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How swears, Shane Koyczan and a Nazi joke left a Merritt Grade 5 teacher in hot water

MERRITT - A teacher who made his students uncomfortable with his jokes and used swear words to discuss bullying with his Grade 5 students has been disciplined by the B.C. Teachers Regulation Board. Peter Schmid, a Grade 5 teacher at Diamond Vale Elementary, was referred to the board for incidents in the months of May and...

School and seamstress spin holiday magic for Salmon Arm student

SALMON ARM - Things were looking grim when Olivia Perry-Coultas and her teachers started looking for something she could wear to the Salmon Arm Secondary winter formal dance — few things fit and time was running out. But the generosity of her community and strangers helped her feel like a princess for the special day....

Revelstoke shop teacher caught taking school property home

REVELSTOKE - A Revelstoke shop teacher is being watched closely after he was found using the district’s tools for his own projects at home for the last three years. Last month, Michael David Howard agreed he misused district funds and property for his own personal gain with the first recorded incident in 2011. Howard used...

WASELENKOFF TRIAL: Retired teacher not guilty of possessing child porn

KAMLOOPS -  While a Kamloops Supreme Court Justice acknowledged the testimony of a retired teacher was "carefully woven" in his trial for possession of child pornography, he delivered an acquittal today, May 14.  Jerry Waselenkoff was charged with one count of possessing child porn after a downstairs neighbour, Frans Van Der Woning, located four cases...

WASELENKOFF TRIAL: Porn sites redirected him to child porn, accused says

"I DON'T WANT PEOPLE THINKING I'M A PERVERT HERE. I'M QUITE WITHIN THE NORM." KAMLOOPS - A Crown prosecutor accused a retired teacher of lying to a Kamloops Supreme Court Justice May 13, after interrogating him on how four disk cases with child pornography ended up underneath the floor of his McGill Road apartment. Jerry...

WASELENKOFF TRIAL UPDATE: Accused challenges neighbour’s accusations

KAMLOOPS - The relationship between a man charged with possessing child pornography and a neighbour who testified against him was far different than what court heard, according to the accused. Retired teacher Jerry Waselenkoff took the stand as a defence witness Tuesday, May 12 to say he and his neighbour Frans Van Der Woning had...

Former teacher pays price for theft

PENTICTON - A former Osoyoos school teacher got a conditional sentence after embezzling $42,000 from the Osoyoos Rural Fire Protection District, the organization for which he was a volunteer secretary treasurer. Michael R. McWhinnie, born in 1946, appeared in Penticton Provincial Court Monday where he was sentenced by Judge Gregory Koturbash to a 12-month conditional...

Lumby murder victim touched many lives through teaching

VERNON - A North Okanagan teacher allegedly murdered by her boyfriend will be remembered for her contagious smile, kindness and compassion. Linda Ross, a teacher in school district 22’s Alternate Learning Program, was found dead at the Trinity Valley Road home she shared with her partner, Howard Everett, who now faces a second degree murder...