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HomeMy WebLinkAbout13 COW Public Report re School Closures 9 May 2002�5. OTTAWA - CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD Report, Committee of the Whole (Public) (School Closures) TO: Board of Education DATE: 9 May 2002 A meeting of Committee of the Whole (Public) (School Closures) was held this evening, at 133 Greenbank Road, Ottawa, in the Board Room commencing at 7:45 p.m. with Trustee Lynn Graham in the Chair and the following also in attendance: Trustees Margaret Lange, Myrna Laurenceson, Jim Libbey, Norm MacDonald, Sheryl MacDonald, David Moen, Pam Morse, Lynn Scott and Joan Spice. Staff: Director of Education and Secretary of the Board, James Grieve; Superintendents Rose - Marie Batley, Judith Hoye, Dan Mason, Laura McAlister, Katharine Saunders and Judy Turriff, Manager, Facilities, Planning and Transportation, Michael Carson; Planners Ian Baxter, Estelle Butler, Janet Sauriol and Mark Smith; Planning Technician Stephan Belan, Manager, Physical Facilities/Design and Construction Services, Kathleen Lausman, Assistant Secretary of the Board, Joan Melancon; Manager of Communications, Maggie Melenhorst, Management, Policy and Planning Advisor, Janice Sargent; A/V Technician, Robert Giekes and Committee Coordinator, Bruce Fraser. Student Trustee: Trevor Robinson. Call to Order and Introduction: Vice -Chair of the Board Chair Graham called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone to the meeting. She acknowledged that the school process is a stressful time for everyone and requested that an appropriate level of decorum be maintained during the meeting. 2. Approval of A eg nda On a motion by Trustee Sheryl MacDonald, the agenda was approved as circulated. 3. Public Question Period a) Victor Emerson In response to a query by Victor Emerson regarding eligibility for transportation for EFI students redirected from J.H. Putman to Fisher Park PS, Michael Carson advised that some conditions regarding transportation for some students would be extended but in general students will have greater distances to travel. b) Andrew Denny and Rose Hask Andrew Denny and Rose Hask informed trustees that many J.H. Putman PS supporters will not be attending the Special Board meeting as they will be involved in a music leadership camp on that date. C) Doug Coburn In response to a query by Doug Coburn regarding the additional transportation costs that will result from the closure of Riverview PS, Michael Carson advised that there will be minimal costs involved due to the number of buses currently servicing that area of the Board. -1- � b- d) Joan Hill -Keast In response to a query by Joan Hill -Keast regarding enrolment projections, Michael Carson explained that planning staff consider historical information and hold discussions with principals to arrive at a projection which is agreed to by the principal of each school. e) Emilia Iveson Emilia Iveson asked if the Board would guarantee that the Music Program at Fisher Heights PS would be maintained at a comparable level to J.H. Putman PS. She noted that the time available for rehearsals for students would be limited due to increased travel times. Chair Graham advised that issues such as these would likely be raised during debate. 0 Tim Hoskins In response to a query by Tim Hosking with respect to the effectiveness of the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) testing, Director Grieve noted that the tests do provide useful information but they are only one of the tools used for student assessment. He encouraged Mr. Hosking to share his views with the Ministry of Education and the EQAO office. g) Kathryn Howitt Kathryn Howitt referred to the recent Ottawa Citizen article concerning the negative effect of excessive noise on student achievement levels and noted that open concept schools are worse than regular schools. She asked if it would be wise to keep L.D. Billings ES open pending the result of the research that will commence in the fall. Director Grieve advised that he was familiar with the article and the debate with respect to noise in open concept schools. He noted that the Board has a number of open concept schools that work well and the effectiveness of the school depends on staff working together to provide a positive learning environment. h) Pat Moore Pat Moore asked if it would be prudent to delay any school closure decisions until the government announces a complete funding policy. Chair Graham noted that decisions made at tonight's meeting will be recommendations to the 14 May 2002 Board meeting. Information provided by the government prior to the meeting will be taken into consideration. i) Doug Nelson In response to a query by Doug Nelson, Michael Carson advised that staff are aware of the issues regarding the safety of students crossing busy streets and intersections to use public transportation. He noted that the situation currently exists for some students who attend J.H. Putman PS. j) Angela Connidis In response to a query by Angela Connidis with respect to recent suggestions made by -2- Dalton McGuinty MP regarding student safety, Chair Graham and Director Grieve noted that the Board has a number of policies and safety initiatives in place that were not mentioned by Mr. McGuinty. Director Grieve noted that there are also worthwhile options utilized in the community, such as neighbourhood watch, and agreed that a discussion on the issue would be worthwhile. Continuation of Debate on Closures and Recommendations to the Board Trustees agreed that they would complete debate and vote on each part of Trustee Norm MacDonald's motion from the 26 March 2002 Special Board meeting before continuing to the next school. a) J.H. Putman PS Trustee Laurenceson advised that J.H. Putman is a small neighbourhood school that provides more opportunities for students to participate in activities than would be available at a larger school. She noted that the participation rate at the school is very high and noted that approximately 60% of the students participated in the recent production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Trustee Laurenceson advised that students take advantage of the early opening of the school library and also arrive early for band practice. She noted that both the Grade 7 and Grade 8 bands won silver medals at the Kiwanis Music Festival held in April. Trustee Laurenceson expressed the view that students will have limited opportunities to participate in extra curricular activities due to additional travel