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Haig-Brown, Roderick L(angmere)
Roderick L(angmere) Haig-Brown 1908–1976
British-born Canadian author of fiction and nonfiction for young adults and adults.
Like his father, who published a book on wildlife and fishing in 1913, Haig-Brown loved nature. It was a subject he knew thoroughly from his studies and experiences living and working in wilderness areas. At the age of seventeen, Haig-Brown emigrated from England to the Pacific Northwest, where he worked as a professional hunter, logger, trapper, and guide. In 1934 he settled at Campbell River, British Columbia and divided his time between hunting, fishing, observation of the land and its animal life, and writing. The nearly twenty-five works of fiction and nonfiction that Haig-Brown has written reflect his appreciation of the beauty of his adopted country. His nonfiction, particularly those works on angling, rivers, and fish, are considered his greatest achievements.
As a writer, Haig-Brown sought to share some of the great pleasures he had experienced in years of fishing, hunting, and observing wildlife. He was unquestionably successful; his A River Never Sleeps and Return to the River are classics of naturalist literature, unusual in their poetic descriptions. Like many of his other books, these describe nature with drama and authenticity and recreate the feelings and thoughts evoked by Haig-Brown's close contact with its beauty. While full of practical instruction and information for outdoorsmen, Haig-Brown's nonfiction is often read for its literate and inspired accounts of the calm and comfort to be found in nature.
Most of Haig-Brown's fictional heroes reflect his love and respect for the land. Themes of friendship, courage, trust, growth, integrity, and strength are explored against a wilderness setting. Timber, an acclaimed adult novel, is the story of the friendship of two young men who face great physical danger each day in their work as loggers. Considered sensitive and realistic, it is also a portrait of men reacting to the elemental beauties and dangers of their environment in the face of challenge and change. Haig-Brown's popular young adult novels Starbuck Valley Winter and Saltwater Summer pursue similar themes.
Haig-Brown sought to challenge his readers as well as to entertain them. His excellent critical reception is an indication that he was successful on both counts. He is acclaimed for the poetic dimension to naturalist writing and his well-constructed prose. (See also Contemporary Authors, Vols. 5-8, rev. ed.; obituary, Vols. 69-72, and Something About the Author, Vol. 12.)
The Times Literary Supplement
[Pool and Rapid: The Story of a River] is a nature-story of a decidedly original kind. By making a British Columbian river the central object of his narrative, Mr. Haig-Brown has ingeniously avoided one of the principal difficulties with which authors of this class of work have to contend. A story written round the life of an animal is almost compelled to falsify Nature to some extent by endowing the creature with a too human mentality. Personality conferred upon an inanimate object, on the other hand, is at once recognized as a harmless literary convention, which leaves the author free to adhere strictly to the truth in dealing with the living accessories to his picture. The story of the Tashish river begins, quite frankly, with a fascinating piece of Indian mythology to account for its creation, and the stream is everywhere treated as a human soul with a markedly feminine temperament…. This treatment, applied to an animal, would amount to an intolerable piece of "nature-faking," but here it is unobjectionable, since it cannot mislead. The life in the water and beside it, of the salmon, the bears, the beavers, the deers and the birds is left to be described with all the accuracy of a keen observer who knows what he is talking about and is under no temptation to distort his facts. Much of the charm of the book is due to such descriptions, though a large element of human interest is also contributed, through the introduction of the first settler...
(The entire section is 459 words.)
The Times Literary Supplement
In his preface to Panther … Mr. Haig-Brown anticipates a possible criticism: "this story of a panther is too bloody, there is too much killing and cruelty in it." He answers that a panther is not "cruel": it kills for food or from sexual jealousy, because so to kill is the law of its being. And Mr. Haig-Brown's Ki-Yu is entirely a panther, not at all a four-legged philosopher. A more reasonable criticism is that the life story of an animal, when the author sternly resists the temptation to make the animal think and speak in human terms, is scarcely sufficient to fill a book. And a story written quite objectively can never be so enthralling as one which has in it a strong subjective element.
Perhaps, from the story-teller's point of view, it would have been wiser to establish a more definite human background. But the book undoubtedly has its fascination: it is a genuine piece of nature study based on long and accurate observation of the Vancouver Island panther (or cougar) and of its habits….
Story-telling apart, Mr. Haig-Brown gives his readers much curious and interesting information about panthers' ways.
"Shorter Notices: 'Panther'," in The Times Literary Supplement (© Times Newspapers Ltd. (London) 1934; reproduced from The Times Literary Supplement by permission), No. 1709, November 15, 1934, p. 794.
Ellen Lewis Buell
["Ki-Yu: A Story of Panthers," published in Britain as "Panther,"] is a superbly written biography …; but it is also a story of the wild life of the northern forests told with the veracity of a man who has known this life for a long time; and who can translate the majesty as well as the cruelty of the eternal struggle for existence among animals into vivid, swinging prose….
It is [the] long-drawn-out duel between man and beast which is the backbone of the narrative, and it is a fitting conclusion that neither wins….
The conviction of the story is augumented by the author's objective treatment of his subject. With the woodsman's realism he wastes little space in conjecture on animal thought, but relies on his knowledge of habit and instinct to portray the panthers hunting, killing, playing or roaming in that apparently aimless wandering which has such sound instinct to guide it. The book is, unfortunately, too long. It would have been more effective in condensed form, as much of the detail is repetitious, adding little to the original concept of the tale, so that the attention slackens at intervals. Nevertheless, it is, on the whole, a fine and vigorous story, which should appeal equally to sportsmen and older young people.
Ellen Lewis Buell, "The New Books for Boys and Girls: 'Ki-Yu: A Story of Panthers'," in The New York Times Book Review (© 1935 by The New York Times Company; reprinted by permission), February 24, 1935, p. 10.
J. R. de la TORRE BUENO, JR.
There have been men before now who wrote of the Pacific salmon, especially of the chinooks and their amazing cycle of life…. R. L. Haig-Brown tells it again in "Return to the River"; and to this reviewer's knowledge not one of his predecessors has brought to the telling such a knowledge of the subject, so broad a vision, so fine a feeling for the mountains and waters of the Pacific Northwest, or prose of such magnificent simplicity and beauty…. [His] is a book practically perfect. If Henry Williamson's English counterpart, "Salar the Salmon," found its readers by thousands, Mr. Haig-Brown's audience should be counted by tens of thousands. No sportsman, no nature lover, no conservationist, no person sensitive to the grandeur and sweep of the process of living, can read this book without being profoundly moved.
It is, quite simply, the story of the life of one particular fish, a female chinook, whom the author identifies by naming her Spring….
An ordinary enough story, to be sure….
Yet, as Mr. Haig-Brown tells it, Spring's story is neither simple nor ordinary. There is not a single aspect of the fish's life with which he does not deal thoroughly, giving you all the details of how Spring feeds and grows and moves at each stage of her development, of the dangers she meets and how she is saved from them through a combination of luck and hair-trigger instinct; giving you a fine picture of the work...
(The entire section is 422 words.)
Raymond R. Camp
There is gallantry in sacrifice for an ideal. When such sacrifice is made by a reasoning human we term it heroism, but when performed by an unreasoning fish we pass it off lightly under the heading of instinct.
No one who reads Roderick L. Haig-Brown's "Return to the River" will deny the gallantry of the Chinook salmon….
The book is much more than the mere tale of a salmon, for Mr. Haig-Brown has not neglected the dramatic values or the human equation. The contents are as far removed from scientific text as the Chinook is from the bullhead. It is enhanced by the author's ability to bring out what might well be termed the romance of the commonplace.
So pleasantly...
(The entire section is 281 words.)
Joseph Henry Jackson
To say that ["Timber"] is never dull is the sheerest understatement. "Timber" is as exciting as a shrewdly carpentered play. But it is much more, too. Here, set in a natural frame of overwhelming beauty, is a tale of natural men and how they react to natural stresses and strains. Mr. Haig-Brown doesn't go all Rousseau about what he is doing, no. He simply takes pains to discover the thoughts and emotions, the mechanics, so to put it, of the direct, simple man who works not merely with his hands but with all of himself, including his imagination. Having found out something of what makes such men tick, he lets them work out their own stories in a novel in which the physical setting of the forests is important to the...
(The entire section is 447 words.)
Margaret Wallace
In part "Timber" is the simple, virile, roughly tender story of the friendship between … two young loggers—a friendship which survives, though narrowly, the strain of their attraction to the same girl … There is something not much short of Homeric in this chronicle of their hard and dangerous and zestful lives.
But beyond this, "Timber" will be remembered as a remarkable study of the logging industry, set down in full and loving detail as only a logger could have done it. One observes in this connection—and not by any means for the first time—how great an advantage it is to a novelist to know what he is talking about, and to know it from honest first-hand experience….
(The entire section is 250 words.)
J. R. de la TORRE BUENO, JR.
["A River Never Sleeps" is] a work of such excellence, such penetration and sureness and knowledge coupled with wisdom, that it stands very near the head of its class. Prediction may be unsafe, but it seems to me we are here dealing with a true classic, a book which will be read, and pondered over, and read again by generations of anglers to come, and always with appreciation and pleasure.
Like many books of substance, "A River Never Sleeps" does not fit easily into any clearly defined category. It is not a book of practical instruction, though it contains much fishing lore. It is not a series of entertaining and exciting fishing stories, though many of the incidents Mr. Haig-Brown treats have these...
