people.  We do not want to continue to have to write letters, leave phone messages etc.  We want to be able to ask questions to members of the company that did the investigation, from members of WorksafeBC. 

Both of these agencies have told me since early July that they support and have also requested of the school district that a meeting with parents be held.

But still the school denies us a meeting.  When I spoke with Mrs. Brine in early September I was told that a meeting wasn't believed to be necessary as there was enough information on the school website.  I was also told that members of the district did not want to come down to the school to have parents express their anger and frustration at them.  This completely misses the point if you ask me. 

Read the letters posted here, share yours if you like and add a comment below if you would like an information meeting to discuss the health of our school with parents, the school district, WorksafeBC, Pacific Environmental and any other organization or person that would be able to positively contribute to sharing their knowledge and information. 

All we want is a safe and healthy school for all our kids.  That's it.  Straightforward and simple.  And we need transparency from the school so we can trust and believe that they are acting in our children's best interests and so far we just haven't seen that.

Another string of emails requesting a meeting and information

Printed with permission from the author.  This is a longer string, you might want to start from the bottom and read up, it's worth the read and will help any parent that is newer to these issues. 

These emails are being copied here to help bring more awareness to all parents about what is going on, not going on that should be and hopefully bring about even more parents together in our quest for a healthy school for all our kids. 

Dear Mr. McKay,

I am an concerned parent at Peace Arch Elementary and am contacting you about a situation that I feel has been inadequately addressed by those in a position to do so and am hopeful that you will be able to assist. The issue as I’m sure you are aware concerns asbestos, mould and water damage to 4 of the pods on our school site. Whilst some extensive remedial work has been carried out there is also a sense that perhaps a ‘band-aid’ approach has taken place and some very valid concerns remain with regards to the potential for continued water ingress resulting in further exposure to mould and vermiculite. To date no one has explained why the district is failing to carry out a thorough inspection of all the crawlspaces to identify and remediate any water ingress and fungal contamination as per the recommendation from Pacific Environmental and Occupational Hygiene Services. (Report dated Sept, 14/2010 Ref 11186L01)

I would like to share with you below the recent correspondence between myself and Ms. Nancy Johnston who I understood to be responsible for answering questions and ensuring the health and safety of the schools in our district.  I have found the responses to be less than forthcoming. I don’t believe that I am asking questions that any concerned parent wouldn’t ask and I believe that the school district has a responsibility to respond. In Ms. Johnston’s initial email response she indicates that the district has hired a highly credentialed environmental consulting company and yet indicates that there isn’t an immediate plan to investigate the crawl spaces as per their recommendations. On the one hand we are being told to trust the experts and yet on the other we are being told we’re not going to follow through on the experts recommendations, that seems concerning to me.

Ms. Johnston indicates in her last email that it would be my responsibility to contact the PAC at our school and request a meeting and yet it has also come to my attention that in fact other parents had requested an information meeting be granted in a meeting held on Sept. 9^th  at Peace Arch school with Ms. Janet Brine in attendance and that request was refused. Would it not seem prudent that with an issue as alarming and concerning as asbestos and mould potentially having been exposed to our children that the school district would want to take any and all steps to ensure parents have an opportunity to ask questions and hear directly from the environmental agency who have been entrusted to carry out and monitor this work?

It would seem to me that parent’s deserve to be treated and informed in a manner different to what has been experienced. I do not believe that this issue will go away and I also believe that a fairly large parent group are willing to investigate any and all means to ensure that our concerns are adequately addressed.

I trust that I will soon be receiving forthright answers to my questions and look forward to your reply to this urgent and important matter ,

Sincerely,

Heather Dale

From: Bruce and Heather Dale [mailto:thedales@telus.net]
Sent: September-23-10 2:29 PM
To: 'Nancy Johnston'
Cc: 'ormond_j@sd36.bc.ca'; 'Ms. Brine '; 'Brad A. Helland'
Subject: RE: Recent fungal summary report

Nancy,

I would like to provide clarification that I do not find the back and forth of emails confusing, I find the answers to my questions confusing. I had understood from everything communicated at the parent level that if we had concerns or questions that they were to be directed to you. Now if I am not mistaken you are indicating that I need to speak with the PAC so that they may or may not recommend a meeting and from that I’m not sure but you seem to be indicating that Ms. Brine would answer these difficult questions?

