In the News
2006

Dept. of Education says board members weren't fired, can't sue
 ...One member - Dartmouth representative Gin Yee, says he isn't taking part in any wrongful dismissal lawsuit because it will only divert more attention from education. Yee adds it's not fair to taxpayers for him to continue to accept a stipend - and from now on, he'll donate any stipend funds he receives back to the board...

No decision yet on status of fired members' stipends
...Gin Yee said yesterday he plans to give back his stipend. "I feel that I'm not entitled to the school board pay," said the former Dartmouth member. "It would be unfair to taxpayers."

You’ll be hearing from our lawyer
...They are still receiving their stipends of $8,200 a year, but Gin Yee said he’s going to return his money in hopes it will be used for French immersion in the Dartmouth area he represented...

Board hopes retreat helps heal wounds
Dartmouth Centre-Albro Lake board member Gin Yee says the sessions are vital. "We haven’t been communicating back and forth, we always make these assumptions," Mr. Yee said. "So I’m hoping at the retreat that we can just drop the assumptions and ask personally one on one back and forth what’s going on."

Students reading better - Tests found kids in grades 2 to 9 made steady improvements
...Members Gin Yee and Kim Berkers wanted to know why students on individual program plans weren’t part of the board’s testing. They also wanted to know how many students are on these plans within the region...

‘Full airing’ needed in Reid case
 ..."The report spoke for itself, it went to the attorney general, it’s going to the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia," Mr. Yee told reporters after the meeting. "What else can we discuss? We didn’t really need to debate it. I was concerned that debate would have been volatile."...

Board skips out on Reid report discussion
 ...With that in mind, Board member Gin Yee - who made the motion to adjourn the meeting early - says it's time to move on. "There's no more debate," he says. "It's gone to the attorney general, the attorney general has referred it to Supreme Court, and that's where it should stay. What else can we debate here?"...

O’Hara picked to lead troubled Halifax school board
...Mr. Yee, whose extensive knowledge of board bylaws has been remarked on by a few of his
colleagues, said he was disappointed not to be chosen but added that he called Mr. O’Hara to
congratulate him and wish him the best of luck...

New chairman has work cut out
The province has tapped Gary O'Hara to herd the collection of cats known as Halifax Regional
School Board. O'Hara, board member for District 7 (Fairview-Clayton Park-Rockingham-Wentworth),
was selected as chairman after the board failed three times to choose between Gin Yee and Debra
Barlow...

O'Hara to chair school board
...Gin Yee and Debra Barlow both said they wanted to be chair. Yee said he's disappointed, but he'll support O'Hara.

Embattled board at war with itself
...Gin Yee, the board's youngest member if you don't count the student advisers, believes he can be a strong, impartial adjudicator. He's counting on his extensive volunteer experience...

Board can’t decide on boss
...After three rounds of voting, the 12 members were still tied 6-6, unable to decide on either Dartmouth-The Lakes representative Debra Barlow or Dartmouth Centre-Albro Lake’s Gin Yee to head the province’s largest school board...

School board still without leader
...Dartmouth Centre member Gin Yee and Dartmouth-Westphal member Debra Barlow, the board’s current vice-chairwoman, vied for the post after Sackville-Lucasville rep Wade Marshall stepped down March 3...

Halifax school board member offers to help pay for mediator
Halifax regional school board member Gin Yee has offered to pay part of the cost for a mediator to help the board resolve its issues and move forward with regular business.

Chairman: schools won’t have to pay costs for mediator
...Yee says the board desperately needs mediation. Before finding out that mediation would come from the training budget, Yee offered to pay one-13th of the mediator’s bill, up to $1,200 — two months’ worth of his school-board salary — so it wouldn’t come out of children’s education.

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