OPINION 10
WEDNESDAY
May 6 2015
Housing ‘last time buyers’
Vol. 106 No. 35
FAMILY CALENDAR 16
Spot Prawn Fest heats up SPORTS 24
Marathon man There’s more online at
vancourier.com MIDWEEK EDITION
THE VOICE of VANCOUVER NEIGHBOURHOODS since 1908
Adult ed cut back
Schools budget reduced Cheryl Rossi
crossi@vancourier.com
CHORUS OF APPROVAL Students from Vancouver, Coquitlam and Burnaby performed at Robson Square Monday as part of Music Monday. Conducted by Vancouver Symphony Orchestra maestro Bramwell Tovey, the annual event emphasizes the importance of music education in B.C. schools. PHOTO JENNIFER GAUTHIER
VPD won’t appeal trans ruling Cops to update transgender policy, training Mike Howell
mhowell@vancourier.com
The Vancouver Police Department will not appeal a B.C. Human Rights Tribunal decision in March that ruled officers discriminated against a transgender woman for using male pronouns to describe her in a police report and failed to provide her with proper post-surgery care while in custody. Instead, the department said in a report going before the Vancouver Police
Board Wednesday that it will use the case involving Angela Dawson as an opportunity to improve its relationship and understanding of transgender persons. In taking this approach, however, the department noted officers “were acting in good faith and were not being malicious” in the incidents involving Dawson, who underwent sex re-assignment surgery in 2010 and is often seen around the city on rollerblades directing traffic. “The failure to respect Ms. Dawson’s gender identity was deemed to be discriminatory by the tribunal,” the report said. “The cause of this was attributed to a lack of training of police members and a lack of clear VPD policy as it relates to
transgender identities.” The report outlines four recommendations to assist police in its commitment to improve relations with transgender persons, including: • Direct the department’s diversity and aboriginal policing section to “engage and partner with the transgender community for improving awareness.” • Update “transgender awareness training” to all officers, including jail guards and community safety personnel. • Have the department’s planning and research unit develop policy regarding transgender identification and the recording of a person’s gender in documents. Continued on page 5
No changes were made to the Vancouver School Board’s revised budget that was adopted as its provisional budget last night. That means under the adult education program, self-paced programs will be reduced, the Hastings and Downtown Eastside education centres will be closed, the Collingwood and South Hill youth programs will be discontinued and literacy outreach programs that run at elementary schools will end to save the board $526,211 next year and $1.59 million thereafter. Proposed reductions to the adult education program drew the greatest outcry from the community during budget consultations. The VSB needed to make cuts to address an $8.52 million funding shortfall, as identified in its preliminary budget. Reductions and changes to the band and strings program for elementary school students are to be made and the district will continue to sell and lease back equipment and technology, decrease spending on furniture and equipment below average spending per year and reduce maintenance, as additional money-saving measures. Trustee Patti Bacchus and her Vision Vancouver colleagues wanted the VSB to work to attract 75 international education students instead of the proposed 50 to bring more money into the district for the adult education program. Bacchus said the cost of closing the Downtown Eastside Education Centre next year would be $360,000 because the board would have to pay longtime teachers so much severance, and that amount is greater than the ongoing savings connected to closing the centre, which are projected to be $294,000 per year. Bacchus also wanted increased revenue from international education used to keep two literacy outreach programs that are offered for a registration fee of $20 at elementary schools open, and to increase staffing at remaining adult education sites with any remaining money. Continued on page 4
DYSLEXIA DIDN’T STOP ALBERT. We don’t let dyslexia or language-related learning disabilities affect our students, either. They learn differently, and we offer them an education in a setting where they can thrive. See for yourself at the Fraser Academy Open House: Thursday, May 14, 9:30-11:15am. For more info or to RSVP, visit www.fraseracademy.ca or call 604 736 5575. © Estate of Yousuf Karsh