I would appreciate answers to the following questions;

1.       Have all the recommendations in the consultant’s report been carried out?

2.       If so what is the status and who investigated the crawlspaces and where can I read that report?

3.       Were our kids ever in harm’s way of the mould and vermiculite found in certain locations throughout the school?

4.       Is there a potential that our kids will be subjected to these substances in the future? Has everything been done to prevent that?

5.       Has the water ingress issues both from above (ceiling) and below (crawl space) been fully investigated and remediated?

6.       Does the district plan to hold a meeting with the Environmental consultants present to answer parent questions and concerns?

I appreciate your time is valuable as is mine. I hope this has taken away any confusion and I look forward to receiving these answers.

Sincerely,

Heather Dale

From: Nancy Johnston [mailto:johnston_n@sd36.bc.ca]
Sent: September-23-10 1:38 PM
To: Bruce and Heather Dale
Cc: Janet Brine; Brad A. Helland
Subject: Re: Recent fungal summary report

Heather,

You're right -- this back and forth of e-mails is getting confusing, which is not my intention.  Why don't you see if the PAC recommends a parent meeting, which would be a good time to get everything explained to all interested parties. I believe they meet on Tuesday?   If that doesn't happen,  I'll touch bases with you in person, by phone, and see if I can't make myself clearer.

Regards,

Nancy

"Bruce and Heather Dale" <thedales@telus.net> writes:

Hi Nancy,

I greatly appreciate your timely reply and would like to share that I am left extremely confused as to why the school district is neglecting to follow through with the recommendation on Page 6 from Pacific Environmental Consulting and Occupational Hygiene Services report and I quote “ we recommend that the crawlspaces are investigated to ensure that any sources of water ingress and/or fungal contamination are identified and can be remediated accordingly.  As you stated in your initial email these professionals were hired by the district to ensure the health and safety of our school and yet you seem to be indicating to me that the district has no plans to follow through on all of their recommendations. I would request that the district reconsider this decision and request that this same group of professionals be charged with this task and complete a follow up report to indicate that this has been done and any work or concerns connected with this part of the school are being suitably addressed. Both the consultants reports regarding the prevention of further vermiculite and mould outbreaks indicate the paramount importance of addressing the water ingress issues. I find it confusing that your email states the crawl spaces are not wet due to drainage or pipe leaks and yet John Ormond’s letter ( Aug. 31.2010) states that ‘workers have been replacing drainage tiles along the outside of the school and the flooring in classrooms 304 and 306 has been replaced as well..... this work was performed after evidence of water seepage was discovered in the area of the crawl space under the two classrooms earlier this year”.

I would hazard a guess that 100% of parents would appreciate their hard earned tax dollars being used to follow all the recommendations in these reports that directly affect the health and safety of our children.  Further to that,  I have strong indications from a large parent group that if the school district is unwilling to follow through on the recommendations in this report then all means available  will be considered to ensure the future and contiued well being of our children. It seems to me that the district has more to do in order to claim that they have thoroughly investigated and remediated all potential sources of water ingress at our school and with this being such an obvious contributing factor with regards to the more serious mould and vermiculite concerns that the district cannot ignore these recommendations. It would seem to be that to do so would be to potentially put our children at unnecessary risk for further exposure to harmful mould and asbestos in their learning environment.  

I appreciate your time and commitment to ensuring that the parents at Peace Arch are satisfied that the district is meeting its  mandate to ensure the health and safety of the students and teachers at our school.

Sincerely,

Heather Dale  

From: Nancy Johnston [mailto:johnston_n@sd36.bc.ca]

Sent: September-23-10 11:03 AM

To: Bruce and Heather Dale

Cc: Janet Brine; Brad A. Helland

Subject: Re: Recent fungal summary report

Hello again Heather,

Please let me at first assure you that nobody has suggested to me that we call a halt to further investigations at Peace Arch due to financial considerations.  We do have to be prudent in the use of our resources of course, as they come from hard-working taxpayers like yourself and your husband.  

