Editor:
Re: Burnaby was right to exclude private schools from bursaries, NOW Letters
Jason Kurylo seems so blinded by his disdain for "church folk" that he forgets that families who choose independent or private schools are taxpayers, too.
If the city wants to hand out taxpayer funds for post-secondary bursaries, it must not discriminate against needy taxpayers based on their religion or attendance at special need schools.
Kurylo refers to the province “falling victim” to independent and private schools “dipping their hands into public coffers” as if families who choose alternatives to public schools are not worthy of being considered part of our community.
Public coffers belong to all residents, which is why 83% of municipalities with bursary programs surveyed provide bursaries to students at all schools.
As referred to in the original article, Catholic and other Christian schools waive or reduce tuition for needy students including refugees, orphans, and children from single-parent families, and they often admit students from other faiths or no faith.
Also excluded by the city's policy would be students at special needs schools such as Whytecliff, as well as Sikh, Jewish and Muslim schools. Why should those children be discriminated against if they meet the bursary’s financial need threshold?
Amrita Narciso, Burnaby