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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSpecial Board 26 Mar 2002 Minutes PublicLW IN 0 ELM OTTAWA CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 26 March 2002 A special meeting of the Ottawa - Carleton District School Board regarding proposed school closures, was held this evening in the Board Room, 133 Greenbank Road, Ottawa, Ontario. The meeting commenced at 7:30 pm with Trustee Jim Libbey in the Chair, and the following in attendance: Trustees Lynn Graham, Margaret Lange, Myrna Laurenceson, Norm MacDonald, Sheryl MacDonald, David Moen, Lynn Scott (by phone), and Joan Spice. Staff: Director of Education and Secretary of the Board, Jim Grieve; Superintendents Larry Archibald, Rose -Marie Batley, John Brennan, Nancy MacLeod, Laura McAlister, Katharine Saunders, and Judy Turriff; Manager, Facilities, Physical Planning and Transportation, Michael Carson; Assistant Secretary of the Board, Joan Melancon, Manager of Communications and Informa- tion Services, Maggie Melenhorst; Management, Policy and Planning Advisor, Janice Sargent; Technician, Robert Giekes; and Committee Coordinator Brenda Cooper. Planning Staff: Planners Ian Brown, Estelle Butler Janet Sauriol, and Mark Smith; Planning Technician Steve Belan. Student Trustee: Trevor Robinson. 164. Call to Order and Introduction Chair of the Board The Chair called the meeting to order, and noted that this special meeting had been called to receive the staff recommendations regarding school closures. He recalled that the 2002 -03 budget approved by the Board on 4 March included provision for approximately $1 million in operating reductions to be achieved through the closure of schools, in a school closure process to be completed by 15 May 2002. 165. Approval of Agenda On a motion by Trustee Norm MacDonald, seconded by Trustee Scott, the agenda was approved as presented. 166. Public Ouestion Period There were no questions from the public. 167. Presentation of Staff Recommendations re School Closures The Director introduced the recommended closures by noting that regrettably, because of fiscal pressures caused by the provincial underfunding of education, operating budget reductions from the closure of schools formed a part of the 2002 -03 budget. He outlined the major budget cuts dating back to 1998, and observed that unless the province makes improvements to the funding formula, the Board will not receive funding for all the space it has. Everyone -- students, parents, trustees, staff and residents -- share distress at the loss of such important parts of the community. - 123 - 0 ML OTTAWA CARLETON DlSTR1CT SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 Each school is key to its community, but in order to live within its resources, the Board must reduce space within its low growth areas. In order to save the required $1 million, it is proposed that four elementary schools and one secondary school, from across the jurisdiction, be dosed. In addition to the savings in operating expenses, the reductions will provide "credits" towards new pupil places. The Director expressed appreciation to planning staff for their hard work in preparing for this meeting. The Board had before it a staff report containing the staff recommendations for school closures and resultant boundary changes, as well as a memorandum from the Assistant Secretary of the Board with responses to questions about additions /deletions from the proposed list of closures, and outlining the process for trustee debate and decisions. Michael Carson reviewed the documents in support of the recommendations, noting that the recommendation for each school includes information regarding the designated schools for the students, student population projections, child care, community use of the school to be closed, facilities, transportation, boundary maps, and at the end of the report, a summary of the financial implications. The schools proposed for closure are J.H. Putman Public School, Lakeview Elemen- tary School, Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School, Riverview (Cumberland) Public School, and J.S. Woodsworth Secondary School. The report also includes descriptions of the other scenarios considered, timelines for the closures etc. He noted that projections were based on historic patterns and on the new City of Ottawa projections. Mr. Carson concurred with the Director that decisions about school closures are very troublesome for students, staff, parents, and trustees. The Board's urgent financial situation makes it more and more difficult to avoid school closures. Trustees have had concerns during previous school closure processes that neighbourhoods may shift to young families, and the schools would be required again. As population information in the report indicates, within the greenbelt, the elementary school population will decline by 6.2 %, while growth outside the greenbelt will be about 36.8 %. The schools which were selected can be closed and the boundary changes in place by 1 September 2002, with minimal disruption. This would realize savings of $1 million in the first year and up to $1.4 million in the