We don't have an immediate plan to inspect all the crawlspaces. At this moment in history they are not wet due to drainage or pipe leaks, and mould needs water to thrive.  And the crawlspaces are vented to the outside and are not pressurized in relation to the classroom spaces above.   Our final round of air sampling does not indicate that mold spores are at levels of health concern  in classroom spaces.  However, buildings do not remain static, and should we have evidence of a change in these conditions at Peace Arch - a pipe burst, a roof leak, or a new moldy smell, we will rely on your principal Janet Brine to let us know so that we can investigate and remediate as necessary.

Hope this clarification is useful to you.  I have left your comments about a meeting, communications, etc. for Janet and Brad to take into consideration.

Regards,

Nancy

"Bruce and Heather Dale" <thedales@telus.net> writes:

Hi Nancy,

Thank you for your prompt reply and for your explanation regarding the School Districts’ responsibilities and the highly regarded credentials of the environmental agency , Pacific Environmental, that carried out the safety inspection at our school.  I have no doubt that this company and their employees perform their job to the highest standards. I also appreciate that this work has been reviewed by WorkSafe BC. My husband works side by side with both these types of professionals/agencies in this line of work and has some experience with mould and asbestos in buildings, and after he read the reports he suggested we consider requesting either a second opinion and or clarification to the omissions in the reporting.

My concerns do relate to specific portions of the report and that centers mostly around the area of omissions.  I note that in the report it is very clear that Pacific Environmental did not investigate the crawl spaces at the school, that they recommended doing so in the likelihood that water ingress is likely a consideration. My limited understanding is that the water problem encourages the ant and mould problems and that in order to ‘prevent’ further vermiculite disturbances I would wonder if  this source of water ingress would be considered a priority and requiring immediate attention. I believe that the report is only valid and accurate, as with any situation, based on material tested and/or observed.  It concerns me that the crawl spaces haven’t yet been an area of further investigation as potential sources of water damage/mould/ant infestation etc. It concerns me that perhaps the work done to date has only been to address obvious areas of either water damage and mould and that a thorough investigation , including and i would think with great importance assigned to ascertaining the state and safety of the crawlspaces underneath each pod has for some reason not been done. Perhaps you could enlighten me as to why this hasn’t been done and  who will carry out this recommendation and under what timeframe.

I have read all the reports on the school website, including the letter to parents from Mr. John Ormond and I can only think that with an issue of this much significance to the health and safety of children and teachers that an information meeting with parents would only be beneficial. Due to the demographics of our school I would think that a good percentage of homes may not have computer access or parents with computer skills. I think that as with any issue there is a large majority of ‘silent’ parents who are very worried and concerned, I know this to be the case at Peace Arch and I consider myself one. I think in any situation giving information in an accessible,  forthright, open  and candid manner is always beneficial. I can see that the school/district has provided some information in this manner and I believe there is some sense at the parent level that this information/reports has been hard to source and that perhaps there is a feeling of information being  hard to find. I believe that a meeting with parents and school board officials and most importantly with the environmental representative present may help to decrease parents uneasy feelings and encourage a better understanding.  It would also allow for questions to be asked and responded to, which in my experience is useful to increasing understanding and sharing information.

I appreciate your comments regarding being a parent and being concerned and I would hope that the district would not be in a position, or put dedicated employees such as yourself in a position,  to put financial concerns/constraints ahead of a through and proper resolution to the mould, water, and asbestos issues that a deteriorating building such as Peace Arch School seems to be suffering from.

I have had three daughters who have enjoyed a combination of 21 years at this wonderful community school and it saddens me to think that their health may have been potentially affected by the poor and aging conditions of this building. You are right, as parents we will do what is necessary to ensure that is not the case and ensure the best outcome for our children.