(The entire section is 317 words.)
Ed Zern
There is something in angling which provokes a host of its partisans and practitioners to write about it. Most of them write very badly indeed, with enthusiasm running lengths ahead of talent. Only rarely does marked literary skill combine with sound knowledge and rich experience to produce a really good angling book, but Roderick Haig-Brown's "A River Never Sleeps" is just that.
The author writes for his fellow-fishermen, and assumes the reader's sympathy for his piscatory approach to rivers, but there is much in this book to captivate those whose interest in nature is more sedentary. The spectacle of salmon migration, for example, loses none of its eternal and elemental excitement when seen through...
(The entire section is 367 words.)
J. R. T. Bueno, Jr.
["The Western Angler: An Account of Pacific Salmon and Western Trout in British Columbia"] is one of the few authentic classics of North American angling literature….
Make no mistake, this is an outstanding book, worth the careful reading and prayerful consideration of every sportsman and conservationist—yes, and legislator too….
Those chapters which deal with fishing techniques and methods are first-rate of their kind—succinct, informed, thoughtful and full of suggestion for the prospective angler in western waters, or indeed anywhere else. Other chapters cover the lives of these Northwestern fishes—their spawning, growth, feeding habits, and complex migratory patterns....
(The entire section is 230 words.)
Ann Schakne
Mr. Haig-Brown has written a moving and exciting novel about the majestic vastness of the Pacific Northwest and a man whose spirit was wholly given to it….
["On the Highest Hill"] is written with resilience and strength. Mr. Haig-Brown knows and loves the mountains of Canada about which he writes and the way of a man among them, whose only need and only peace lie in their desert vastness. He details without emphasis, but with force, their wild, intrinsic beauty and the taxing skills required to cope with them. Colin is the contemporary Canadian equivalent of the mountain men whom A. B. Guthrie described so well in "The Big Sky." Like Boone Caudill he comprehends no satisfaction except in nature,...
(The entire section is 239 words.)
Bradford Smith
Colin Ensley [in On the Highest Hill] grew up in Canada's western lumbering country, hated conflict of any kind, was shy, withdrawn, and preferred the solitude of the mountains and forests to being with people. His teacher, young Mildred Hanson, thought him destined for greatness…. But all her encouragements and all Colin's travels including a trip to Europe made possible by the war failed to develop the greatness she had sensed. Colin remains shy and withdrawn, and when his beloved solitudes are destroyed by logging, he is destroyed too.
A few of the book's other folk—particularly Colin's father—come clearly into focus, but not enough to put springiness into a tale that Colin's own...
(The entire section is 483 words.)
Haydn Pearson
By the time he has turned a dozen pages in this very pleasant and informative book ["Fisherman's Spring"], the reader appreciates that Roderick Haig-Brown is much more than an expert fisherman. This is a book for everyone who delights in the out-of-doors. If one happens to enjoy fishing, so much the better….
"Fisherman's Spring" is rich in trout lore and fishing secrets. It is the distilled wisdom of a man who has learned to extract the essence of outdoor experiences. Mr. Haig-Brown knows the secrets of fishing and gladly shares them. Some of the chapters are minor classics: Fishermen and Forestry, Recognizing Birds, A Boy and A Fish Pole, Northward Geese and Family Sortie among others…....
(The entire section is 188 words.)
J. R. de la TORRE BUENO
Thirty-three individual pieces make up ["Fisherman's Spring"], and every one of them is worth the full attention of any angler, conservationist, nature-lover, or appreciator of supple, clean writing. We find here what we have come to expect of Mr. Haig-Brown—great knowledge of angling, and of fishes; a common-sense approach to the "mysteries" of the sport; wise opinions modestly held; a deep realization of the importance of fishing to the fisherman himself, and to the whole people; and a sheaf of good stories out of his own broad experience, all built around fishing, but not all concerned with fish.
There are excellent pieces on wading, and on handling boats in fast water—how-to-do-it articles,...
(The entire section is 266 words.)
Virginia Kirkus' Bookshop Service
An invitation to fish the lakes and rivers of Chile and Argentina was a dream any fisherman would seize, and [in Fisherman's Winter] Haig-Brown converts the opportunity into a record that combines enchanting travel reading with a book on fishing that even a non-fisherman can enjoy. One gets a feel of the country and the people, particularly Chile…. [The] book is focussed on the fishing, and the factual data—which those who would follow in his footsteps need to know—is painlessly introduced along with personal experience…. While he is tactful in expressing his preference, one senses that Argentina, while it provided some superb fishing experiences, did not capture his heart as did Chile. An appendix...
(The entire section is 157 words.)
Haydn S. Pearson
["Fisherman's Winter"] is the account of a winter's fishing in Chile and Argentina and so far as I know there is no book like it. I recommend "Fisherman's Winter" without reservation to fishermen and to all readers who are interested in our neighbor countries to the south. The author does much more than describe fishing spots, equipment, hotels and travel conditions. He discusses the people, living conditions and the countryside. He evaluates social, cultural and economic conditions honestly and kindly….
Mr. Haig-Brown is a true fisherman. He takes his big fish with commendable modesty and he is patiently philosophical when the big one gets away. He knows that fishing per se is just one part of the...
(The entire section is 156 words.)
Bill Katz
["Fisherman's Summer"] is the finest book of its kind to be published in many years. Fishermen, particularly devotees of the fly rod, recognize Haig-Brown as a 20th-century [Izaak] Walton—but this work proves he is more than a great authority on angling. His rich talk, quiet humor, and deep contentment, augmented by a fine literary style, deserve wider appreciation. The general reader will discover here one of the best analyses of how industry, tourism and dams change natural beauty; a chapter on Northwest explorers (many starved for lack of fishing knowledge) and much Indian lore. Practical tips on flies, rods and line for summer steelhead, cutthroats and salmon will drive any fisherman to the nearest stream. (pp....
(The entire section is 148 words.)
Haydn S. Pearson
We land-locked lubbers should be forgiven our envious twinges when we read Roderick Haig-Brown's most recent book on fishing. As a nature writer, he is authentic; as a fisherman, he rates among the world's most capable. As a writer, his prose is lean, descriptive and always interesting. "Fisherman's Summer" will become a minor classic in its special field.
Best of all, from an ordinary fisherman's viewpoint, Roderick Haig-Brown has the faculty of talking man to man. He knows why fishing appeals to so many…. He has the sense of humor that a fisherman needs, for, indeed, a fisherman without it is a pitiful object….
There is both a main course and dessert in "Fisherman's Summer."...
(The entire section is 286 words.)
The Junior Bookshelf
[Captain of the Discovery is] a Canadian book [about] Captain George Vancouver, who discovered the coast which bears his name. It seems hard to say that this makes rather dull reading. It is certainly not the matter that is at fault, but there is some lack of spark in the telling. It may be because we never get any real picture of Vancouver himself. All the first chapters are about Captain Cook, with whom Vancouver sailed, and about Cook's voyages and tragic end. We really do not learn anything about Vancouver, who sailed as an Officer Cadet at the age of fifteen, and so far as he is concerned we are not particularly interested when he finally gets command of the "Discovery." This should be a great story and...
(The entire section is 181 words.)
The Junior Bookshelf
There is a wider tendency nowadays to take the romance out of more than one field of old-fashioned adventure. [In The Whale People] the author takes the old idea of fun and games among the Red Indians and transforms tradition into reality without gilding the pill in any way. Life for the Indian Peoples of the Northern Pacific coast appears as a hard business in which most of the pleasure comes from winning a living, an existence even, from the nature around them. The chief delight and ambition of Atlin, chief elect of the Hotsath tribe, is the killing, and capture of whales, and the way to success is hard and wearisome, spiritually as well as physically. One never feels really warm while reading this new book...
(The entire section is 234 words.)
Ruth Osler
In the beginning of Silver, his biography of an Atlantic salmon, Roderick Haig-Brown says of the Good Fisherman, "He loved salmon as some men love their wives or their books, and his whole heart was bound up in the delight of gaining knowledge of them." He might as well have been speaking of his own love of nature and the preoccupation with wild life that he has built into a literature on fishing and fishermen, life in the wilderness and wild animals. His books show by inference and direct telling the results of a long, deliberate and intelligent observation of the natural world and a deep respect for its laws and customs. Nor is this just a matter of contemplative enjoyment. He finds in the ways of wild life...
(The entire section is 964 words.)
Callie Israel
Appearing as it did when the Canadian adventure story for boys was suffering birth-pangs [Saltwater Summer] was greeted enthusiastically by children and librarians….
A re-reading brought a mixed reaction. The author's familiarity with the locale and his knowledge of fishing and fishermen are evident. The action is fast-paced and dramatic. However, the boys seem somewhat naive by to-day's standards. The use of such interjections as "gee" and "heck" somewhat dates the book. Some of the characters seem stereotyped and the ending is predictable. Teen-agers used to books that "tell it like it is" may find this too unreal.
Callie Israel, "'Saltwater...
(The entire section is 113 words.)
Adele M. Fasick
Although [Captain of the Discovery: The Story of Captain George Vancouver] is a competent, straightforward biography which does not require significant revision, it is unfortunate that a few inexcusably patronising remarks about native peoples were not eliminated [in the revised edition]. To write as Haig-Brown does …, "Nearly all the natives they dealt with were natural—and highly skilful—thieves until checked," is to accept 18th century European standards without making allowance for cultural differences. And to say that a group of Indians "behaved well" because they were peaceful and traded willingly … is to imply that Indian behaviour can be judged by its convenience for Europeans.
