5/2/2017 - Special Board Meeting
THAMES VALLEY DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
SPECIAL MEETING
2017 May 2
BOARD ROOM, EDUCATION CENTRE
The Board met in session on 2017 May 2 in the Board Room at the Education Centre, meeting in public
session at 6:00 p.m. The following were in attendance:
TRUSTEES
ADMINISTRATION AND OTHERS
M. Reid (Chair)
J. Bennett
R. Campbell
C. Goodall
G. Hart
P. Jaffe
B. McKinnon (by
phone -7:55)
A. Morell
Regrets:
A. Pucchio
S. Suvajac
S. Polhill
P. Schuyler
J. Skinner
R. Tisdale
J. Todd
L. Elliott
S. Builder
K. Bushell
M. Deman
K. Edgar
L. Griffith-Jones
R. Hoffman
R. Kuiper
D. Macpherson
P. McKenzie
L. Munroe
V. Nielsen
S. Powell
J. Pratt
T. Testa (+8:24)
B. Williams
B. Keast
C. Wiercinski
1. CALL TO ORDER
Board Chair M. Reid called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. and acknowledged the traditional
territory on which the Board meeting is held.
2. O CANADA
The meeting was opened with the playing of O Canada.
3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
The agenda was approved on motion of Trustee Jaffe seconded by Trustee Hart.
4. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST – None
5. PUBLIC INPUT
The schedule of Public Input Presenters was provided to the Board in advance of the meeting. Thirty-
one presenters provided public input regarding the Elementary Pupil Accommodation Review 01.
Trustees were given the opportunity to ask questions after each presentation. No delegations were
received regarding the Elementary Pupil Accommodation Review 02.
The meeting recessed at 7:55 p.m. on motion of Trustee Skinner, seconded by Trustee Tisdale and
reconvened in public session at 8:07 p.m.
6. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 9:10 p.m. on motion of Trustee Bennett seconded by Trustee Skinner and
CARRIED.
Confirmed:
Chairperson
Scheduled
Time
(p.m.)
Time
Allotted
(min.)
Name/Organization Key Message Power
Point Region
Name of
School
Community
6:05 5
Marcus Ryan New Sarum, Sparta, and Springfield should not close.A.J. Baker
6:10 5
Mayor Dave Mennill,
Township of Malahide
Mayor Dave Mennill will be presenting the Malahide Township Council's
concerns with respect to the proposal to close the Springfield Public School.
His presentation will emphasize the importance of schools as hubs in
communities, the economic benefits of schools and the connection to
residential development,
the social impacts of dislocating students and transferring them to other
schools, the unique programs offered in rural schools, such as environmental
programs; and requests that any accommodation review be cognizant of
these broader impacts and not just be focused on the bottom line. He will
further request that the Board of Trustees not proceed with the
recommendation to close the Springfield Public School.
Northern Springfield
6:15 5
Daniel West A review of the driving forces behind this PAR vs considerations that are
neglected in it.
A.J. Baker
6:20 5
Mayor David Marr,
Municipality of Central
Elgin
I will present the Municipality of Central Elgin position on the review. Belmont, New
Sarum, Sparta
and Port
Stanley
6:25 5
Sally Martyn The importance of rural schools in hamlets and villages, transportation costs
and French Immersion
Southern Sparta
6:30 10
Heather Derks, Sparta
School Council
School Council Chair speaking in response to recommendations of the FSAR
Southern Sparta
6:40 5
Valerie Everatt Keep Sparta school open - English track Southern Sparta
PUBLIC INPUT SCHEDULE: TUESDAY MAY 2
6:45 5
Sarita Vandernaalt Keep Sparta Public School open Southern Sparta
6:50 10
Alison Fleming, Home
and School Association
I will be speaking on behalf of the PTA about parent involvement, the role of
our school in the community and the need for a school in the community of
Sparta. I will be discussing the concerns parents and students have brought
to the PTA.
Southern Sparta
7:00 5
Meagan Ruddock Keep Sparta and Port Stanley public Schools Status Quo Southern Sparta
7:05 5
Hailey Clark Save Sparta School- presentation from a grade 6 Student Southern Sparta
7:10 5
Ruby Denniss Sparta is a school that gives me and my friends great experiences. Keep us
at Sparta, it makes the most sense.
Southern Sparta
7:15 5
Heidi Weninger I will be speaking to the Board of Trustees as to why my family wants Sparta
Public School to remain open.
Southern Sparta
7:20 5
Ashton, Corbin, and
Owen
A grade 7 student in French Immersion (Ashton) will speak to his experience
as a student who transitioned to Port Stanley PS for the 2016-17 school year.