I appreciate your time and look forward to you reply,

Sincerely,

Heather Dale

From: Nancy Johnston [mailto:johnston_n@sd36.bc.ca]

Sent: September-22-10 1:59 PM

To: thedales@telus.net

Cc: Janet Brine

Subject: Recent fungal summary report

Dear Heather,

Thank you for your e-mail.  The District does not permit contractors or consultants on our property unless they are being paid by the district.  The school is the property of the District and as such we are entrusted with the responsibility to ensure that it is safe for students and staff.  All of us at the School District take this responsibility very seriously.The consultant we used for the work at Peace Arch, Pacific Environmental, has been in business in BC since 1990.  Their personnel include Professional Engineers, Certified Industrial Hygienists, Registered Professional Biologists (RPBio), Canadian Registered Safety Professionals (CRSP), and Applied Science Technologists.  We use them precisely because they are so highly qualified, which gives us the assurance that we are protecting the children and employees in our care.   These professionals also have to subscribe to a code of ethics, or risk their certifications being lifted.  For example, the certified industrial hygienists are to "deliver competent services with objective and independent professional judgment in decision-making".  The work at Peace Arch has also been reviewed by WorkSafeBC, which gives us an extra level of reassurance in the process.    

I know that Janet Brine will be consulting with the Peace Arch Parent Advisory Commiittee to determine whether a parent meeting about these issues is warranted.  If you would like to meet with our consultants in this sort of forum, please let Janet or a PAC representative know.  Or if you have specific questions about a particular aspect of one of the reports, I would be pleased to answer them for you myself.

I hope this helps to ease your mind.  I'm a mom too, so I know what it feels like to want the best for your children.

Kind regards,

Nancy

Nancy Johnston, ROHT

Health and Safety Officer

School District No. 36 (Surrey)

14225-56 Avenue, Surrey BC V3X 3A3

tel 604-599-7484

fax 604-596-3192

Regards,

Nancy

Nancy Johnston, ROHT

Health and Safety Officer

School District No. 36 (Surrey)

14225-56 Avenue, Surrey BC V3X 3A3

tel 604-599-7484

fax 604-596-3192

Regards,

Nancy

Nancy Johnston, ROHT

Health and Safety Officer

School District No. 36 (Surrey)

14225-56 Avenue, Surrey BC V3X 3A3

tel 604-599-7484

fax 604-596-3192

More requests for a parent meeting

Published with author's permission-- a letter written to Mrs. Brine with a small string attached below.

Thanks Janet, I really appreciate your reply and your due thoughtfulness and consideration concerning a meeting. The request for a meeting would include that a school board representative and someone from Pacific Environmental  be present  as I believe the types of questions are within their scope of expertise to answer. I don’t believe that it is anyone’s best interests at this point in time to not have these professionals present.

The questions that I had to date are: ( and I know that other parents have other questions of a more technical nature regarding the remediation work)

1.     Have all the recommendations in the consultant’s report been carried out?

2.       If so what is the status and who investigated the crawlspaces and where can I read that report?

3.       Were our kids ever in harm’s way of the mould and vermiculite found in certain locations throughout the school?

4.       Is there a potential that our kids will be subjected to these substances in the future? Has everything been done to prevent that?

5.       Has the water ingress issues both from above (ceiling) and below (crawl space) been fully investigated and remediated?

6.       Does the district plan to hold a meeting with the Environmental consultants present to answer parent questions and concerns?

I don’t think that taking more time to address this issue will be well received within the parent community. I think if the issue was addressed at a different level other than PAC Executive that you would have an overwhelming and immediate response. Perhaps a simple question sent home to all students “ would you like the school to hold a meeting including representatives from the board and the Environmental agency to address the remediation work and answer any questions” . Yes or No might give you a better representation of what the larger parent community desires. I personally have not had contact with anyone from PAC Executive and yet am aware of 30+ parents who are willing to pay to secure a second opinion if necessary. After 11 years at this school it has always been my understanding that each and every parent at the school is considered a PAC member and so I would hope that those views and opinions would be as highly regarded as the PAC executive.

