There is another joint committee 2/3 meeting Thursday at 5:30, followed by an open board meeting at 7:00 PM with 2 items on the agenda:
1. Garibaldi Annex - proposed criteria and process for continued operation (report to be provided at the meeting)
2. Education Facilities Review - phase 1 implementation
At least 2 DPAC executives will be in attendance for both meetings.
Source: Julianne Doctor, DPAC
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Meeting Schedule
Board Meeting Agenda
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Plan calls for closure of Vancouver west side school
VANCOUVER - Debate is expected to start Friday over a plan for the city's west-side schools that could see the closure of one elementary school, the opening of another to serve burgeoning University of B.C. neighbourhoods and the relocation of a popular high school.
The school targeted for closure is Queen Elizabeth annex, a small K-3 facility on Crown Street. The newly released plan would see the annex sold to help cover the cost of moving University Hill secondary into a leased UBC building and transforming its current site into an elementary school.
Despite protests from parents and school employees at a special board meeting tonight, trustees voted 6-3 to begin public consultations leading to a decision by March about whether to go ahead with the proposals.
The changes are intended to create more classroom space where needed, allow seismic upgrades at Jules Quesnel, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth and expand French-immersion and other choice programs.
Trustees Al Blakey, Sharon Gregson and Allan Wong opposed the plan, saying they weren't convinced it is necessary to consider selling a school and there wasn't enough time allotted for a proper review. As well, Blakey said it was "utter stupidity" to look at west-side schools in isolation.
In fact, the west-side report is just the first phase of a district-wide review that began in 2005. Officials have not said when other phases will begin or what schools could be affected.
The board will start advertising its west-side plan today and public consultations at the affected schools are to commence next week.
The review was spurred by demographic changes that have left some schools overcrowded and others with hundreds of empty seats. Provincial rules prevent districts from opening new schools while there is unused capacity nearby.
District staff says more efficient use of schools would be advantageous for all students.
"Due to budget shortfalls, the school district has been reducing education program funding on an incremental basis. With some consolidation of educational facilities, there would be an opportunity to reduce [non-instructional] operational costs and, in effect, protect funding for education programs," the report says.
Vancouver is one of dozens of B.C. districts dealing with declining enrolments, but it has been slower than others to take action. Since a funding formula change six years ago made it uneconomical for districts to operate underpopulated schools, more than 130 schools around B.C. have closed.
Vancouver has shut only one school in recent years - Shannon Park annex in 2002. Recently, Garibaldi annex was also identified for possible closure, but the board delayed a decision until March to give the community time to come up with a rescue plan.
Annexes are smaller than regular elementary schools and more expensive to operate.
Vancouver's public school enrolment fell to 53,271 last year - down 4,304 students, or 7.5 per cent, from a peak enrolment in 1997. That's partly because of demographic changes and also because a growing number of students - 16 per cent last year - have opted for independent schools.
As a result, the district is operating at 86-per-cent capacity, leaving 8,500 seats empty in schools and more than 3,000 in portables. But around UBC, where more than 2,000 new residential units have recently been constructed and more are planned, schools are filled beyond capacity and turning students away.
Although public consultations are planned, the district's time frame is tight. A decision about whether to move University Hill secondary into a building vacated by the National Research Council at UBC must be made by March. If not, the opportunity to transform that building into a high school could be lost.
The plan is expected to have minimal effect on four other schools in the neighbourhood: Southlands, Lord Kitchener and University Hill elementary and Lord Byng secondary.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=33776b9f-24c3-463b-8c79-bf5f87ca5f45&k=1999
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