The Weyburn Comprehensive School board was informed they were approved for funding of the alternative high school program in the amount of $150,000 over three years, which will enable the program to proceed as planned this year.

With the funding in place, the board has rented the north portion of the Stagecoach Bus Lines building (former location of the Wor-Kin Shop on 10th Street), which will be renovated for classrooms, said education director Jan Chell at the board's first meeting of the new school year, held on Sept. 5.

There will be eight students in the program this year under teacher Colleen Eberts and special education tutor Leah Domoney.

"The students will be in this week to help clean up the space and get it ready," said Chell, adding that Education Minister Jim Melenchuk has indicated he would like to make a trip down in mid-year to see the program in action.

The Comp board will pursue an application for funding by PanCanadian Petroleum towards a cutting-edge joint-use technology learning lab at the Comp.

The oil company asked for submissions of project proposals and was to make an announcement during the summer about which one they would fund, but the decision has been put off until October, said Chell. In the meantime, PanCanadian has asked for more information about the Comp's proposal for a joint-use technology lab, which would cost about $150,000 to set up.

The sticking point for the school board is that the ongoing operating costs would be responsibility of the school board, and Chell said this could run up to $50,000 or more a year.

"I'm not sure what will happen around this announcement, but I don't believe they've asked anyone else (for more information). The part not funded will be the ongoing operating costs. Cutting edge materials tend to get old if you don't update. We have the staff in place, it's the equipment costs down the road," Chell told the board.

The Performing Arts Centre Society is also known to have applied to PanCanadian for funding.

The joint-use technology lab had been proposed by the regional college, with former education director Ed Kolybaba providing information to the college on a contract basis. This proposal had been put on hold due to the estimated cost.

Under questioning about the high cost to maintain current software for the lab, Chell answered that Tisdale had a similar Comp-college joint lab which is being upgraded two years after it was installed in the school. The Weyburn proposal would be for a main lab of 25 or 26 computers, plus a smaller area with cutting-edge equipment and software.

"It's not just the hardware, it's all the software that changes that quickly, that you have to purchase copyright for. It's definitely going to be here (in schools generally) whether you want it to be or not; technology is a part of our schools. The way I see it is if you're gifted some money, you take the gift and use it, or don't take it and pay those costs down the road anyway," she said.

One of the possible locations for such a lab would be the current band room, as a new band room (or performing arts centre) is to be built to replace it.

Chell said such a lab could definitely be used by Comp students, noting the two labs currently in place are continually booked and some classes are not able to get in enough time on the machines.

"I know the Comp would use it half or more of the time if it's available," she said, adding the college would also be afforded the opportunity to use it.

Trustee Eric Douglas pointed out there are some schools in the U.S. where every student has a laptop computer, and Chell replied that day is certainly coming here, although is a ways off right now in Canada. Trustee Hoffman pointed out one of the biggest issues would be the high cost of laptops, and the requirement a school would have to make for all the laptops to be the same capability in order to run the software available in the school.

"I'm not saying we should pass on the gift, but we have to know what we're getting into," said trustee Justin Brown, asking Chell to provide more information about the possible ongoing cost for such a lab.

Hoffman agreed, saying the board may only be able to commit to "doing the best we can" in terms of upgrades, as opposed to committing to spending $50,000 more a year just to keep the lab up-to-date.

Brief items from the Comp board:

· Secretary-treasurer Gord Young told the board the Comp was vandalized early in August, with 52 windows broken out, including some in the rotunda near the resource room. The bill to the Comp was around $2,800 to replace all the windows, including cleanup of the mess.

"It might be worth the board's while to look at some kind of security system. This isn't the first time this has cost us this kind of money," said Young.

· The preliminary enrolment at the Comp totalled 558 as of Sept. 5, which is above the projected enrolment of 540. Some students, including Red Wings players, were still to come in and register, said principal Ken Larson, so the total will be adjusted by the end of September.

· The Comp will offer a scheduled tutorial program out of the Resource Room for students who need daily extra help or learning specific skills. There will be eight to 10 students scheduled into one of two periods, and Darlene Martin will be in charge. The Comp staff has made it a goal for this year to try to expand the tutorial program to a full day.

"It's not a study hall, it's active instruction for kids who have problems in certain areas. It's targetted at low-end students who want to remain in the regular program," explained principal Larson.