Emotions ran high and spirits were low for many of the more than 80 people who showed up at 100 Mile House Junior Secondary on Oct. 4 to hear more about proposed school closures.
At the meeting, slated to discuss the potential shutdown of the junior secondary and Buffalo Creek Elementary School (BCES)‚ concerned community members heard School District #27 superintendent Mark Theissen present the board's Initial Options Report.
Resulting reconfigurations planned for all remaining south-end elementary schools from kindergarten to Grade 8, and grades 9-12 for Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School (PSO), were also explained.
After the presentation, trustees fielded questions and explained their rationale in proposing the school closures as a possible way to mitigate the financial shortfall resulting from Ministry of Education funding cuts.
Parents and students passionately asked questions when they addressed the board.
BCES Parent Advisory Council president Julie Dewsbury had several questions for the trustees, and also presented comments from other parents.
These comments pointed to student improvement after relocating to BCES, with its "friendly, family atmosphere" offered by the staff, its "wonderful and unique learning experience" of small, multi-grade classrooms, and its "huge gym and great playgrounds."
Dewsbury asked if the board has considered the feelings of Grade 8 students who would face the status of still being in elementary school, and expressed other concerns with having 13-year-olds mixed in a school with five-year-olds.
"Even some Grade 7s, who start their hormones earlier, are ready to be in a high school. Do you really want those Grade 8s mixing with kindergarten kids?"
The PAC president said she has personal knowledge of students who smoke marijuana, are sexually active, and girls who have taken pregnancy tests, while still in Grade 8.
School board chair Will Van Osch reiterated that if the district didn't make changes, it would have a $900,000 shortfall next year, $1.8 million the year after that, and $2.7 million the following year, due to the ministry having pulled its funding protection.
The district cannot submit a deficit budget, so trustees were forced to look at methods to manage that, he said, but are "very open" to other suggestions to help accomplish efficient space utilization at its schools.
Therefore, he added, the board followed policy to invoke a 90-day consultation process for input and ideas and will hold further meetings as this period progresses.
Then it will make decisions in January to implement in the 2013/14 school year.
Local parent and past PAC representative Lori Dodds asked the board several questions, including why the board is looking at closing BCES rather than the Forest Grove or Lac la Hache elementary schools, where she says enrolment is also low.
Van Osch explained the board looked at geography, enrolment and facility conditions for each school before coming up with the suggested options.
"The number of students in the Buffalo Creek catchment area has dropped quite dramatically, and there are very few students left."
The school is in need of capital expenditures for repairs, he added.
However, Forest Grove Elementary School effectively serves the eastern parts of the south end, he noted, and is also further from the other local schools, so the impacts, such as busing time, would be greater on its students.
The board chair also explained that Mile 108 Elementary School, the next closest school to Lac la Hache, currently doesn't have the capacity to take on its students.
Many other aspects were covered and more details and possibilities are yet to be explored, so parents, staff and other community stakeholders are asked to bring their ideas to the next south-end meeting.
The Out of the Box Think Tank brainstorming session will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 23 in the PSO gym.