(The entire section is 189 words.)
Sheila Egoff
One of the few examples in the series of the wholly unembellished biography is Roderick L. Haig-Brown's Captain of the Discovery: The Story of Captain George Vancouver (1956). Vancouver's voyages took him into the huts of the Hawaiian Islanders, the lodges of the West Coast Indians, and the galleys of Spanish men-of-war, and Haig-Brown takes full advantage of his opportunities for satisfying the child's natural interest in exotic settings, but never at the cost of distorting his subject. Vancouver was no swashbuckling explorer but a disciplined, skilled, conscientious navigator. Haig-Brown dares to show him as one, confident that solid achievement, however unspectacular in the accomplishment, is a theme that...
(The entire section is 1027 words.)
W. J. Keith
Although I would not wish to imply that Haig-Brown is anything but Canadian in his mature writings, it is important to lay some emphasis on his connections with the essentially English rural tradition….
One gets the impression when reading through Haig-Brown's work that he has been particularly conscious of a responsibility to justify his change of allegiance by a thorough mastery of all the historical, zoological and sociological aspects of the province in which he lives. (p. 9)
The image of exploration and discovery may be seen as a unifying thread that links his numerous writings. In his historical books for schoolchildren—Captain of the Discovery (1956), The...
(The entire section is 1555 words.)
Mary Kirton
It is difficult to imagine how anyone could possibly make the story of an Atlantic salmon as exciting and dramatic as the adventures of the great white shark so much in the news these days. Yet Roderick Haig-Brown in his [Silver: The Life of an Atlantic Salmon] does just that…. All the facts are presented with commendable accuracy and specificity….
Haig-Brown has obviously observed the salmon in great detail, but Silver is far from a mere catalogue of facts. Rather, it is an intensely captivating drama of life and survival, brought alive by the author's own delight and interest in the salmon's saga. No text on the subject could offer such delightful vignettes as the month old fry...
(The entire section is 336 words.)
Alec Lucas
[There] is no question that Haig-Brown aimed to make his animal biographies "authentic," to use his own term. He wished to be true to the facts and spirit of the natural world and to instill some appreciation of it in his readers. In this aim, his adult and children's books are one. He wanted "all people to see and understand more because there is both pleasure and fulfillment in seeing and understanding lives about them, whether they are the lives of trees and plants, or lives of animals or lives of fish." In such seeing and understanding lay, he believed, "the only hope of preserving the natural world." These aims motivated all Haig-Brown's animal stories, but Silver and Return to the River much more...
(The entire section is 4378 words.)
Janet Arnett
[Roderick Haig-Brown left] a considerable quantity of unpublished short fiction and essays. Using this material, his daughter Valerie has planned a three-volume compilation, of which Woods and River Tales is the first….
His empathy with the individualistic people who struggled in [the rugged environment of British Columbia] and his well-honed observational skills make these stories memorable.
Woods and River Tales contains 19 stories, many of them thought to be based on true experiences. All but four are published here for the first time.
The subjects Haig-Brown picked for his tales are typically wild and woolly west themes…. But far from being...
(The entire section is 185 words.)


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Dorothy M. Anderson
ST. JAMES – Services for Dorothy M. Anderson, 92, of St. James, formerly of rural Ormsby, will be 11 a.m. Saturday at Waverly Lutheran Church, rural Trimont. Burial will be in the Waverly Lutheran Cemetery.
Anderson died Thursday, March 14, 2013, at Good Samaritan Society-Pleasantview in St. James. Visitation will be 5-7 p.m. Friday at Kramer Family Funeral Home, Trimont, and one hour prior to services Saturday at the church.
Dorothy Marie Sodeman was born Jan. 14, 1921, to Fred and Amanda (Mumme) Sodeman in South Branch Township, Watonwan County, Minn. She was baptized and confirmed at St. John's Lutheran Church in South Branch, where she also attended parochial school until the ninth grade. She then worked for physicians as their housekeeper in Mankato and later Sioux City. Dorothy was united in marriage to Clair Anderson on Sept. 27, 1941, at St. John's Lutheran Church in South Branch. During their marriage, they farmed in rural Ormsby until their retirement and continued to live there doing yard work and gardening. As a couple, they enjoyed wintering in Mesa, Ariz., for 25 years, fishing in Minnesota and Canada, doing square and ballroom dancing anywhere, traveling in the U.S. and abroad, especially to Norway, and playing golf at Fox Lake County Club. They were married 57 years. Dorothy was active in Waverly Lutheran Church in Bible studies, circles and quilting projects. She was also active in garden club and extension groups. She enjoyed sewing, knitting and was a wonderful cook for family and friends. She loved attending all events in which her grandchildren participated. She will be remembered for her determination, her lovely flowers and her sharp insight to solve problems. In 2008, she moved to Pleasantview Good Samaritan Home in St. James where she continued to play cards and do the crossword puzzles until her death.
She is survived by her sons, Douglas (Sibyl) Anderson of St. James, Minn., and Keith Anderson of Brittan, S.D.; daughter, Julie Bro of Des Moines, Iowa; eight grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; four great great-grandchildren; sisters-in-law, Bernice Anderson of St. James, Minn., and Thelma Wassman of Trimont, Minn.; nieces and nephews and other relatives.
Dorothy was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Clair Anderson; infant daughter, Lori Jean; sister, Lillian Swanson; brother, Norman Sodeman; brothers-in-law, Orville Swanson, Sandford Anderson, Marion Gaalswyk and Ervin Wassman; sisters-in-law, Merle Gaalswyk, Corrine Swanson and Dorothy Sodeman; daughter-in-law, Carolann Anderson and other relatives.
Dorothy's family suggests memorial contributions be sent to Good Samaritan Society-Pleasantview in St. James or Waverly Lutheran Church in rural Trimont.

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Catalog • 2012-2013
Theater and Speech Courses
THS 100 Experiencing Theatre - 3 credits
A hands-on course that examines the roles of the actor, director, designer and playwright in the collaborative process of theatre production. Students explore the various skills, talents and perspectives required to stage a play. Examination of specific times in theatrical history are discussed to further the student's contextual understanding of Theatre. The course culminates in a final production of several one act plays with each student assigned a specific role as well as trips to see Theatre locally and in New York.
THS 105 Public Speaking - 3 credits
The handling of various speaking situations through practical speech preparation, from interviews and group discussions to formal platform speaking, is covered. Additional emphasis is placed on voice and diction.
THS 106 Forensic Speech Team - 1 credit
Participation in forensics competition including public speaking and oral interpretation events. Students work with instructors and fellow team members to develop speech and oral interpretation skills. Students meet weekly and train for regional competitions throughout the semester. Students are expected to prepare for and compete in at least two tournaments per term.
THS 109 Prose and Poetry: Oral Interpretation - 3 credits
Active participation is required in reading works of literature, prose and poetry aloud in class. Students develop their ability to share the rhythm and natural music of selected pieces. This course is an excellent confidence-builder for people who must speak to large groups or for actors working on vocal control and expression.
THS 120 Theatre as Commentary- 3 credits
This course is designed to begin an investigation of theatre as a craft, with specific focus given to critical analysis of dramatic text. In addition to covering basic theatre terminology and essential theories of theatre, the course will investigate major theatrical historical figures and theories, in an attempt to place contemporary theatre in its proper context – in its influence of society, as well as its reflection of society.
THS 150 Stagecraft - 3 credits
Stagecraft is a course designed to introduce students to the materials and techniques used in the backstage production of a play. It is a lab oriented course which explores production areas such as scenery and costume construction, lighting and sound.
THS 201 Acting I - 3 credits
A basic acting course that uses games, improvisations as well as individual and group exercises to introduce the student to the acting process. In a supportive and non-competitive environment, the student explores relationships to character and process and examines the specific elements needed to create a stage life. Scene and monologue work is assigned and is sequential in nature, leading the student to and through a deeper level of work.
THS 202 Acting II - 3 credits
Continues the student's investigation in exercise and scene work. It is progressive. The student moves into more advanced exercise and scene work. The theatrical literature that is explored include Ibsen, Shaw, O'Neill, Chekov, Williams and others as the student's skill and talent are defined and matured.
Prerequisite: THS 201. May be repeated.
THS 206 Computer Graphics and Design - 3 credits
The use of graphics and/or computer-aided design software for drawing and design in a wide variety of application areas. The course will cover fundamental commands, graphics primitives, editing, enhancing drawings, output, and dimensioning.
THS 227 Advanced Public Speaking - 3 credits
Individual speaking styles are developed through major
oral presentations. Students examine rhetorical theory and evaluate historical and contemporary speeches.
Prerequisite: THS 105.
THS 231 History of Theatre: Ancients to 17th Century - 3 credits
A survey of dramatic literature and historical influences. Course content includes extensive play-reading and analyses of periods and style.
No pre-requisite.
THS 232 History of Theatre: 18th Century - 1950 - 3 credits
A survey of dramatic literature and historical influences. Course content includes extensive play reading and analysis of periods and style.
No pre-requisite.
THS 240 Design for the Stage - 3 credits
The various areas of theatrical design (set design, costuming, and lighting design are topics offered in a studio/lecture format.
No prerequisite. May be repeated under a different topic.
THS 250 Production - 1 credit
One credit per show toward graduation may be earned by dancing, acting, designing, choreographing or stage-managing for faculty-directed theatre productions. This course may be repeated.