following years (the lower savings in the first year would be due to moving and other associated costs). Mr. Carson noted that an offer for disposition must be made by 31 December 2002 in order to be eligible for grants. It was noted that delegations will be received at Committee of the Whole (Public) meetings on April 11, 16, and 18; that Committee of the Whole (Public) will debate the recommendations on May 7 and 9; and that the final decisions will be made at a special Board meeting on 14 May 2002. - 124 - 0 M,_j OTTAWA CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD 168. Trustee Ouestions /Discussion MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 Trustee Sheryl MacDonald noted that although she was not surprised by the recommenda- tions, she was disappointed. She acknowledged that Riverview, which is in her zone, is a very small school but pointed that if it were in another location and was not the anchor of the community, such a recommendation would be more acceptable. In addition, the east end is a high growth area, and some of the students would be directed to Riverview. She asked for clarification of Riverview's status with relation to the small schools grant, and for the high costs indicated for custodians, etc. in comparison with other schools. 169. Resolve into Committee of the Whole Chair Libbey suggested that the Board resolve into Committee of the Whole in order to get the motion on the table and permit freer discussion. On a motion by Trustee Sheryl MacDonald, seconded by Trustee Moen, the Board resolved into Committee of the Whole. Trustee Graham assumed the Chair in Committee of the Whole. There was no report from Committee, but the following is a summary of the discussion. There was some further discussion of the small schools grant, and it was agreed that staff will report back to trustees on this issue, and include comparative data on the costs for Fitzroy Harbour Public School in their report. Trustee Norm MacDonald placed the staff recommendations on the floor, viz: THAT the Board approve the following school closures and boundary and program changes: (a) J.H. Putman Public School THAT effective September 2002 the Board: (i) Close J.H. Putman Public School; (ii) Redirect grade 7 -8 EFI students to Fisher Park PS; (iii) Redirect grade 7 -8 English program students to Pinecrest PS; (iv) Remove the J.H. Putman PS /Pinecrest PS Grades 7 -8 English 'option area' and direct all Grade 7 -8 English students to Pinecrest PS; (v) Relocate the General Learning Program (GLP) and Special Support Unit(SSU) system classes currently at Pinecrest PS to Fisher Park PS; (vi) Relocate the Primary Assessment Centre (PAC) system class currently at Pinecrest to Century PS. - 125 - 0 [Ln OTTAWA CAUETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD (b) Lakeview Elementary School THAT effective September 2002 the Board: MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 (i) Close Lakeview Elementary School; (ii) Redirect JK ENG and SK -5 EFI program students to Bell's Corners PS; (iii) Relocate the Language learning Disabilities (LLD) system program currently at Bell's Corners PS to Bayshore PS. - (c) Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School THAT effective September 2002 the Board: (i) Close Lamira Dow Billings Elementary School; (ii) Redirect 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 Rd and Ogilvie Rd) to Le Phare ES; (iii) Redirect JK ENG and SK -5 EFI students residing in a portion of the Beacon Hill South /Cardinal Heights area (between Hwy 17 and Ogilvie Rd) and the southerly portion of the Beacon Hill North area to Robert Hopkins PS; (iv) Redirect Le Phare ES JK ENG and SK -5 EFI students residing in the northerly portion of the Beacon Hill North area to Robert Hopkins PS (d) Riverview Public School (Cumberland) THAT effective September 2002 the Board: (i) Close Riverview Public School (Cumberland); (ii) Redirect the JK -8 ENG program students to Trillium ES; (iii) Redirect students residing in the growth area east of Trim Rd to Fallingbrook CES for JK -8 ENG /EFI; students currently attending Riverview PS residing within this area would be permitted to attend Trillium ES, and would be provided transportation in accordance with applicable Board policies. (e) J.S. Woodsworth Secondary School THAT effective September 2002 the Board: (i) Close J.S. Woodsworth Secondary School; (ii) Redirect Grades 9 -OAC students residing north of Colonnade Rd (north) to Laurentian HS; (iii) Redirect Grades 9 -OAC students residing south of Colonnade Rd (north) to Merivale HS; (iv) Relocate the Special Education Developmental Disability system program to Laurentian HS; - 126 - i 0 ML OTTAWA CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 (v) Repatriate J.S. Woodsworth 'out of boundary' Grades 9 -OAC students to their home schools; (vi) Redirect the (former) Gloucester portion of the Merivale attendance boundary to Ridgemont HS on a phased basis, beginning with Grade 9 in 2002 -2003; (vii) Redesignate the Merivale /South Carleton optional area to a Merivale /South Carleton / Ridgemont optional area. It was noted that the recommendation would remain on the floor through the