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HomeMy WebLinkAbout13 COW Public 17 November 2011 Minutes Report 5 Public REPORT NO. 5, SPECIAL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE (PUBLIC) Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South Area Accommodation Review DATE: 17 November 2011 A special meeting of the Committee of the Whole (Public) was held this evening in the Board Room, 133 Greenbank Road, Ottawa, Ontario, commencing at 7:34 p.m. with Trustee Bronwyn Funiciello in the chair and the following trustees also in attendance: Donna Blackburn, Rob Campbell, Katie Holtzhauer, Theresa Kavanagh, Jennifer McKenzie, and John Shea. STAFF: Director of Education and Secretary of the Board, Jennifer Adams; Superintendent of Facilities, Michael Carson; Superintendent of Instruction, Susan MacDonald; Manager of Planning, Karyn Carty Ostafichuk; Manager of Board Services, Monica Ceschia; Planners, Marc Labelle and David Suriano; Communications Coordinator, Sharlene Hunter; Audio Visual Specialist, John MacKinnon; Senior Board Coordinator, Maureen Strittmatter; and Board/Committee Coordinator, Natasha Knight. 1. Call to Order Chair Funiciello called the meeting to order at 7:34 p.m. and welcomed everyone to the meeting. 2. Approval of Agenda Moved by Trustee Shea, THAT the agenda be approved. - Carried - 3. Public Question Period There were no public questions. 4. a. Working Group Recommendation Barbara Massey and Gisele Durocher presented an overview of the Accommodation Study Report on behalf of the working group. She indicated that, the Centertown, Glebe and Old Ottawa South Accommodation Study was initiated in March 2011 to address issues relating to overcrowding in some schools and underutilization of others. All day learning, which was to be implemented at all the schools by 2014, would cause the entire study area to be over 100% capacity. There was therefore a need to address accommodation issues prior to that implementation. Ms. Massey reported that the Accommodation Working Committee (AWC) met ten times between April and November and held two public consultation meetings. In addition to receiving public feedback through members who consulted with their various communities, the AWC received comments by email, on written comment sheets and by way of survey. - 1 - Special Committee of the Whole (Public) 17 November 2011 Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South Ms. Massey reported that the AWC was challenged by small school sizes, multiple program offerings, large discrepancies in program enrolment between Early French Immersion (EFI) and English, geographic boundaries, a commitment to walkability and communities which strongly identified with their respective neighbourhoods. Two priorities were identified by the AWC; a desire to have children schooled in their neighbourhood, and a desire for strong programs. Ms. Massey indicated that many possible solutions were canvassed by the AWC; however, without additional capacity, the group was unable to find a workable solution that respected the central priorities. While strong programming and neighbourhood schools were both important factors, small enrolment numbers in English programs meant that solutions which maximized strong programs left some neighbourhoods without neighbourhood program offerings. Alternately, solutions which maximized neighbourhood schools, meant that programs with low enrolment, were not properly supported raising concerns about the long term viability of those programs. It was decided that additional capacity needed to be added to the study area. The AWC agreed that capacity should be added to the Glebe. Following public consultation, feedback and debate at meetings, the AWC voted (6 to 4 with 2 abstentions) to recommend Option 2. Ms. Massey reported that the AWC recommends as follows; Construct an 11 classroom addition at Mutchmor Public School; Exchange of the entire school populations and programs of First Avenue Public School and Mutchmor Public School with each other; Mutchmor Public School will offer a JK-6 Early French Immersion o program; and First Avenue Public School will offer a JK-6 Regular English o program and a 1-6 Congregated Gifted English program; Introduce a Middle French Immersion program at First Avenue Public School; Direct all Centertown and Glebe area 7/8 students to Glashan Public School; Existing Ottawa East portion of Elgin Street Public School Early French Immersion boundary to have the option to attend either Glashan Public School or Hopewell Avenue Public School for 7-8 Early French Immersion; Existing Ottawa East optional area between Hopewell Public School/Elgin Street Public School for JK-6 Early French Immersion to have the option to attend either Hopewell Public School or Glashan Public School; and Send First Avenue JK students to Mutchmor Public School for 2012 as an interim measure until addition at Mutchmor Public School is complete. Ms. Massey indicated that at first, a full exchange of school programs and populations may seem to be a disruptive and radical solution. However, this approach would allow the EFI program in the Glebe to occupy the larger school rather than splitting that program into two smaller programs. She added that the Glebe English program would then move to the smaller structure and would continue to be complemented by the early congregated gifted program. A new Middle French Immersion (MFI) program would be started at this site, meeting a demand for this program in this neighbourhood. Although Hopewell Public School would have reduced intermediate numbers, it would remain a neighbourhood school and continue to offer three programs to its community. Ms. Massey indicated that by adding an EFI program to Glashan Public School and directing Glebe students there for grade 7 and 8, Glashan would retain bilingual programming and its capacity would be fully utilized. - 2 - Special Committee of the Whole (Public) 17 November 2011 Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South She added that Centennial Public School would retain its MFI program, which should continue to grow, and its