times and transportation arrangements that will be required. She pointed out that the Board's Strategic Plan promotes the concept of a school being the hub of the community and commented that J.H. Putman will be penalized for achieving that status. Trustee Laurenceson urged the Board to defeat the motion to close J.H. Putman and show that the Board values quality over size. Trustees speaking in support of the motion expressed the view that the Board currently has an excess of space that must be minimized in order to acquire funding for the construction of schools in areas of growth. Trustee Scott noted that the success of a school results from the effort of staff, students and members of the community regardless of the location and travel requirements. Trustees speaking against the motion expressed the view that small neighbourhood schools are preferable and that the Board should not close J.H. Putman until a number of program issues, such as those that arise from secondary school reform, have been considered. Trustee Moen expressed the view that, while there are pockets of underutilized space, there is not a board wide surplus. He noted that a number of existing programs could use additional space. Trustee Spice expressed concern with respect to the size of the catchment area for EFI students program and the distance to Fisher Park PS. The motion, to close J.H. Putman PS, was defeated. b) Lakeview PS Trustee Lange advised that Lakeview PS has a high utilization rate and that the majority of students live in the local community. She explained that the school is the hub of the community and noted that the local Catholic elementary school will likely be closed next year as it is underutilized leaving Lakeview PS as the only public building in the area. She urged the Board to keep Lakeview PS open. Trustee Norm MacDonald expressed the view that not closing schools is unfair to parents and students in areas where new schools are required and will have financial as well as political repercussions. -3- S>. f�lJ Trustees speaking against the motion noted the school's close ties to the local community and its high utilization rate. The motion, to close Lakeview PS, was defeated. C) Lamira Dow Billings ES Trustee Moen expressed the view that schools should only be closed if they are unsafe or not needed and that L.D. Billings ES does not fit either criteria. He noted that closing this school at this time could constrain the development of a permanent comprehensive plan to balance school enrolments and maximize the effective use of space. Trustee Moen submitted that the Board will not realize any significant monetary savings and closing the school would be premature. He urged trustees to vote against the closure of L.D. Billings Elementary School and to move forward in the development of a comprehensive plan to address the rationalization of enrolment levels. Trustees speaking in support of the motion expressed the view that the Board must consider opportunities to improve the use of space and to eliminate surplus pupil places where possible. It was noted that overall enrolment levels in the three area schools are low, and therefore, the students can be effectively accommodated at Robert Hopkins PS and Le Phare ES with only a negligible increase in transportation costs. Some trustees expressed the view that some of the savings should be invested to improve the receiving schools. It was noted that this area of the Board has been studied a number of times and staff have previously recommended the closure of L.D. Billings ES. The motion was carried. On a motion by Trustee Norm MacDonald, therefore, your Committee recommends: * i) THAT Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School be closed, effective September 2002; ii) THAT Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School JK ENG and SK -5 EFI students residing in the Pineview /Cyrville area and a portion of the Beacon Hill South/Cardinal Heights area (between Montreal Road and Ogilvie Road) be redirected to Le Phare Elementary School, effective September 2002; iii) THAT Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School JK ENG and SK -5 EFI students residing in a portion of the Beacon Hill South/Cardinal Heights area (between Hwy 17 and Ogilvie Road) and the southerly portion of the Beacon Hill North area be redirected to Robert Hopkins Public School, effective September 2002; and IV) THAT Le Phare Elementary School JK ENG and SK -5 EFI students residing in the northerly portion of the Beacon Hill North area be redirected to Robert Hopkins Public School, effective September 2002. * Note: Recommendation approved at the Special Board meeting on 14 May 2002. d) Riverview PS Trustee Sheryl MacDonald expressed the view that the school is needed as the area surrounding the school is one of the fastest growing areas in the region. She noted that should the school be closed the four remaining schools in the area would average a 96% utilization rate before absorbing any of the new growth in the area. Ij -4- -S5 Trustee Sheryl MacDonald submitted that only $38,000 in savings would be realized from the closure of the school and that it would cost approximately 2.7 million to replace the lost space if the Board had to build a new school in the future. She pointed out that the school is eligible for a small school grant of approximately $109,450. She expressed the view that it would not be in the best interest of the students to close the school and then move them into portable classrooms at another school. She urged trustees to keep Riverview PS open. Trustees speaking in support of the motion expressed the view that, because the bulk of the population growth is 7 -10 kilometres from Riverview PS, it would be difficult to attract students from the western edge of the catchment area to the school. In response to a query, staff confirmed that portable classrooms should not be required at Trillium PS and that the impact on transportation would be minimal. Trustees speaking against the motion noted that Riverview is a local school in relatively good repair with close ties to the community. Some trustees expressed the view that the savings that would be realized from closing the school are not significant and that leaving it open would provide the Board with the flexibility to accommodate students from the high growth areas should the need arise. The motion, to close Riverview PS, was defeated on a tie vote. The meeting adjourned at 9:50 p.m. baf/CO W(Pubhc)5 /9 /02.doc -5- Lynn Graham, Chair Committee of the Whole