THS 251 Practicum - 1 credit
One credit per production toward graduation may be earned by completing practical application projects relevant to faculty-directed or choreographed productions in the area of sets, lights or costumes. Requirements include a minimum of 40 hours of supervised activity in a specific theatre shop, backstage or on a technical production crew or relevant to the production of a dance event. Permission of the instructor is required. This course may be repeated.
THS 260 Special Topics in Theatre - 3 credits
THS 270 History of Fashion - 3 credits
A survey of the history of fashion from the ancients to the 21st Century.
THS 280 Directing I - 3 credits
A beginning course that introduces the student to the role and responsibilities of the director in theatrical collaboration. Exploration of artistic vision, working with actors, play analysis, stage movement, style and interpretive choices are all examined in modern and contemporary scenes. The focus is on establishing individual artistic choices and vision.
Prerequisites: THS 120 or THS 100
THS 302 Acting and Directing Workshop - 3 credits
Advanced projects in directing.
Prerequisite: THS 280 and permission of instructor.
THS 303 Acting Methods - 3 credits
An advanced acting seminar that individualizes the student's progress. Specific problem areas, such as voice, language, audition techniques, style, as well as group issues, such as resumes, stage make-up, audition material and interviews are addressed and examined.
Prerequisites: THS 201-202.
THS 332 Playwriting 3 credits
Like all writing, playwriting is a process. In this introductory course students will explore their dramatic voice produce written dialogue that expresses stories and themes of personal interest to them. Understanding of playwriting is explored through close reading of numerous contemporary plays, in class reading and analysis as well as through short writing assignments culminating with each student writing the own one act play.
Prerequisite: Any THS course.
THS 335 Creative Drama in Education - 3 credits
The course is designed to demonstrate through theory and experimental projects the uses and implementation of creative drama in any elementary or secondary school curriculum. Practical application to unit planning is stressed.
Prerequisites: THS 100 and 120 or declared education major.
THS 340 Design Tutorial - 1-3 credits
Advanced study in specific design areas.
Prerequisite: Junior standing, THS 240, and permission of instructor.
THS 390 Independent Study - 1-3 credits
Prerequisites: for declared theatre majors; Junior status required.


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Forest Owners Assn. Launches New Campaign
CASSADAGA – The New York Forest Owners Association is celebrating its 50th anniversary by launching the "Restore New York Woodlands" campaign.
The RNYW campaign includes many initiatives to address the threats to future forests.
The Allegheny Foothills Chapter of the New York Forest Owners Association is inviting the public to join them for a walk in a local woodlot. The walk will be led by Master Forest Owner Volunteers affiliated with Cornell Cooperative Extension and will include information on tree identification, wetlands, wildflowers, wildlife and other related topics. The important contributions of forests to air and water quality will be discussed, as well as their impact on the state's economy. Participants will also hear about the many threats facing the future forest, including invasive plants and insects, climate change, destruction of the young forest by excessive deer populations in some areas, and the degradation that can result from unsustainable harvesting practices.
The Allegheny Foothills Chapter woodswalk will be held May 18 from 9 a.m. to noon at Bill Dorman's property, accessed from 8283 Shumla Road, Cassadaga. Coffee and doughnuts will be provided beginning at 8:30 a.m.. Participants are invited to bring a lunch. Drinks will be provided. Families are encouraged to attend; please provide adult supervision for your children.
Attendance is free, but those attending should call Dorman at 640-4305 so he can plan for parking, guides and beverages.


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Why They Stay
America doesn't have a problem finding math and science teachers. It has a problem keeping them. Of the 25,000 math and science teachers who leave the profession each year, only 7,000 of them actually retire. Find out why they leave, and why CGU's Teacher Education graduates stay.
In the United States, it is widely understood—among researchers and the general public—that there are not enough quality math and science teachers. However, there is a common misunderstanding about why this shortage exists. It is not because we aren't producing enough of them. The problem is, of the 25,000 math and science teachers leaving the profession every year, only 7,000 of them are actually retiring. Over two-thirds leave to pursue new careers. By some estimates, as many as half of new teachers in the United States quit within their first five years; this percentage has remained relatively steady for decades.
"In California, the numbers might be even worse," said Lisa Loop, director of operations for Claremont Graduate University's Teacher Education program. "By some accounts, 50 percent of new teachers here quit within their first three years."
With this shortage of qualified math and science teachers, many schools have no choice but to bring unqualified teachers into the classroom. A 2011 survey by the National Center for Educational Statistics found that approximately 30 percent of chemistry and physics teachers did not major in those fields in college and had not earned a certificate to teach those subjects.
Of course, this shortage affects educational outcomes for students, especially those who attend poor, urban schools. That is why, in 2005, CGU's Teacher Education received a $460,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Robert Noyce Scholarship Program to recruit and train STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) students from the Claremont Colleges and surrounding universities. The money was used to offer these students scholarships to become NSF Teaching Fellows: math and science teachers who would agree to work in Southern California's urban school districts (where these teachers are needed most) for at least two years.
Teacher Education was picked because of the stellar history of retention in their graduates:
approximately 90 percent are still teaching after five years. And five years after the initial NSF grant, 41 of the 43 fellows are still teaching today.
So, why do Teacher Education graduates stay in the classroom when so many of their peers quit? That's tough to answer. Talking to the graduates themselves, it is much easier to find out why so many teachers leave. For starters, the job never seems to end.
"I worked at Target while I was doing my bachelor's degree," said Tristan Hann, who went to Pitzer College and is in his third year teaching math at a high school in San Bernardino. "At that job, you clock in and you clock out. You don't bring your work home with you. You don't go home thinking, Did I stock that item in the wrong place? With teaching, once I get home from work I have to start planning. It takes up so much of my time, thinking of ways to teach the material that captivates the interest of my students. Especially since I teach math, which is usually the most hated subject there is."
Maria Corona, an NSF Teaching Fellow who now teaches math at a high school in Covina,
confirms the unpopularity of the subject. On the first day of school each year she doesn't worry about the syllabus. She asks all her new students to write a paragraph telling her if they like math, and why or why not. "That first day is hard. Kids say, 'Ugh! I hate math. Math class sucks.' I get to hear that hundreds of times a day."
Imagine going to work and hearing, from the start of the day to the end, how much people hate what you're doing. But what inoculates Teacher Education graduates against despair is that they love what they are teaching.
NSF fellow Wilber Martinez graduated with Hann and Corona and, like them, he loves math—although that wasn't always the case. Like all fellows, he teaches in a high-need urban school. But he doesn't think any of his middle school students had it as rough as he did, growing up in a rough Los Angeles neighborhood.
"My students don't believe me when I tell them this, but I had to fight my way to school every day. I only lived a mile-and-a-half from my high school, but to avoid certain neighborhoods I had to walk five miles to get there each day," he said.
At the time, like most of his classmates, Martinez didn't care much for math: "I didn't like it. It was just numbers. Sometimes I understood them, sometimes I didn't. But I didn't care that much."
Fortunately, Martinez forged a pathway to higher learning that didn't involve figuring out those numbers on the blackboard. He was a star placekicker for the high school football team, and his strong leg put him into contact with supportive coaches and teachers who consistently encouraged him to go to college. His grades weren't strong enough to go to a four-year school, but at community college he took a math class that changed his life. For the first time, Martinez had a math teacher who actually liked the subject he was teaching—or at least, imparted his love for the subject into his students.
"We were studying the quadratic formula and he was in the front of the room. He grabbed a tennis ball and tossed it to someone in back. He asked, 'So, what was was the trajectory of the ball? How can we figure out the speed and uniqueness of the parabola we just created?'" Martinez recalled. "And I was interested! I wanted to know how to do that!"
And just like that, a great teacher (and a tennis ball) changed how Martinez viewed math. Numbers and figures that were meaningless suddenly came to life. Once his own math grades improved, he began tutoring teammates on the school's football team. Word spread and soon parents were approaching Martinez to ask if he would tutor their kids as well. While he initially planned to become a civil engineer after graduating, Martinez realized that he wanted to make a career out of what he was already doing: sharing his love for math with others.
For Hann, math isn't just a subject he loves; it's something that helps him understand and navigate through a complicated world: "I feel like math is problem solving. As human beings, we're faced with problems every day. What's the fastest way to work? What do I do if my tire blows out? My girlfriend's angry at me. How do I get out of this situation with as little damage as possible? The process of thinking—if I do this, what happens?—is problem solving. And math is just like problem solving: add four to both sides of the equation. Will that help me or just get me into a bigger mess?"
Likewise, when he works with students who struggle with math—which are nearly all of those who end up in the remedial classes he teaches—he sees a lack of understanding algebra manifesting in poor decision-making and a general inability to think things through. "I have students who are so impulsive—and not impulsive like buying a pair
of expensive shoes. When they are frustrated or angry, they don't think, what would happen if I
flip my desk over, or light this poster on fire? And that's how math can help you. Will this help me? Will this hurt me? Are there other ways I can approach this problem?"
In Hann's classroom, turning over desks and lighting posters on fire are not hypotheticals. Both happened. In fact, after the student lit a poster on fire, Hann realized that the resulting scorch marks resembled a volcano. He taped up mathematical facts relating to volcanoes all around the damaged wall. And as for the offending student, by the end of the year he was one of Hann's favorites. This is because Hann makes an effort to view his students' behavior in the larger context of their lives outside the classroom.
