Approximately 150 New Westminster high school students walked out of class on Tuesday afternoon to protest deteriorating conditions at their aging school, but just how meaningful their message was is debatable.
Outgoing school trustee Brent Atkinson said he wasn't sure what the students were trying to achieve.
"I don't know if they were protesting whether a new school should be built sooner or if the teachers should be settling their contract (dispute)," said Atkinson. "It seemed to fizzle very quickly.
"I would suggest that if you have a school of 2,200 students and you get 150 people who walk out, ... that's not very successful. ... It didn't seem to have a focus."
New Westminster superintendent John Woudzia said he, along with assistant superintendent Al Balanuik and secretary-treasurer Brian Sommerfeldt were present for the protest.
"This was not a school-sanctioned event," said Woudzia. "Our paramount concern was the safety of the students."
Woudzia said the protest lasted approximately 45 minutes and also included the students marching to the corner of Eighth Avenue and Eighth Street.
"I think en route (from the stadium), approximately 50 students went back to class," said Woudzia. "And when the bell went at 1:45 for the next class, the students went back."
The protest was organized by students Alex Archibald, John McQueen, Carly Adams and Tara Stevens and saw the 150 students leaving their classes at 1 p.m. and going over to Mercer Stadium for a rally.
"I want New Westminster Secondary to be the first to stand up and say 'we need change now,'" Archibald said after the students returned to their classrooms for the remainder of the school day.
NWSS principal, Mary Bushman sent a letter to parents dated Oct. 27, warning them their children would be "marked absent and will not be excused from tests and/or other learning activities."
Woudzia confirmed with The Record that any students who missed their 1 p.m. class on Tuesday and had an exam during that time would receive a failing grade for that test.
Woudzia said students were told before the protest there were other ways to get their point across, whether that meant writing letters to newspapers, circulating a petition or doing the rally during non-school hours.
Archibald, who sat down with Bushman last week about the walkout, said he was proud of the demonstration but disappointed with some students who took the opportunity to skip class.
School board chair Michael Ewen said he's of two minds concerning the protest.
"It's the sort of demonstration that you don't mind even if it's not appropriate," said Ewen. "It's contradictory, because while it's great to see kids doing something and expressing themselves, it would have been better if they did it after school or during their lunch break. ... I support their right to make a statement ... but they (the students) have to realize there may be consequences for skipping class."
Ewen agreed with the students that many people are frustrated with how slow the replacement of a new high school is.
"We're all frustrated with the slow pace, no doubt about it," said Ewen, who added that students can always talk to their local trustees, himself included, if they want more information on what's happening on the capital project.
Grant Osborne, head of the New Westminster Teachers' Union, said he also attended the protest because he had a scheduled meeting with Balanuik and other senior administrators.
"I never really got what the message was," said Osborne. "It was a peaceful protest and students have the right to freedom of assembly, but we were never contacted beforehand."
- with files from Postmedia Network Inc.
