One school next year
The school bell will ring in a single newly renovated building when Creemore elementary students head back to school next year.
In a move to consolidate resources amid declining student enrollment, Simcoe County District School Board has decided to move kindergarten and grade 1 and 2 classes from the current Nottawasaga and Creemore Public School (NCPS) site on Caroline Street to the newer building at 240 Collingwood Street.
To accommodate the resulting increase in student population at the Collingwood Street site, the School Board plans to renovate and enlarge that building by September 2014.
The renovations will be paid for with Full-Day Kindergarten funding, which each school board receives from the province. Full-day kindergarten will be implemented for the first time at NCPS next fall.
“Schools have been shrinking throughout the province for a long time,” said Caroline Smith, Simcoe County District School Board trustee. “Student numbers at NCPS haven’t been as high as expected.”
Together, the two school buildings have the capacity for 260 students. This year, NCPS has 186 in total, which is below 30% of its capacity.
The junior site on Caroline Street is built to house five classrooms and a library. This fall, with 60 students, there are only three classrooms in use.
There are 126 students in grades 2 to 8 enrolled at the senior site.
“The older buildings don’t have the improved heating, flooring and equipment that the new ones do,” said Smith. “As well, in Creemore, the kids have to go back and forth between sites.”
Currently, students at the junior site walk to the senior site for gym classes since there is no gymnasium in their building.
“This caught the attention of the Ministry of Education,” said Smith. “They approved us doing major improvements and putting all the kids at the same school.”
The renovations to the senior site will include adding two more classrooms and a gymnasium, as well as updating the library.
“Improvements to the school will affect kids’ experience of school,” said Smith. For example, more books and updated technology will improve the use of library. “There are positives to new renovations.”
NCPS Principal Heather Birchall agrees. “I’m really looking forward to having all the students and staff in one building. This will help programming, consistency and safety.”
“The success of teaching lies in collaboration. With one building, we will have more collegiality and be able to do more professional planning,” Birchall said.
The junior site, which has historically housed the younger students, was built in 1917, with additions constructed in 1970 and 1995.
According to the School Board, the building’s mechanical, electrical and structural systems are failing. While the structure has minimum life safety systems, they do not meet today’s building code requirements. The floor, paint, lighting, ceiling tiles and electrical service all need to be repaired. There have been concerns about mould in the basement and the school is not accessible due to its multi-level layout, as well.
The single-level senior site was built in 1966 (with additions made in 1968 and 1977) and now requires improvements to flooring, paint, ceiling tiles and lighting.
Once the junior site is empty, the School Board will either keep the building or offer it to the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board. If the Catholic School Board declines its use, then it will be offered to the municipality. After that, if there are no takers, it will be put up for sale.
Smith will be speaking and answering questions from parents at the NCPS School Council meeting on Tuesday, November 5, at 6:30 pm at 240 Collingwood Street.
