Mr. Speaker, the Durham Board of Education and Sinclair Secondary School of Whitby recently received international acclaim at the Carl Bertelsmann Foundation's annual competition to identify outstanding public institutions.
The board was honoured for excellence out of a field of competitors which included school systems from Scotland, Norway, New Zealand, Hungary and the Netherlands.
In selecting the Durham Board of Education, the foundation noted its dedication to the improvement of education quality by offering optimum freedom of organization to individual schools which enables students to develop to their full potential. A $300,000 prize from the foundation will be used to further improve learning opportunities in Durham region.
I wish to congratulate the Durham Board of Education and Sinclair Secondary School in Whitby on achieving this prestigious international award. Well done, Durham.