"Look, a lot of them have parents who are dead or in jail. They've been in and out of juvenile hall themselves. There's a lot of drugs and violence and poverty in their lives. It's not unusual for them to move every other month. It's hard to ask someone who's dealing with all that to come in and care about fractions," he said.
That is why, to reach their students, teachers have to get creative. As Martinez can attest, a bunch of numbers on the blackboard is unlikely to engage students who already have years of failure to discourage any optimism or curiosity about the subject. In her class, Corona uses examples involving anime, nature, or skateboarding to get her students interested in the subject.
"My classes are full of repeaters—kids who have failed two or three times. They come in and say, 'I hate math! I don't want to do it!' But you show them a problem that involves a skateboard and suddenly they want to solve it," she said.
Hann will spend his nights and weekends toiling on elaborate projects to engage his students. Recently he turned his classroom into a restaurant. He covered the desks with tablecloths and photocopied place settings. He walked around in an apron (from an old Starbucks job) and spoke in a French accent. The students would get menus full of thinly veiled math problems. For example: if a burger and fries costs six dollars, and a burger is two dollars more than fries, how much is each item?
"I'm sure I could have printed out some worksheets I found online and just handed them out to the students. I would be teaching the same thing. And it would be so much easier for me," Hann said. "But how does that capture their interest in any way, and how are they going to remember that?"
What Hann describes illustrates one of the
key lessons of the Teacher Education program curriculum: "The program pushed us to do whatever
it takes to get through to students," he recalled.
"I keep going back to one thing they told us: every time you make a decision, ask yourself a question.
Is this the decision that's best for the kids or does this make it easier for you? Because the second you stop making decisions that are better for the kids and are easier for you, you need to get a new job."
However, the most important lessons Teacher Education students get from the program might be from each other. Students begin in the summer, spending six weeks as assistant teachers. After that, they start the fall semester in the deep end of the pool, with full-time teaching jobs (most teacher-credential programs reverse this; 1) students do the majority of their coursework first, and only serve as student teachers during one or two brief student teaching placements. During the fall and spring semesters, those in the program come back to the CGU campus every other Saturday to discuss what is working and not working at their schools with Teacher Ed faculty and their fellow students. "It kind of felt like we were all going through hell together," Hann (sort of) joked.
"You see a movie like Freedom Writers, where a teacher goes into an inner-city classroom and bonds with her students, and they all become like a family. And you're like, I wanna be that teacher! That's gonna be me! But of course that doesn't happen, and that's when you need that support group," Hann said.
Wherever Teacher Education graduates end up, they are all essentially dealing with the same issues: how to manage their school's politics and motivate the students. Not surprisingly, in addition to swapping good (and failed) ideas, the students grow close. Corona, Hann, and Martinez met in Claremont and remain good friends. Martinez
even met his wife, Jessica, in the program.
But ultimately—more than their love for the subject they teach or their relationships with peers—what keeps these teachers teaching is the students. For Corona, it's pushing students to pass her class and seeing them go on to college; for Martinez, it's the two or three kids a day who say "I get it!" for the first time in a math class; for Hann, it's seeing a student's face when they get their first math test back that they've actually passed.
"Students don't come up to me and say, 'Mr. Hann, I recognize and really appreciate the time you put into this lesson. Thanks so much for your effort as a teacher.' But I do see their attitudes
slowly change," he said. "I see them start believing they can do this. And that's when they start taking notes or asking each other for help. That's what makes me happy."
"People become teachers because they want to help the kids. Our students are better prepared, so they do their job better. Which makes them happier," said Loop, echoing her former students' comments. "The reason people leave is because the work is hard, and if you don't feel like you are helping the kids, you get out."
Creating teachers who know they are helping kids is how CGU was able to use the NSF grant to create 40 STEM teachers who have no plans on leaving their profession anytime soon. And building on that success, last year Noyce approved a follow-up grant of $800,000 to Teacher Education to provide additional scholarships and professional support to more STEM students looking to become teachers. This time, CGU is expanding the pipeline: they will be accepting STEM graduates looking to teach anywhere from K–12, not just secondary schools. They will also launch a recruitment campaign at Texas Southern University to increase the enrollment of African American candidates.
In his 2011 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama called for the recruitment of 100,000 new STEM teachers over the next decade. This number has since become a rallying call for many educational leaders, and it is certainly a worthy goal. However, recruitment is only a means to the far-more-important end of creating teachers who are passionate about what they do and committed to their profession. Recruitment is half the equation; if you want to know the other half, ask a Teacher Education graduate.


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Minutes VA meeting 26/09/08
Call for submissions
Xmas – how is this to be done.
Festival – feedback
New text for call for submissions – Mike to write and design poster and upload to bb for distribution in ECA and Leith School of Art. Also to add text for copy and pasting into emails. Matthes and Simone to distribute in ECA and Leith.
Also Mike wants to put a call out on art review for exhibitions which work within the limitations of the £50 budget. Perhaps this could be part of a themed call around this concept and make use of the monthly budget? Perhaps this could take the form of a call for curation?
Xmas slot to be extended to the 3rd January. Possibility of 'the dead forest' show of discarded xmas trees to be discussed in next meeting.
Festival feedback: changeovers to be more closely monitored so as to avoid 'dead space'. Perhaps create a list of contact telephone numbers? Stephen and Simone to make this list as an action point. The notion of a changeover policy was discussed but it was felt that this wasn't really a necessity at the moment. It was felt that it would also be good to have a list of stand –by artists in case of 'no shows'.
Submissions: Emi agreed for October 20th – 3rd November. Gowrie Care: agreed for 3 week slot from 15/12/08 – 03/01/09, with proviso that we can help them hang the work. Simone and Mike to hang the show, Simone to be handler/contact person. Simone to contact Osvaldo Cibils to ask for more information /a proper submission. Claudio Parentela – may be suitable for an A0 project, Stephen to take this as an action point. Matthes to investigate the possibility of the Japanese live drawing proposal being held in the café rather than in the gallery as we are already booked for the period that they want. Brian Ross to be followed up by Stephen with a view to showing from 3rd – 16th November. Stephen to contact Gill Foster and ask for clarification on her proposal.
Any Other Business: Stephen suggested that it would be good to have a longer discussion about where we are going as a gallery. It was agreed that this was a good idea but that it should take place outside of the VA meeting structure, perhaps in the form of an away day.


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Transport Committee on May 29th, 2012
Evidence of meeting #39 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was bus.
A recording is available from Parliament.
On the agenda
MPs speaking
Also speaking
- Étienne Lyrette Corporate Advisor, Governmental Affairs, External Relations and Strategic Planning, Société de transport de Montréal
- Serge Carignan Director, Engineering and Technical Services, Société de gestion et d'acquisition de véhicules de transport
- François Chamberland Director , Engineering Service, Operation, Société de transport de Montréal
8:50 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
Welcome everybody to the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. This is meeting number 39. We have some committee business at the top of our orders.
When we left the meeting the last time, there was a motion by Ms. Michaud and an amendment proposed by Ms. Chow. We are now debating the amendment, which says that the motion be amended by deleting the words "and obtain approval from municipal and provincial governments before the development of a new aerodrome is formally considered".
I had a list of speakers prepared. I had Monsieur Aubin and then Mr. Poilievre. We finished with Monsieur Coderre, so I'll open the floor to Monsieur Aubin.
8:50 a.m.
Robert Aubin Trois-Rivières, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I will try to be brief so that we can have the benefit of our guests as long as possible.
From the outset, I would like to tell you what the problem is for me. One thing we often hear, and that we heard again at our last meeting, is that the motion should be disposed of quickly because it would slow economic development.
Nothing in the amendment or motion would establish conditions that would slow economic development in any region of Canada whatsoever. In fact, what we are seeking with the motion and the amendment is instead to harmonize the various areas of citizens' lives. Although economic life is important, it is not the only criterion determining the quality of life of a citizen in a region.
What is the point of investing in urban development and infrastructure plans that provide for land use plans, if a single player can thwart everyone's efforts at every turn? That is really the purpose of the motion we are debating this morning. The Supreme Court has previously held that federal legislation takes precedence over Quebec's Act respecting the Preservation of Agricultural Land.
Landing strips are rarely built in the mountains. Consequently, we constantly encroach on potential agricultural lands, which are becoming increasingly scarce, whereas they must feed a constantly growing population. It is fine to work miracles in order to increase and intensify agricultural production, but the fact remains that agricultural lands must be preserved.
Not all flatlands are necessarily agricultural lands. We believe it is essential to comply with the various legislatures, the various levels of government, municipal, provincial and federal. Those levels of government should harmonize their legislation to promote sound economic development and to enable every sector to develop.
The mayor of my city might not be very proud if I called Trois-Rivières a small city. It is a large city of 125,000 to 135,000 inhabitants, which has an airport and where there is a significant amount of aerospace development. Just this past weekend, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of Trois-Rivières' airport. There was an open house at Aviatech, Premier Aviation and Nadeau Air Service. All the businesses at the airport were open to citizens. Here again, we see a development model in which we have managed to harmonize citizens' needs with economic development. We believe this is entirely possible.
I had a bit of fun reading the Aeronautics Act, since I am quite new to this committee, and I discovered that section 4.9 states the following: "The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting aeronautics and...may make regulations respecting..." It contains the word "may", which means that action may be taken. Paragraph (e) of that section states that regulations may be made respecting "activities at aerodromes and the location, inspection, certification, registration, licensing and operation of aerodromes." So action may be taken respecting location.
