Critics deride potential school closures during Games
METRO VANCOUVER
By: KRISTEN THOMPSON
September 29, 2008

Kids in Vancouver might be getting an early spring break if the School Board opts to follow Squamish and West Vancouver’s lead and close schools during the 2010 Games.

Ken Denike, a school board trustee and liaison for the 2010 Games, said yesterday the expected transportation crunch is at the heart of the debate.

“If it looks like it’s going to be too difficult to get teachers to school, that would be the primary (consideration),” Denike said.

He said daycare could be an issue for families and a decision won’t be made without public input.

Sara Shaw, with the School Age Child Care Association of B.C., said she can’t see how daycares could accommodate so many children for those two weeks.

“There’s already a shortage of before- and after-school spaces for children,” she said. “It would be really stressful for families.”

Kirsten Gunderson, 37, said if schools close she’ll have to send her son, who’ll be seven, to his grandmother in Victoria. “At least we have (that) choice,” she said. “The whole city can’t shut down for two weeks because of the Olympics,” Gunderson added. “There’ll be (commuting) delays, but you can’t stop life.”

Glen Hansman, president of the Vancouver Elementary School Teacher’s Association, said elementary teachers want schools kept open.

“It is not realistic … to expect families to scramble to find childcare.” He added that accommodating the influx of visitors should be up to the Vancouver Organizing Committee and the City.