students would merge with the Glebe MFI graduates at Glashan Public School. Elgin Street Public School EFI students would move to Glashan Public School for grade 7 and 8, keeping them together with the students from their English program. She added that Cambridge Public School, Centennial Public School and Elgin Street Public School are unchanged in this solution as all three schools are expected to be implicated in future accommodation studies. Ms. Massey stated that in addition to the recommended option, the AWC developed a re noted as follows; Enhance communications and marketing of the English program; Review the transfer policy in terms of strengthening programs; Review /improve Core French program to increase French language outcomes; Review Board policy with respect to: Flexible entry points into Immersion programs; Embrace the notion of integrated classrooms when the language of teaching is the same; and Set specific, measurable goals on program viability and actions to take when goals are not met. In summary, Ms. Massey indicated that Option 2 along with the recommendations is a platform that is encouraged by the AWC for Board and staff consideration. Director Adams thanked the AWC for their commitment and hard work. b. Questions from Trustees Staff and the AWC responded to a number of trustee queries and the following points were noted: During the process of the review, it became apparent that the main lack of capacity was in the Glebe area. Schools located north of the Queensway did not fit into the solution of the committee; therefore, it was decided by the AWC not to focus on that area. In addition, the AWC was informed that Elgin Street Public School would be a re-build; Greenspace was discussed and viewed by the committee as an issue. It was reported that there was no clear solution; however, preservation was taken into consideration; The area Northwest of the Bronson/Carling intersection was not deemed an area of concern; Concern was not expressed by parents regarding the possibility of grade 6-7 students directed to Glashan Public School transferring to the Catholic School Board. It was noted that the main concern was the cohorts remaining together; The AWC believes by adding MFI and integrated classrooms, support for the English program would increase; Mutchmor Public School parents expressed concern with the geographical boundaries and the commute over a high traffic bridge and the addition of school buses in the community; Concern was expressed from parents regarding a dual track EFI program and that the school may be marginalized; - 3 - Special Committee of the Whole (Public) 17 November 2011 Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South Expenditures for the 11 room addition at Mutchmor Public School would be below that of First Avenue Public School. The estimated cost would be $3.5-$5 million dollars; however, this would depend on the extent of the engineering work. The expenditures for the six room addition was estimated at two-thirds the cost since in either scenario there would be infrastructure costs; Neighbourhood schools was identified as the top priority by the community; The projected enrolment numbers on folio 63 of the report were based on status quo. The AWC anticipates students will enrol in MFI over EFI; The Gifted EFI programs are offered at Hilson Avenue Public School and Fisher Park Public School; The AWC was not aware of the possibility of offering the EFI program at Viscount Alexander Public School; therefore, it was not discussed as a solution; and The Best Start designation is not currently available at Mutchmor; therefore it was not discussed by the AWC. 5. Report No. 11-204, Timelines/Next Steps for Centretown/Glebe/Old Ottawa South Accommodation Review Your committee had before it staff report 11-204, providing for information, an update on the timelines and next steps for the Centretown/Glebe/Old Ottawa South area accommodation review. Chair Funicielllo reported that the Centertown/Glebe/Old Ottawa South accommodation review terms of reference and timelines were approved at the 22 March 2011 Board meeting. She added that the review is now moving from the discussion stage to the decision-making stage. The status of the Accommodation Review was noted as follows; Staff report to be released and posted to the website early in the week of 21 November 2011. A meeting to hear delegations has been scheduled for Wednesday, 30 November 2011; In light of these timelines staff is recommending that the deadline for delegation requests be extended to Monday, 28 November 2011 at 12:00 p.m. Submit delegation requests to the attention of Maureen Strittmatter, maureen.strittmatter@ocdsb.ca. A revised agenda including all delegations will be posted to the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board website on Tuesday, 29 November 2011; Debate is scheduled to commence at the Committee of the Whole, Public meeting of 12 December 2011; and Final decision to the Board 20 December 2011. Director Adams requested that the meeting on 30 November 2011 commence at 6:30 p.m. She added that staff recommendations will be presented prior to delegations. In a response to a query from Trustee Campbell, Trustee Funiciello indicated that she anticipates an opportunity for trustee questions prior to delegations at the meeting. In response to a query from Trustee Campbell, Superintendent Michael Carson indicated that in the past, at the discretion of the Board, additional time was permitted for delegations depending on the level of participation throughout the entire process. Chair Funiciello added that staff would have a further discussion regarding the request for additional delegation time and will provide the information to the public once confirmed. - 4 - Special Committee of the Whole (Public) 17 November 2011 Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South 6. New Business There was no new business. 7. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:33 p.m. Bronwyn Funiciello, Chair, Committee of the Whole (Public) - 5 - Special Committee of the Whole (Public) 17 November 2011 Centretown / Glebe / Old Ottawa South