There is no "not in my backyard" syndrome here. We are not saying that aerodromes should not be built. We are saying that, when an aerodrome is developed, the various municipal, provincial and federal stakeholders could consult each other to find a better location that would allow for the most balanced development possible.
That is not just the gist, but also the primary objective of this motion, which I hope will be supported by the largest possible number, indeed the majority.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
8:50 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
Thank you.
Mr. Poilievre.
8:50 a.m.
Pierre Poilievre Nepean—Carleton, ON
Yes, Mr. Chair, we of course support continued development of our aviation system. It employs very large numbers of people and provides a service that a country with Canada's geography cannot live without.
Every single Canadian wants another airport in somebody else's municipality, and that's why we don't allow municipal governments to determine where they go. So I'm opposing this particular motion and I'm going to continue to work to promote the aviation sector in this country.
As such, I move to adjourn debate on the motion. Thank you.
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
There's a motion that has been put and it is not debatable. It is votable. So I will call the vote on the motion to adjourn—
May 29th, 2012 / 8:55 a.m.
Olivia Chow Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Chair, on a point of order—
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
It's not debatable.
But a point of order.
8:55 a.m.
Olivia Chow Trinity—Spadina, ON
If there's a motion, you can call the question, but you can't do that after you speak. So the motion is to adjourn debate, that is, to stop all discussion. Is it in order to stop any debate? So if we're in the middle of discussing a motion, or a committee member is speaking—and I know there are other speakers to come—can we just stop all discussion? Is that how it can be done normally? That's curious. I thought you could call the question, but you can't in the middle of a discussion stop all the debate on a motion.
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
We had a very similar situation a couple of weeks ago, and this was the same process. So the motion is in order.
Monsieur Coderre, is it on the same point of order?
8:55 a.m.
Denis Coderre Bourassa, QC
Mr. Chair, I find it unfortunate that increasing efforts are being made to gag the Liberal Party every time the two parties are able to speak to each other. If you want to play at that, I will be tempted to speak at great length next time. I warn you: bring a pillow because it will last a long time.
I am saying for the record that all parties agreed to adopt this motion. I was even one of those who requested adjournment so that we could hear the witnesses and subsequently would only have to vote on this bill. Once again, we cannot trust the Conservative Party, and I find that very unfortunate.
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
On the same point of order, Ms. Michaud.
8:55 a.m.
Élaine Michaud Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC
We are debating the amendment. If we adjourn debate, is that only on the amendment, or do we return to the motion? Here the amendment takes the government's concerns into account. We tried to allow the discussion. Now we would be coming back to the initial motion, which caused the problem. We are currently discussing the amendment, and I do not believe we can adjourn the entire debate on the matter. Unless I am mistaken, the process is done in two stages.
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
I appreciate all the advice I'm receiving. None of the points of order raised are points of order. It can be done. Monsieur Poilievre has made a motion and I'm going to call a vote on that motion now.
All those in favour of the—
8:55 a.m.
Olivia Chow Trinity—Spadina, ON
Can I challenge the chair, please?
8:55 a.m.
The Chair Merv Tweed
There hasn't—


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GreenChef Sarma Melngailis | Zucchini and Green Zebra Tomato Lasagna
Posted By Sarma Melngailis On January 26, 2009 @ 6:24 am In Full Recipe List,Recipes / Main Courses,Recipes / Raw | 3 Comments
Zucchini and Green Zebra Tomato Lasagna with basil-pistachio pesto, tomato sauce, and pignoli ricotta (raw)
We like the vibrant color and tart flavor of green zebra tomatoes, a heirloom variety, for this dish. Of course you can use any tomatoes, preferably heirloom. Use the best quality sun-dried tomatoes you can find (but not he kind packed in olive oil, as this is most often not cold-pressed). The brighter ones make for a redder sauce, which will add good, Italian-flag contrast to the dish.
The first real raw food dish that we ever prepared was a rougher version of this. It has since become the best-selling dish on our restaurant menu and is a perfect introduction for anyone trying raw foods for the first time. The flavors and textures are all familiar, and the vibrant nature of the dish always leaves a strong impression. Many variations on this are possible. Feel free to add marinated wild mushrooms or substitute summer squash for zucchini. As in so many other dishes, the quality, seasonality and freshness of the ingredients are the most important elements."
Recipe by Sarma Mengailis | Raw Food Real World (Harper Collins, 2005)
Serves 6
For the pignoli ricotta:
2 cups raw pignoli (pine) nuts, soaked for 1 hour or more
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons filtered water
Place the pignoli nuts, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and salt in a food processor and pulse a few times, until throughly combined, Gradually add the water and process until the texture becomes fluffy, like ricotta
For the tomato sauce:
2 cups sun-dried tomatoes, soaked for 2 hours or more
1 small to medium tomato, diced
1/4 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon agave nectar
2 teaspoons sea salt
Pinch of hot pepper flakes
Squeeze and drain as much of the water out of the soaked sun-dried tomatoes as you can. Add the drained tomatoes to a Vita-Mix or high-speed blender with he remaining ingredients and blend until smooth
For the basil-pistachio pesto:
2 cups packed basil leaves
1/2 cup pistachios
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
Place the pesto ingredients in a food processor and blend until well combined but still slightly chunky.
For the assembly:
3 medium zucchini, ends trimmed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
Pinch of sea salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
3 medium green zebra tomatoes (or other heirloom variety), cut in half and then sliced
Whole basil leaves for garnish
Step 1: 1 Cut the zucchini crosswise in half, or into 3-inch lengths. Using a mandolin or vegetable peeler, cut the zucchini lengthwise into very thin slices, In a medium bowl, toss the zucchini slices with the olive oil, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper.
Step 2: Line the bottom of a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with a layer of zucchini slices, each one slightly overlapping another. Spread about 1/3 of the tomato sauce over it and top with small dollops of "ricotta" and pesto, using about 1/3 of the tomato sauce over it and top with a small dollops of "ricotta" and pesto, using about 1/3 of each. Layer on about 1/3 of the tomato slices. Add another layer of zucchini slices and repeat twice more with the tomato sauce, "ricotta," pesto, and tomato slices. Serve immediately, or cover with plastic and let sit at room temperature for a few hours. Garnish with basil leaves.
Step 3: Alternatively, to make individual servings, place about 3 zucchini slices, slightly overlapping, in the center of each serving plate, to make a square shape. Spread tomato sauce over the zucchini, top with small dollops of "ricotta" and pesto and a few small tomato slices. Repeat twice more. Garnish with basil leaves. Any leftover lasagna, whether made in a tray or individually, will taste great if kept in the refrigerator for at least a day or more, but it won't look as good (which doesn't matter if you're standing by yourself and eating it directly from the refrigerator, as we've been known to do at home).
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Photo by John (mtsofan)/Flickr, cc by-nc-sA 2.0
Remember you are soil, and to soil you shall return.
~Gen. 3:19
The language of "spiritual journey" is commonplace in describing the season of Lent — the 40-day pilgrimage Christians undertake as they trek with Jesus from the wilderness to the garden to the garbage heap of Golgotha and beyond. "Spiritual" in this context, as in almost every other, is so vague as to be not merely unhelpful but an actual obstacle to understanding what it is that Lent has called Christians to through the centuries.
Generally, "spiritual" is meant to signal a concern with matters of the heart or the soul or the deepest self. More pointedly, it almost always springs from — even as it continues to endorse — the tired dualisms of modernity that have divided body from soul, matter from spirit, earth from heaven. This false divide, as Wendell Berry has observed, is "a fracture that runs through the mentality of institutional religion like a geologic fault."
Interestingly, it is geology (sort of) that can help get us back on track or — forgive the pun — onto solid ground. When we Christians receive the ashes on our foreheads we are marked with a visible sign of our mortality, yes, but we are also reminded of our link to all of creation past, present, and future — to elements both earthly and celestial, to the soil and to the stars. We could even say: "remember you are stardust, and to stardust you shall return!"
The season of Lent also reveals how relentlessly incarnational is the faith we confess. When Jesus sojourns for 40 days in the wilderness, it is physical hunger ("he was famished") that the gospel writers make special note of — except in Mark's version, this year's lectionary gospel, which is characteristically spare with the particulars. Fasting from food and its physiological consequences are part of Jesus' quest for wisdom, understanding, and clarity of purpose.
There is an essential unity among body, soul, and the material world. Jesus is not "freed" of his body — nor of his bodily needs and desires — for the sake of his soul. And his soul is not disengaged from the material realm. As Berry notes about scriptural religion generally: "The Bible's aim is not the freeing of the spirit from the world. It is the handbook of their interaction."
In our own time, a relentlessly incarnational Christianity invites reflection on a host of ways that body, spirit, and world interact — ways in which our whole lives and our whole selves are either enriched or impoverished by situations of our own making or circumstances beyond our control. What does it mean, for example, to observe a Lenten fast in the context of social and economic realities like starvation among the poor, increasing food insecurity among the middle class, and growing obesity rates for all of us? How has the formative rhythm of feasting and fasting been obscured, overridden, undone by a culture of excess in which increasingly every meal is a mindless, hastily consumed feast, lacking in both nutrition and conviviality?
Or this: When late in Lent we regard the body of Jesus on the cross, can we see him as he is?
