Public has right to ask questions

Lisa Graham had the following letter published in the October 22nd Royal City Record.

Dear Editor:

The school board is all about community and community issues. It is entirely reasonable for the public to scrutinize the decisions that are made at the board table and, further, to raise questions on issues of concern, and this should happen without the consequence of being publicly rebuked by trustees.

Jim Goring's astute questioning of the School District No. 40 business company finances is reminiscent of parent Kelvin Chao's questions, which indicates that he is both informed and concerned; and, as a declared trustee candidate, he is only doing his homework.

On the issue of the business company audit, it needs to be acknowledged that the audit was done by a reputable firm, Grant and Thornton, and that the audit is legal and accurate. That being said, an audit is only a snapshot of the state of a company's finances, as presented, on the date of review. Further, it is not uncommon to do a comprehensive post-audit analysis of a company in order to clarify anomalies and/or assess the 'big-picture' status of any said company.

What Mr. Goring presented was a big-picture analysis of the school district business company's financial performance over the last couple of years, the result being that, compared to the losses accrued in the first four years of operation, over the last two years, the company has shown consecutive, but extremely modest, profits of $1,900 and $4,500.

That being clarified, of concern to myself as a "shareholder" is the fact that absolutely no monies from the company have been deposited into district coffers to benefit New Westminster students and staff - not in the form of any declared dividends and certainly not in the form of any repayment of the public education dollars that were used to start the company. Further, when I asked at the annual general meeting, I was told that the company directors had no current plans to address the loan.

If the school district business company is to continue, and it seems that it is the will of this board that it does continue, in terms of paying off the $1-million debt it owes to the district, I have long advocated that the business company recognize the loan for what it is: a legitimate business expense that is no different than any other business expense like salaries and lease costs, etc.

Currently, the business company's debt is not calculated into its annual audit, but when I raise the issue of establishing a repayment schedule for the loan, a majority of my trustee colleagues defeat it.

Unfortunately, the school district has more "need" than it has "budget," which is why, until it is paid in full, payment on the loan from the district should be a standing budget-item on the business company's ledger.

No longer can the school district afford to be treated like the bank of Mom and Dad.

Lisa Graham, New Westminster school trustee, Voice New Westminster