I hope this provides you with some additional context to aid you in your decision making process as to the appropriateness and need for a meeting. I would hope that after Tuesday the decision would be made and by the end of the week that the time, date, and attendees confirmed. I do not think that is an unreasonable time frame, given the seriousness of the concerns to our children’s’ health and safety.

Thank you again for your timely response to this matter.

Sincerely,

Heather Dale

From: Janet Brine

Sent: September-24-10 11:29 AM
To: Bruce and Heather Dale
Cc: John D. Ormond; Nancy Johnston; Doug F. Strachan
Subject: Re: FW: Recent Fungal Summary Report

Thank-you Heather, for the e-mail loop.  

re: a meeting, ... once I discuss the possibility of a meeting with the full PAC on Tuesday I will make a decision.  I have heard from only a handful of people requesting a meeting so I need to get a sense of the larger community.  I suspect that there will be a recommendation to move forward with this but I think it fair to follow a process that includes more people.  I will be in touch with you late next week.

Sincerely,

Janet Brine

"Bruce and Heather Dale" writes:

Dear Ms. Brine,

I am including a recent round of dialogue that I have initiated between Ms. Nancy Johnston and myself. For some reason on the cc’s to you it was returning to my inbox as undeliverable. I hope that has nowbeen corrected.

Sincerely,

Heather Dale

From: Bruce and Heather Dale [

Sent: September-21-10 5:01 PM

To: mailto:%27johnston_n@sd36.bc.ca'

Subject: Recent Fungal Summary Report

Hello,

I have been following the updates on the situation at Peace Arch regarding the ants, asbestos, mould and water damage. I am curious if parents wanted an independent report/confirmation (i.e  from an independent environmental agency)  that all areas of the school are indeed safe and that there are no other ongoing concerns that would adversely affect our children what would be the procedure to allow that to happen?

With thanks,

Heather Dale

Heather Dale -

'be the change you wish to see'  - Mohatma Ghandi

Janet Brine

Principal - Directrice

École Peace Arch Elementary

S'ENGAGER C'EST APPRENDRE

Another letter requesting a parent meeting

Published with author's permission

Dear Ms. Brine,

I am a faithful, committed Peace Arch parent who has been at the school for 7 years.  My eldest daughter is in Grade 6, my other daughter is in Grade 3 and my little guy will be in Kindergarten next year.  During our seven years at Peace Arch, we have been so happy with the committed staff, the enriched French Immersion curriculum, the caring environment, and to be perfectly honest, everything that Peace Arch stands for.   Having said that, I have lost so much sleep over the issues that Peace Arch is currently dealing with and I still feel very uneasy with the state of our aging school.   It is so  sad that Peace Arch has everything going for it, yet because of an old building, things are starting to deteriorate and it scares me and saddens me to know that my childrens’ health may have been and will continue to be compromised due to the mould, asbestos and water leaks.  I know a great deal has been done to try and rectify things and information has been provided in hopes of reassuring parents, and I appreciate everything that’s been done to date, however,  there are still so many unanswered questions and so many worried parents, me being one of them. 

I have been very diligent with reading the reports on the school website, I have addressed my concerns with both Nancy Johnston, Doug Strachan as well as Mr. John Ormond, however,  I  still have legitimate concerns.  I am not the type of parent who over-reacts, but there is no denying that Peace Arch is dealing with significant issues that can and will impact the health and safety of every child and teacher in that school, both at the present time as well as later down the road.  As  parents, we need to feel that everyone is taking a proactive stand with making the school safe and is taking every preventative measure possible to ensure that each child and teacher is out of harm’s way and can teach and learn in an environment that is safe, and void of potential health issues.

I believe it is essential that a meeting be held with parents as well as school board officials and of course, a WorkSafe representative who will hopefully, be able to shed more light on the situation and help ease the anxiety that so many parents are feeling.  An honest and open dialogue will be far more beneficial than reading political letters and difficult to decipher reports and will help to rebuild trust between the parents and the School District.  Ms. Brine, please consider my request for a meeting as I know there are still a lot of concerned parents (myself included). 