You're not the figurehead on a ship. You're not
flying anywhere, and no one's coming to hug you.
You hang like that, a sack of flesh with the hard
trinity of nails holding you into place.
Can we share in poet Mary Karr's unflinching gaze of a human body abandoned and broken? Can the "sack of flesh" disabuse us of our tendencies to sanitize the scene, fetishize the cross, and spiritualize the meaning of this first-century revolutionary's death at the hands of the imperial authorities? With theologian James Cone can we see the reciprocity between the crucified Christ and "the lynched black body" of America's shameful past? A past, Cone reminds us, that is not so past: one-third of all young black men are in prison or somewhere in the "system." Bodies, again, alas, abandoned and broken.
The ashes we Christians will receive on Wednesday may not convey enough of our connection to soil and stars and our sisters and brothers, but they do have deep associations with sorrow and repentance. The charcoal smudge across the forehead is a public sign that says to all I meet: I have sins to confess, wrongs to right. The challenge is to take this penitence seriously but to "wear" it lightly. "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them," warns Jesus in the gospel reading appointed for Ash Wednesday. The task of repentance grounds us in the work of serving our neighbors, not ourselves.
The materiality of the faith we confess is most evident in a simple meal shared with friends. Christ's body — taken, blessed, broken, and shared — makes of his followers a body. And for all that this means and for all that it requires, there is this fundamental imperative: we are to nourish and care for our own bodies and the bodies of others, including the earth from which we came and to which we will return. In Lent, we journey with Jesus to the place where his own "sack of flesh" redeems a broken world, revealing God's love for all of creation, and forever conjoining body and soul, matter and spirit, earth and heaven.
Inset photo by Mandy Jansen/Flickr, cc by-nc-sa 2.0)
Debra Dean Murphy is an assistant professor of Religion and Christian Education at West Virginia Wesleyan College and serves on the board of The Ekklesia Project. She regularly blogs at Intersections: Thoughts on Religion, Culture, and Politics.
We welcome your reflections, essays, videos, or news items for possible publication with the On Being Blog. Submit your entry through our First Person Outreach page.


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Unfortunately, many people only bring their feline to a veterinary hospital when they have a sick cat. However, routine medical care is crucial for the long-term health of your cat.
Selecting a veterinarian for your pet is a personal decision. You'll want to choose a provider that you feel comfortable communicating with and asking questions of. Many pet owners suggest asking friends, family members or neighbors for recommendations of vet clinics.
Another way to find a vet is through the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA). AAHA is an organization that compiles lists of accredited veterinarians and clinics in any given area. Pet owners can find an AAHA-accredited facility by visiting HealthyPet.com.
The ASPCA recommends visiting a potential veterinarian without your animal first in order to determine if he or she is a good fit for you. Check to see whether the space is clean, modern and well-organized. Finding out how many vets are on staff as well as the office hours is important as well.
Cat owners should know that many vets have taken steps to make their practices more cat-friendly.
Ensuring a clinic is cat-friendly takes a little bit of research. The CATalyst Council, a national initiative comprised of animal health and welfare organizations working on behalf of cats, says cat owners can determine if a vet clinic is a good fit for them in several ways.
For instance, the first time you call, the person answering the phone should be able to tell you what the practice recommends for routine wellness care for cats that are the same age as your cat. This should include not only the basic vaccinations but also preventive medications and annual visits.
Many cat-friendly veterinary clinics either have separate exam rooms for cats or offer special times during the day when they only see cats.
They may also help you with tips and resources for transporting your feline to the office. Most cat-friendly practices recommend a carrier with a removable top so that if your cat seems nervous or scared it can be examined without extracting it from the carrier.
In addition, you can ask what type of cat-friendly training the staff has undergone.
Remember that finding a vet is an important part of pet ownership as you'll need a professional to rely on for cat emergencies as well as routine care such as cat vaccinations. While building a good relationship with a veterinarian is beneficial for you and your pet, finding a new animal health provider may be necessary for a variety of reasons.
It's important to ask for your cat's health records when leaving a practice so you can pass them along to your new veterinarian and ensure the best care for your furry friend.


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nGrinder is a combination of a web application(Controller) and a Java application(Agent).
If you installed 32bit JVM on your 64bit OS. nGrinder won't work.
If you don't know what a controller and agent are, please refer to Architecture.
If you like to install nGrinder in Windows XP, please refer link.
Please check your PATH environment variable if your java path is located at the head of PATH so that appropriate java can be run.
JAVA_OPTS="-Xms600m -Xmx1024m -XX:MaxPermSize=200m" # for catalina.sh
set JAVA_OPTS=-Xms600m -Xmx1024m -XX:MaxPermSize=200m # for catalina.bat
- If you want to access ngrinder without any path other than hostname(e.g :http://yourdnsname/), you need to change the name of the war file to ROOT.war.
- If you want to access ngrinder with port 80, you should configure ${TOMCAT_HOME}/conf/server.xml
※ For more detailed nGrinder controller configuration options, please refer to Controller Configuration Guide - version 3.2
- From the perspective of nGrinder, Agent is the java application that does the following:
- When installed on the target server, it can act as a performance monitoring server.
- When installed on the agent server, it can act as a stress injection server.
- To configure agents to work as you intend, you need to change some configuration files.
run_agent.sh or run_agent.bat run_agent_bg.sh (for background running)
start.mode=agent agent.console.ip=please specify your controller IP #monitor.listen.port=3243 #monitor.collector.interval=1 #monitor.controller.cache.size=128 #monitor.collector.interval=1 #start.mode=agent #agent.console.port=7001
#If you set up the controller region. please provide the region you use here. #agent.region=
run_agent.bat (windows) or run_agent.sh & (linux)
stop_agent.sh (windows) or stop_agent.bat (linux)
> ulimit -a core file size (blocks, -c) 0 data seg size (kbytes, -d) unlimited scheduling priority (-e) 0 file size (blocks, -f) unlimited pending signals (-i) 30676 max locked memory (kbytes, -l) 64 max memory size (kbytes, -m) unlimited open files (-n) 16000 pipe size (512 bytes, -p) 8 POSIX message queues (bytes, -q) 819200 real-time priority (-r) 0 stack size (kbytes, -s) 10240 cpu time (seconds, -t) unlimited max user processes (-u) 32768 virtual memory (kbytes, -v) unlimited file locks (-x) unlimited
your_account soft nproc 32768 your_account hard nproc 32768 root soft nproc 32768 root hard nproc 32768 your_account soft nofile 16000 your_account hard nofile 16000 root soft nofile 16000 root hard nofile 16000
run_monitor.sh or run_monitor.bat &


text: While monitoring your entire IT infrastructure with Applications Manager, make sure that it is tightly integrated with ServiceDesk Plus, a 100% web-based Help Desk & Asset Management Sofware. Applications Manager detects fault and performance problems in your applications and databases, and through integration with ServiceDesk Plus, enables automatic creation of incidents based on pre-defined error conditions. This alerts the appropriate ServiceDesk Plus technician to take corrective action.


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Book Explorers for grades 2 & 3
Category: Kids
Location: Children's Program Room
The Book Explorers discussion group for grades 2 & 3 reads Alvin Ho by Lenore Look this month. Librarian Miss Marie will lead the discussion about Alvin and his unfortunate fears and allergies.
4:15-5:00 PM in the Children's Program Room
Please register @ 203-594-5002


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Circa 1910
A single antique oval-backed sconce in its original worn nickel and brass finish. With primitive hand-cut eagles, shields and stars. Signed by the New York maker E. F. Caldwell.
Overall: 23 cm h. x 23 cm w. x 11 cm d.
Backplate: 17 cm h. x 11 cm w.
CE wiring available, contact sales for a quote.
CE Lamping: 2 SES/E14 sockets, maximum 60 watts per socket.
1 fixture total available. 1 on hold.
Please contact your local showroom about viewing this item.


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Havok, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel Corp. and a provider of various middle-ware for game development, along with ATI, graphics products group of Advanced Micro Devices, demonstrated the industry's first cross-platform physics effects engine that enables realistic behaviour of cloth, fabric, hair, etc. Thanks to OpenCL, Havok Cloth middle-ware can be processed on both ATI and Nvidia graphics chips.
"Havok is committed to delivering highly optimized cross-platform solutions to our game customers and we are pleased to be working with AMD to ensure that gamers enjoy a great user experience when running Havok-powered games on AMD platforms. Unlocking the parallel processing capability of AMD's hardware provides real advantages to our customers, and the greater the total computing resources available, the better the gaming experience developers can deliver," said David Coghlan, vice president of development for Havok.
At Game Developers Conference 2009, Havok is showcasing industry-changing technical breakthroughs in real-time clothing simulation, marking the first time that movie-quality cloth has been seen on in-game characters. The ease of integration of the product is highlighted by the fact that the first games to feature Havok Cloth are launching in Spring 2009. It should be noted that those titles are based on Havok Cloth released in early 2008 and are not OpenCL-based.
Havok Cloth is a platform-optimized run-time software development kit and toolset that significantly increases the realism of game characters and environments by enabling character designers to add true-to-life, physically-based motion to garments, environmental objects and other deformable items like hair, bellies or tails. Havok Cloth also minimizes the time that artists spend on animating the behavior of character garments and environmental cloth in games.
