School for the Deaf to be closed

U.C.B. students are not the only ones wondering about their future. Today the Ministry of Education announced that they are withdrawing their financial support amounting to some forty two thousand dollars a year from the Belize School of the Deaf and closing the school. The Ministry says they will be integrating all of the students into existing government special education programs within the next month. The Ministry says they are taking the action because an investigation has revealed that the school is being run by unqualified personnel who have failed to adhere to approved curricula for primary and secondary schools and have kept inadequate financial records. However, recent allegations by former students that they were sexually molested by school principal Calbert Linares over a decade ago are believed to be the real reason for the government’s withdrawal of funds. And in fact the statement by the Ministry cites Linares’ suspension as due in their words, “to credible allegations of serious criminal activity”. Linares, however, has not in fact been charged with any crime. The Director of Public Prosecutions has indicated that because the supposed incidents were not reported within six months, he cannot be charged. Claims that there have been more recent incidents have yet to result in any charges either. Even so, it is not clear why the government has opted to close the entire school rather than find a replacement for a principal who has not been charged, much less convicted of any criminal activity, and has not been officially fired. News Five contacted the Belize School of the Deaf today for their reaction and were told they had not been informed of Government’s plans to close the school. They did say they had been asked to meet with the Minister of Education Cordel Hyde this Friday. On the issue of the allegations against Calbert Linares, a spokeswoman said the staff was prepared to stand by him. The Belize National Association for the Deaf has been running the School of the Deaf since 1983. A special Deaf Education Action Committee has been appointed by the Government to look into the needs of Belize’s deaf students. It will be chaired by Yvette Alvarez, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank. Coordinator is Dativa Martinez, Special Education Unit Manager at the Ministry of Education. Alvarez told News Five that one of the most pressing needs is for secondary school programs for deaf students which prepare them for living in a hearing world.