Thank-you in advance for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Bree Van Nes

Parents who want a meeting

Below is a copy of an email sent to many people within the school district and has been posted here with permission.  We want a meeting.  If you do to, post your comments below and we'll send this link to the district so that they can actually see how many parents want a meeting. 

I am also a concerned parent who has spoken with both Bernadine (School District) over the summer (who was more than willing to come and meet with the parents and bring a rep from Worksafe BC and Pacific Environmental) and with Ms. Brine.  My last conversation with Ms. Brine was that she was leaning towards not having a parent meeting - that she felt that there was no new information to provide to the parents - given that the information is up on the site.

While there may be information up on the website, this is not what the parents are asking for. We want to have a conversation/dialogue and have our questions answered. I consider myself to be a fairly intelligent woman, but having all this information up on a website is not the means for me to make sense of the issues and determine the safety for my children.   Having a conversation and hearing directly from a Worksafe representative will make me feel more comfortable than what I have had access to at this point.  Unfortunately given the lack of communication over the summer months, many parents are mistrustful of the process and decision-making that occurred and consider that the School District and the School Administration have not been fully transparent with us. 

I do a lot of work with senior leaders in healthcare (Fraser Health being one of my clients).  I have seen the positive impact of bringing stakeholders together to have conversation and surface issues as well as the negative impact where these steps have not been taken. In fact, from my experience, if the space is not created for these types of conversations, it fosters resentment, story-making and it goes underground, feeding antagonistic behaviours.

I would assert that creating the meeting for Peace Arch Elementary parents would do a great deal of good in terms of contributing to collaborative relationships between the parents and the Administration rather than setting it up to become potentially adversarial. 

My recommendation is to have a facilitator who facilitates the process and therefore can manage the dynamics that could surface in the group. I would be happy to recommend two people that I know of who are skilled facilitators and reside in South Surrey.

I would strongly encourage you to proceed with an all parent meeting as Stacy MacDonald has requested in a previous email to all of you. Again I would be more than happy to provide contact information for facilitators for you. My contact information is below.

Sincerely,

Erica Groschler



Asbestos, mould, water leaks etc.

This blog is for all the Peace Arch Elementary School parents

Since the spring of 2010 we have been dealing with asbestos issues and later in the year mould was also discovered. 

As a parent I began fact finding to reassure my family that the school was safe.

I initially contacted every level of the school district in order to have my questions answered.  I thought this would be a quick and easy process.

In the end, what I discovered was that the school district was great at putting on a good game face and wasn't willing to come forward with the real facts, wasn't willing to return emails, phone calls, messages except for a couple of times. 

In my frustrated quest for answers I started feeling that maybe the district was trying to cover up the truth, was refusing to be transparent and was hiding from telling parents the truth in order to protect their bottom line and protect themselves against liability. 

What some other parents and I were able to find out from outside sources was pretty upsetting to say the least.  What we did is take our new found information back to the district and start demanding transparancy.  That is the reason, the only reason, they have posted anything on the school website.  (click on the link above to go to the school website).

The strength of pressure from a few parents over the summer and the pressure from Worksafe BC to clean up their act and start cleaning up properly has done some good for sure. 

What has also been made clear to many parents following this is that the school district will not do anything they don't have to and unless the parents stay on top of this, we fear further decline in the health of our school. 

I am not going to post the documents that are listed on the school website here, they are available. 

What has finally led to this blog is an attempt to bring as many parents as we can under one umbrella to push harder for a meeting. 

A face to face meeting with the district, WorksafeBC and an environmental group is needed, we want that, so many parents do.  To have more questions answered, to find out more information and demand better communication and transparency. 

Why are they hiding? 

Some parents have requested not being part of the email lists that have tried in pure honesty to simply communicate this serious information that affects our kids.  Maybe this can help.  And many parents are still unaware.

Please pass along this blog address to any parent you think is interested in what is going on with our school and now we can all leave comments, concerns, thoughts whatever is on your minds, whatever questions you have in one central place.  I hope this helps. 

One note, please keep language and comments clean and forward moving!

Leanne Arnott
Mom of three daughters at our school