Parents form committee on school restructure

Umina High School's Parents and Citizens Association has formed a working committee to represent parents' views on the restructure of local schools.

Committee spokesman Mr Geoff Crocker said the model of large regional senior high schools, promoted by the Education Department, presented both opportunities and threats to the school.

He said the restructure provided opportunities for parents to have their say.

"We are told that all options are to be considered," he said.

"Now is the time to consider how education could be better delivered to our children and those who are to come.

"We need to come up with suggestions that will work not only for Umina High but also the Central Coast generally."

He asked parents to become informed, to attend meetings and to contact their parent representatives if they had ideas on how Umina could work co-operatively with other high schools "to improve the educational and social outcomes for our children".

Mr Crocker said parents faced the threat of their children having to travel long distances to attend a senior college for the last two years of schooling.

"If we just reject the model and hope to keep the school as it is, we could find that the school is starved of the brighter motivated students as they migrate to the well-resourced senior colleges," he said.

"As parents, we are not against change, but there must be a reasoned explanation and expectation of how change will solve the current small problems of the school.

"Our fear is that the change will make the situation worse."

Contacts for the committee are Geoff Crocker 4341 4205 and Bruce Graf 4341 7369.