He and two grade 6 students (Corbin and Owen) in the English track at Port
Stanley PS will present two short videos created to showcase the unique
offerings of the school and school community. They will speak to the need to
support the recommendations of Senior Administration as they relate to Port
Stanley Public School.
Southern Port Stanley
7:25 10
Janet Palmer, Port
Stanley School Council &
Port Stanley PAR
Committee
The Port Stanley community supports the recommendations made for Port
Stanley and Sparta Public School, and asks the Trustees to vote in favour of
closing Sparta and accommodating students at Port Stanley PS.
Southern Port Stanley
7:35 5
Christa Mobberley,
Mitchell Hepburn PAR
Committee
BUILD THE SOUTHEAST ST THOMAS SCHOOL Western Mitchell
Hepburn
7:40 10
Lisa Rattray, Mitchell
Hepburn School Council
Support new South East St Thomas school Western Mitchell
Hepburn
7:50 5
Marian Knelson To keep New Sarum public school open.Northern New Sarum
7:55 5
Kate Hurst Review of the parent/guardian feedback gathered by the New Sarum PS
PARC including survey results and key themes discussed during school level
meetings.
Northern New Sarum
8:00 5
Ron Fish I am requesting that the Trustees look at the facts before making their
decisions in regards to the final EPAR 01 recommendations. We live in a
diverse province and a one size fits all approach is not the diversity that is
Ontario.
Northern New Sarum
8:05 5
Wade Fitzgerald Consideration of keeping New Sarum public school open Northern New Sarum
8:10 5
Neil Clarke Removal of New Sarum PS closure from EPAR-01 highlighting public input.Northern New Sarum
8:15 5
Allison Fish I would like to present to the Board of Trustees the key reasons why my family
and other families with children attending New Sarum Public School are not
supporting the recommendations to close NSPS, as outlined in the FSAR.
Northern New Sarum
8:20 5
Morgan Brittan Van Wyk Non-closure for New Sarum: thoughts about rural school life and its value.Northern New Sarum
8:25 5
Danika Sims response to EPAR-01 final recommendations Northern New Sarum
8:30 5
Amanda Matthews New Sarum should remain open as an English track K-8 elementary school,
with current boundaries. Our school community has observed a disconnect
between Ministry of Education and/or TVDSB goals and strategies and the
recommendation as it pertains to the closure of New Sarum.
Northern New Sarum
8:35 5
Doug Tarry/Carrie
O’Brien, Doug Tarry
Homes
Development update, consider the volume of families moving to this area
Mitchell
Hepburn
8:40 5
Nathan Taylor Keeping New Sarum School Open Northern New Sarum
8:45 10
Amy Smith, New Sarum
School Council
A presentation to provide the reasons that the New Sarum school community
does not agree with the recommendation contained in the FSAR to close New
Sarum. We will be requesting the Board of Trustees to vote against senior
administration's recommendation to close New Sarum Public School.
Northern New Sarum
8:55 5
Jeff Yurek, M.P.P.Allow the build of the new school in Belmont to proceed while ensuring New
Sarum, Springfield and Sparta remain open.
Split EPAR 1 into 2 separate portions allowing for an extensive period to
thoroughly review and consult on the need to close the rural schools in the
communities listed in EPAR 1
9:00 5
John Hueston Leave open the rural schools in this PAR. Consider a smaller new school for
Belmont, or no new school.
Aylmer
2017‐04‐27
1
Heather Derks,
Sparta School
Council
DELEGATION TO TVDSB TRUSTEES, MAY 2 2017
Parent Engagement In Action
Our New Peace Garden- growing
food for School Nutrition Program
2017‐04‐27
2
“Dilution of
Resources”
Note the Scarcity
of Flags in the
Rural areas.
Resources
Already
concentrated in
Urban areas.
Post-
Consolidation
All Rural Schools Vanish
100% of Education
Resources
Stripped from
Rural Areas. Is this
Equitable?
“45% of residents of urban areas
are tenants,”-CBC Radio, 4/19/17
In Rural Ontario, nearly 100% of the population
are homeowners who pay pay property taxes
including the educational portion.
Senior Administration is recommending that you
concentrate all Educational resources into
Urban Areas, leaving 0% of the resources for
those who all pay into it.
Is That Equitable?
2017‐04‐27
3
“Educating Kids In Masses”
On April 11th Senior Administration
talked about how Educating kids “In
Masses” would lead to less of what
they call “Dilution of Resources.” This
was an objective of this PAR.
Does Educating kids “In Masses”
prioritize Academic Achievement?
