I want to thank you in advance for giving some time to reading this letter. I appreciate it very much, at this busy time for you all.
I wanted to start by acknowledging the way I said “Hello Colleagues.” Most, if not all of you, have come through your own various classroom experiences to get to where you are today. Through the 20 plus years I have worked with, actively listened to and agreed with, challenged opinions from, shared social times with and become exceptionally good friends with a lot of you, now is the time the Sooke teachers, your colleagues, need your vocal and written support. The coffee and doughnuts are appreciated. Your voice is essential now.
Not only that but now is the time that you put pressure on your principal and vice principals colleagues around the province, in their districts, and at your executive level to stand up against Premier Clark, Mr. Fassbender and the BC Liberals.
The attack is on all of us. The attack is coming from this government in the way they are decimating quality education in our schools. They have cut and cut, down to the bone. Now the Government wants the bone back to scrape out all the marrow. We cannot afford to lose.
At Monday’s rally at the Legislature, it was sad to hear but encouraging to see teachers, parents, local presidents and trustees from the three large districts, the Education Critic and the Opposition Leader all speaking on the history of this gutting of education in the districts neighbouring Sooke and on the islands. We heard these people talk of how all the groups were effected.
Sadly, there was no representation from the principals and vice principals on that stage. It matters not to me whether I didn’t see you on the lawn or whether you asked or not to speak. What matters now is your voice. I encourage all of you to contact your colleagues around the district and around the province. I encourage all of you to contact the Premier, Mr. Fassbender, BCPSEA, your MLA, the newspapers in our community, our superintendents, our trustees. I encourage all of you to stand up, taller than ever before, for students in our schools.
Now more than ever.
Ed Berlando
Teacher
Sooke