upcoming Committee of the Whole (public) meetings, and would be voted on before the Committee made its recommendations on school closures to the special Board meeting of 14 May 2002. Trustee Libbey requested that there be separate votes on each school, both in Committee and at the special Board meeting, and Trustee Sheryl MacDonald requested that there be recorded votes when the item comes to the Board. In response to queries, Michael Carson reported that it would cost about $7.5 -$8 million to build a school about the size of the new Adrienne Clarkson Elementary School. The Board would have to finance the project over about twenty -five years. Grants for a deficit of 700 pupil places would generate about $770K per year towards repayment. Closure of 1,000 pupil places would generate about $1 million for new schools or for additions /renewal. He confirmed that closing five schools would yield enough capital grants to build one new school. With regard to the demographic data, Mr. Carson reported that the Board has used census data as it is received, but there have only been bits and pieces. The census information is in line with the City's projections. With respect to the process and timelines, Mr. Carson advised that all the school councils have been identified and will come forth with responses. He stressed that the process is very different from that carried out in 1998. It is much shorter, and staff will have less time for involvement with the community. Copies of the report will be provided to school councils, and it will be posted on the website as soon as possible. The public will be able to send information requests through the website. In response to questions, Mr. Carson noted that other schools with more surplus space were not recommended for closure because it would create a domino effect and significant disruption. Some areas need area reviews before school closures recommendations could be formulated. With respect to why Laurentian, with a lower utilization factor, was not selected instead of J.S. Woodsworth, Mr. Carson advised that there would be no space for the Laurentian students, but the J.S. Woodsworth students can be accommodated at Laurentian and Merivale, plus Blossom Park at Ridgemont. -127- 0 ML OTTAWA CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 Trustee Laurenceson echoed Trustee Sheryl MacDonald in that she was not surprised at the recommendations. She was very disappointed, however, that two out of the five schools recommended for closure were in her zone, i.e., J.H. Putman and J.S. Woodsworth. She pointed out that J.S. Woods - worth is a vibrant and viable school with a high (97 %) utilization rate. Trustee Laurenceson expressed concern about the prospect of moving the five special education classes in her area, as she felt that this was an unnecessary disruption. Staff provided information on the location of other system classes. Trustee Moen remarked that he also was not surprised, but disappointed to find a school from his zone on the list (Lamira Dow Billings). He pointed out that two- thirds of the French immersion students in Gloucester north would be changing schools, and had concerns about operating a dual track program at Robert Hopkins, which is an open concept school. He noted that the community would like to have single track schools, and suggested the possibility for French immersion at Robert Hopkins, and English at Le Phare. Mr. Carson advised that this would require even more student relocation. Trustee Moen expressed disappointment that some of the long - standing. boundary and accommodation issues in this area have not been addressed. With respect to more general concerns, he noted that Cumberland and Crystal Beach would each be losing one of the few public buildings in their areas. Trustee Libbey stated that one of the key issues is to be satisfied that the students who move will be well- served. He asked about preparations for this at the receiving schools. Staff advised that all the schools are being kept well informed, and once decisions are made, schools will organize barbeques, activity days, information nights, etc. to welcome the new students and their families. Committee of the Whole rose and returned to the Board meeting at 9:05 pm with Trustee Libbey in the Chair. 170. New Business The Chair noted that future meetings of Committee of the Whole regarding school closures would be a continuation of the meeting just finished, and that the motion would remain on the floor. In response to a query, Superintendent Batley advised that trustee visits to the affected schools can be coordinated through the school operations office and that in addition to principals, school council chairs will be apprised of the visits. R) -128- 0 OTTAWA-CARLETON DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING 26 MARCH 2002 The Director noted for future reference Trevor Robinson's comment that the Closure of J.S. Woodsworth Secondary School would affect student council elections and the selection of student trustees. The meeting adjourned at 9:10 pm. James P. Grieve, Director of Education/ Secretary of the Board BLC /cb BE- 0200326Sp [A -129 - Jim Libbey Chair of the Board