Thanks to optimization of the latest Havok Cloth version for OpenCL standard, the new cloth simulation engine can utilize both graphics processing units that support OpenCL as well as traditional central processing units. Presently Havok Cloth can take advantage of ATI Stream technology supported by Radeon graphics chips. Later on it will also gain support of Nvidia GeForce, S3 Graphics Chrome and Intel Larrabee graphics processors.
Tags: Havok, ATI, AMD, Radeon, Nvidia, Geforce, S3 Graphics, Intel Larrabee


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Skip to comments.Hillary Stumbles, Suffers A Concussion, Wont Testify
Posted on 12/15/2012 1:26:09 PM PST by Starman417
Some might wonder if it was the cervesa or the stomach flu, but it looks like Hillary took a dive and is down for the count.
From The Department of State:
While suffering from a stomach virus, Secretary Clinton became dehydrated and fainted, sustaining a concussion. She has been recovering at home and will continue to be monitored regularly by her doctors. At their recommendation, she will continue to work from home next week, staying in regular contact with Department and other officials. She is looking forward to being back in the office soon.
How convenient, she is looking forward to getting back to work after the hearings are finished. Will our RINOs in Washington be satisfied with this excuse from our globe trotting SoS who can run through a hail of sniper bullets on the tarmac to do her job.
(excerpt) Read more at floppingaces.net...
That ain't just the flu...
How convenient!
And the winner for the 2012 Oscar for Best Performing Actress, Hillary Clinton, for her potrayal as the victim in "Benghazi Testify Escape"! Yayyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!
...But will she be able to testify about who said what when the issue of rescuing our people in Benghazi was raised on 9-11-12
There's no way such a clumsy oaf could ever be elected president. We'd be the laughingstock of the world.
I find it a little suspicious that both she and Mubarak cracked their noggins on the same day. Weird.
She's got the rockin' pneumonia and the amnesia flu.
Lemme guess! The concussion looks round like a hammer head, on the top of the head where she would have either fallen straight upward, or straight downward head first.
Kind of like Mubarak's cracked head when he "fell" today in his prison.
I think Hil's on the sauce.
She's not watched like a hawk?
The first casualty of the Benghazi slippery slope.
Hillary has a concussion just like i am a 49 year old virgin.
How convenient!
Thinking the same thing.
Why let the families of the murdered Americans rush Hillary's
testimony. After all, the Beast's concussion is more important
than finding out how and why those 4 Americans died.
Coming in a close second is the award winning performance by Zero yesterday for generating on cue tears in his otherwise manufactured display of emotion over the Newtown shooting victims.
She has been asked by her doctor to stay off her broom for two weeks.
I bet ole Slick Willie has increased his activity, if u know
what I mean, while The Beast is down for the count.
But of course the best advice has already been given:
Let's see how 0 takes advantage of this situation to do something he has always wanted to.
I don't know what he will do. This is what he does. When an earthquake devastated Haiti, he got his face all over TV as rushing to help the Haitians. He promptly forgot all about them. Hurricane Sandy gave him another opportunity to get his face in the news as helping out the victims. (he didn't. we did through our taxes.)
He is a master at taking full advantage of a situation and turning it to his marxist ends.
Bet she doesn't recover.
So her concussion is going to keep her from uttering those famous words of hers: "I don't recall"
While her little bump on the head might have blocked recent memories, she did remember where she hid the Rose Law Firm records.
This commie bitch is taking up valuable medical effort that could be given to illegal aliens in Nevada and Californica. May I suggest a Death Panel be convened immediately and order her to be executed by lethal injection. Fort Marcy Park may be a nice place for the ceremony!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Maybe Obama can send Susan Rice onto the talk shows this Sunday to tell us how Hillary fell and hit her head so she won't be able to testify. 5 shows ought to be about the right exposure.
Well that's quite a switch from what one of the 10 most fascinating people of 2012 said in her interview with Barbara Walters. Hillary Clinton: "I am, thankfully, knock on wood, not only healthy, but have incredible stamina and energy."
"the award winning performance by Zero yesterday for generating on cue tears "
Ahhhhh,,,, He just pulled out a nose hair. That'll make ya tear up!
In a separate statement, the State Dept. announced that Hillary's dog ate all their records regarding the Benghazi matter. But they volunteered to send someone over to the Dept. of Education to clean the white boards after work, in order to make things right. (sarc)
She must've caught what X42 had when he took a spill coming out of the Blair House (IIRC). Some thought his late night nose dive was due to being drunk, but I'd doubt that with a pretty filly like the then FL[A]TUS at home waiting for him.
Somehow excessive and repeated hand washing (to remove the blood of four murdered Americans in Bengazi) has caused her to stumble around and fall. Truly amazing!
She can no longer fit into *that* pink dress.
She knows the civil lawsuits from the victims families are coming forthwith, therefore her reluctance to testify before Congress.
You know how hard it is to walk on cankles as big as your thighs?
I just hope Hillary the Coward will face these lawsuits.
Cue Rush Limbaugh's parody from 16 years ago, where Hillary and a congressman sing Try to Remember. I'm sorry, I don't recall.
"Wed be the laughingstock of the world."
Oh... I believe that ship has sailed. In Nov. 2008.
We are now & I predict she wins if she runs. All she needs is the (D) nomination because no (R) that has any conservative views will win for many decades.
Barring something completely unforseen happening between now & 2016 I'm afraid you're right.
"How convenient!"
That was exactly the first thought that popped in my head...
"Try to remember . . . . My mind's in a blender . . . ."
She will recover just in time to accept the nomination
In a related item, the State Department is considering doing away with kick-offs in Obama's second term.
Hill is just waiting out the clock until she leaves the State Department. Something is coming down and Hill is smart enough to keep from being around when it does. Let someone else take the fall. You may hate Hillary but you can't say she's stupid.
Speaking of "flopping":
In basketball, flopping is the art of a player intentionally falling after little or no physical contact with an opposing player in order to draw a foul by an official against the opposing player.[1]
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Cassadaga Valley budget practices called into question
SINCLAIRVILLE – When it comes to the budgeting process, Cassadaga Valley Central School district officials could have acted in a more fiscally responsible manner – according to the Office of the New York State Comptroller.
A report of examination from the comptroller's office on Cassadaga Valley's financial condition said – through a combination of maintaining excessive and/or unnecessary reserves and ongoing budgeting practices that have generated repeated surpluses – district officials and the board of education have "withheld significant funds from productive use, levied unnecessarily high taxes and compromised the transparency of district finances to taxpayers."
The report contains information from an audit of the district's financial condition and use of fund balance and reserve funds from the period of July 1, 2008 through Aug. 5, 2013. Over the five-year period, the report found said district officials consistently overestimated expenditures in the general fund by a total of $6.3 million. Due to the overestimation, the report said the board appropriated $5.8 million of fund balance as a funding source in the general fund budgets, which was an unnecessary maneuver.
"The district has experienced operating surpluses in the general fund for four of the last five years, totaling $1,100,434, leading to unexpended surplus fund balance exceeding the statutory limit of 4 percent of the ensuing year's operations for the last two fiscal years," the report said.
Also reported in the audit was the consistent overestimation of certain expenditure groups, such as $1.9 million in employee benefits, $1.05 million in programs for handicapped children, $990,000 in transportation, $620,000 in utilities and $530,000 in debt service. Overall, the report stated that actual revenues exceeded actual expenditures by $871,658 over the five-year period.
A response to the comptroller's office was drafted by S. Carl Perry, Cassadaga Valley board president, who said a clarification behind the numbers found in the report was necessary.
"At the outset, it is important to recognize that the board and the administration have at all times acted in the best interests of the district and its taxpayers with regard to the budgeting process," Perry said in his response. "The analysis in the audit report has the benefit of after-the-fact hindsight, which clearly does not reflect the reality faced by the district during the budgetary process over the past several years."
Perry said the district acted responsibly in the budget process despite facing "multiple unknowns" such as: lack of employment contracts with most employees for multiple years, unknown special education placements based on the transient nature of many of its students, escalating pension and insurance costs, lack of reliable state aid numbers and severe cuts to state aid.
"We would like to clarify that the $6.3 million that represents the difference is not $6.3 million that the district has on hand, the difference was utilized repeatedly in the subsequent yearly budgets," Perry said.
The reserve balance in the district's unemployment insurance reserve fund was reported to be $242,333. While the district incurred average unemployment insurance costs of approximately $17,000 since 2008-09, those expenditures were not charged to the reserve fund, but were instead paid from general fund appropriations, which were funded through the annual tax levy, the report said. If unemployment costs were to continue to average at $17,000 per year, the current reserve balance would last for 14 years – the reasonableness of which the audit report questioned.
"The audit report also appears to question the district's use of appropriations funded through the tax levy to pay for items for which reserve monies may also be used," Perry said. "The district is not aware of any statutory limit on the duration over which monies can remain in these types of reserves, and the district's utilization of these reserves is fully consistent with the fact that such reserves are intended to serve as 'savings accounts' to hold monies for future needs."
In light of its findings, the comptroller's office made recommendations for district officials to consider when preparing future budgets. The recommendations included: the development of realistic expenditure and fund balance estimates for the annual general fund budget; the development of comprehensive policies related to the establishment and use of reserve funds; reviewing all reserves to determine if the amounts reserved are necessary, reasonable and in compliance with statutory requirements; and the development of a plan for the use of the surplus balances in the reserve funds identified in the report in a manner that is beneficial to taxpayers, such as increasing other necessary reserves, paying off debt, financing one-time expenses and reducing district property taxes.