By Pepper Parr
November 17th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The closing of a high school is significant and disruptive.
The Director of Education wants to give the public every opportunity to be informed and ask questions.
Burlington has seven high schools where there are 1800+ empty seats – and that isn’t, as Director of Education Stuart Miller points out is not sustainable.
To add to the situation – Burlington has a high school that is at 115% of capacity and has had to add portables – for a school that was opened three years ago.
Director of Education Stuart Miller preparing to talk to Central high school parents.
The high school capacity in Burlington is south of the QEW – the population is north of that line.
Something had to be done to fix this imbalance. The Board of Education staff put forward a recommendation – one of 19 different possible recommendations to close Central and Pearson high schools.
While not required to get out into the community and explain the full story – some school boards pass the task along to the trustees and let them deal with the mess – Miller decided to hold at meeting at every high school and pass along to them the information he has.
One of the five people in the picture is the high school principal. Parent participation was dismal.
Some of those meetings were very well attended – others, sparse would be being polite. The parents just didn’t show up at Bateman high school which is a school that is very much at risk. That it wasn’t the staff recommendation doesn’t save Bateman. It is the trustees that will make the decision and there were 19 recommendations – and Bateman has a low and falling registration.
Amy Collard, school board trustee for the ward Bateman high school is in attended the sparsely attended meeting.
With Nelson high school just a couple of km away – Bateman parents want to listen up – carefully.
Miller has decided to go one step further and hold an on line Q&A on Monday, November 21st between 7:00 and 8:30 pm