We already have a Surplus
Total Enrolment in EPAR01 area: 3606
Total Existing Pupil Places 4762
Total Surplus Pupil Places 1156
Total New Build Pupil Places Created by EPAR01
Belmont 576
New Southeast 516
Total 1092
Teaching Spaces Don’t Disappear,
except from on the Balance Sheet
Pre-existing Surplus Pupil Places 1156
New build places 1092
Total Surplus Pupil Places 2248
2017‐04‐27
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Is This Sustainable?
The carbon and resources to build the
existing schools has already been expended.
Those teaching spaces don’t vanish just
because they’re taken out of the financial
equation
The environmentally responsible thing to do is
to utilize existing spaces, not build new
schools when you already have a surplus.
Conclusion:
Our Children Need a Livable
Planet.
Please put the closure of the
Sparta School on Hold.
Thank you.
2017‐04‐27
1
Port Stanley Public School
TVDSB PUPIL ACCOMMODATION REVIEW
School Council’s Perspective
During last year’s Attendance Area Review for French
Immersion, you heard our concerns about Port Stanley
Public School. For 10 years we have waited for a long
term solution to give our residents the faith they need
in our school’s viability. Young families have been
choosing French or Catholic education rather than risk
their kids being in a school likely to close due to low
enrollment.
Status Quo – Disadvantages for PSPS
Our English track numbers are too small
Lack of sports teams, clubs and extra-curricular
opportunities
All classes are split grades
Fewer opportunities for staff collaboration as one
teacher works independently with two grade levels in
the English track with no other teachers in the school
teaching those same grades
2017‐04‐27
2
THANK YOU!!
School council would like to thank the Planning
Committee for listening to our concerns last year. While
we didn’t get the solution we were after last year, we
now see the positives in that decision as we are moving
towards the long-term solution we were after much
sooner than we could have hoped.
Supporting the Recommendations of ePAR-01
The Planning Committee’s proposal to accommodate students from Sparta PS
at Port Stanley PS, is supported by the Port Stanley PS Par Committee and
community
It solves an ongoing issue at our school of low student enrollment due to fear of
closure created by our small attendance area
The entire Sparta PS student body will remain together
Port Stanley is large enough to support both school populations
Port Stanley has the space and municipal services available to accommodate
anticipated growth in our community.
Boundary – Attendance Area - Issue
Port Stanley Public School’s current attendance
area too small.
The proposed change in our attendance area
means that many students living closer to Port
Stanley PS than Sparta will have less distance to
travel to school.
2017‐04‐27
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The French Immersion Perspective
The French Immersion program wishes to
remain at Port Stanley P.S. until an option for a
permanent solution can be offered
The French community is looking forward to
participating fully in next year’s Attendance
Area Review for French Immersion in Elgin
County
Port Stanley Public School is a vibrant
and active learning environment
Port Stanley Public School has demonstrated the ability to make a transition work effectively from our experience this past fall in welcoming
French Immersion students. The credit goes to our students, teachers, staff
and administration who worked hard and listened to concerns expressed
by students and parents. They provided the support system to improve and ease this transition. While it has gone well, and we will miss the French Immersion community, we look forward to welcoming new students to our
school who will enrich every grade and every classroom.
We understand how difficult change can be. We feel confident that if we can make it work between two very diverse student groups, we can work
through any challenges arising from the amalgamation of Port Stanley and Sparta Public School
Thank you
2017‐04‐27
1
New Sarum Public School:
PARC School-Level Feedback
Kate Hurst (PARC member)
Parent of Students in Grade 1 and JK
Senior Administration states that “key to the
pupil accommodation review is
consultation with community
organizations, municipalities, school
communities, and the general public”-
EPAR-01 FSAR, 2017
Results of the NSPS PARC
•Used a variety a methods to reach out to the parent/guardian
community to obtain their feedback about the ISAR (meetings, online
survey, Facebook group discussions)
•Found recurring key themes were reported from the community
•High level of response and engagement from NSPS families and the
larger community with previous or current connection to the school
•Vast majority of NSPS families (living in the county and the
city) wanting the school to remain open
2017‐04‐27
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Survey
“At New Sarum, the EQA numbers show how wonderful the staff and their abilities are. What you
can't see in numbers is what a wonderful job they are doing with the children’s social skills and
personal development. We are also very concerned with longer bus times. Our kids already have a
long day and dragging it out with unnecessary bus hours is not fair to the children or their
parents.”
“We live in New Sarum and really appreciate how close the school is to our home. The hours of
operation work very well with out family situation. The sense of community and support is
outstanding and we fear that will be lost with the changing of schools.”
