Heather Latter
Rainy River District School Board senior administration provided trustees with an analysis of the recent accommodation reviews of Donald Young, Sturgeon Creek, and Crossroads at a special committee meeting of the whole last night—and ultimately recommended consolidating the three schools.
The future of these schools had been up for review since June, 2011 when concerns about declining enrolment and surplus capacity, facility condition, and loss of funding for small schools was brought forward.
“The accommodation review is a formal process and may result in the closure of a school or consolidation,” explained Heather Campbell, director of education for the local public board.
She noted several different options were addressed in the analysis, but that it was “Option 3”—a consolidation of all three schools with a new school to be built in Emo—that “has the greatest value to the student, to support and sustain student achievement and well-being.”
While each accommodation review committee recommended keeping its respective school open, trustees took this opportunity to ask questions before making a final decision at their regular board meeting scheduled for Jan. 7.
There were a number of reasons that this recommendation was based on, including:
•allowing for Early Learning classrooms to be designed to meet the needs of students by promoting an intentional play-based learning environment rather than trying to retrofit existing space, which often is more costly and less flexible.
•maintaining the relationship with partners, specifically, Rainy River First Nations and Naicatchewenin First Nations, in building on and sustaining our Ojibwe language programming;
•consolidating both internal and external supports for our students, whether “Reading Recovery,” speech language, mental health, etc.;
•increasing student and staff well-being by constructing a new school that meets current building code and accessibility standards while ensuring inclusion, comfort, and safety for students and staff;
•increasing the ability to support staff in their professional development with educators learning from educators through enhanced opportunities for shared planning and co-teaching; and
•providing a facility that offers well-designed space for secondary programming (i.e., library, technology) that is used by students, staff, and the greater community.
Campbell also noted this
option maintains the important role of the school in the largest community in the area under review—an area with the greatest community use of schools, especially in consideration of future mining opportunities and their impact on the district.
She added it also maintains viable and supportive special education programming for students with special needs considering the increased flexibility of programming available in a larger school and in light of proposed reductions to special education funding.
As well, it promotes the concept of a seamless education system from the pre-school years to the beginning of secondary schooling through the possibility of facility partnerships and the building of a day care centre within a new school.
Finally, Campbell said consolidation of the three schools demonstrates fiscal responsibility and effective management of board resources by reducing future costs associated with renewal, repairs, utilities, and maintenance, and seeking an option that has the least impact on transportation spending.
The trustees in attendance last night, who included board chair Michael Lewis, Dianne McCormack, David Kircher, Ralph Hill, Marg Heyens, and Dan Belluz, asked plenty of questions of administration.
These questions focused on everything from funding and transportation to the philosophy of a small school.
They even questioned how long they can defer the decision and looked closely at the different options.
Transportation was discussed at length since bus times likely would increase for students who live in Barwick and Devlin.
The option to consolidate possibly could see some of the students from Sturgeon Creek be relocated to Riverview in Rainy River, depending on their proximity to the school.
Laura Mills, the board’s superintendent of business, explained funding of the project already is in the process of being applied for under a new funding model called Capital Priorities.
“We are applying right now to get it in this round of approvals,” she noted, adding they would know in the spring if it was successful.
Therefore, if trustees choose to accept the recommendation of consolidation, it still would be four-five years before a new school would open.
“This is not an easy decision for anyone,” Lewis remarked. “There is a lot more thinking that needs to be done by trustees.
“Not everyone will be happy but we will try to make the best decision we can,” he said.