“I am concerned about disrupting their [students] relationships with staff and friends; a longer bus
ride; how my kids will fit in at a city school and participate in extra curricular activities when they
have to catch a bus …and that they will be overlooked or viewed by staff as an inconvenience
given the higher volume of students and resulting demand and pressures on staff.”
Petition
•256 signatures on the online petition
•Pen & Paper surveys were available at the New Sarum Diner, Family Flowers,
Dowler Karn and St. Thomas Huron Tractor
•Total signatures = nearly 600 supporting NSPS remain open
•Support from Central Elgin Council and MPP Jeff Yurek to keep NSPS
open
Key Recurring Themes
•Don’t understand why NSPS was included in the EPAR-01 based on the criteria
•Families purposely bought homes in the NSPS attendance area in order to have their children attend NSPS
given it’s respected reputation in the community and/or because it is a rural school with rural culture
•NSPS offers a large breadth of programming and students are not missing out on opportunities
•Families resent their children being displaced from their school to inflate numbers to form a critical mass of
students in new attendance area
•MOE is manipulating school boards and Trustees into unfairly closing schools in order to maximize a flawed funding formula
2017‐04‐27
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Why was NSPS included in EPAR-01?
•MOE/TVDSB provided criteria on which they base decisions about
school closures
•NSPS does not have empty pupil places. Enrollment projections are stable
•NSPS offers a wide variety of programming and extracurricular
opportunities for students JK-8. Additionally, there is a sensory room
available and a Transitions class for senior students is housed at NSPS.
•Families at NSPS have been vocal that they do not want the school to
close
Rural Schools Matter
•Many families have intentionally chosen to live within the NSPS attendance area
•Mainly rural students attend NSPS and this is reflected in the culture that has developed in the
school. There are high rates of parent and grandparent volunteerism and many staff are members of the local community
•The students at NSPS are equally entitled to an education in their community as urban students.
The majority of our students should not be displaced to St. Thomas in order to repatriate a
minority of students to St. Thomas
•NSPS families from St. Thomas did not indicate they wanted to see NSPS close or that they
wanted their children to attend the proposed SES school
Opportunities at NSPS
•None of the families we heard from raised concern that their children are
missing out on programming opportunities
•In fact, families resoundingly reported that they believe students benefit
from a wide variety of programming and extracurricular options that they
may not be able to participate in at a different school
2017‐04‐27
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The SES Quandary
•Tremendous housing development occurring in this area of St. Thomas which
suggests an impending critical mass of students is on the horizon
•Likely that, if the recommendation goes ahead as proposed in the FSAR, this
school will be overcrowded and the NSPS students will lose out on
extracurricular opportunities critical to their development and the close-knit
community they enjoy at NSPS
•Families are worried that the overcrowding and space issues Mitchell Hepburn
is challenged by will be repeated in the SES school
Politics of Education
•Much of the focus of EPAR-01 has been on maximizing a flawed funding
formula that is concerned with empty pupil places- this does not apply to
NSPS
•NSPS students are proposed for displacement into two attendance areas that
require our pupils to inflate numbers that should strengthen the business
case to secure capital funds for new builds in Belmont and SES
•When business and politics over-shadow student wellbeing we need to
press pause
Conclusion
•Families at NSPS overwhelmingly support our school remaining
status quo. Including the families that live in St. Thomas
•Our students benefit from the rural culture they experience at
NSPS and a strong sense of community
•The recommendation for closure is not inline with the criteria
school boards are encouraged to apply. There is steady, stable
enrollment projected at NSPS for at least the next 10 years
•Our school should not close. Please use your vote as a way
to recognize schools that are working will not be sacrificed
for political or minor monetary gains in this school board
2017-04-27
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Builder: Community
Input for EPAR-01
By Doug Tarry Homes
•Unprecedented scarcity of new
housing inventory; especially
low-rise homes – only 324 new
detached homes available for
purchase across GTA (March
2017)
•Record high prices! New, single
detached home in the GTA
averages $1,469,449. Average
price of low-rise product such
as townhomes/semi-detached
$1,081,013.
•Unprecedented demand for
new homes
•239 housing starts in the
London-St. Thomas area in the
month of March – compared to
84 in March 2016
•32% increase in single family
home starts
•“Not all consumers want to live
in a high-rise. They want to
live in a subdivision and raise
their families there”
2017-04-27
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Current, serviced lots (92
single, 24 semi units = total
116 dwelling units)
Build out expected before
2020; 256 units
Natural areas/green space
Future development (800
total: 500 units before 2020,
300 in future – expected
approx. 600 units to prop.
Mitchell Hepburn and
remaining 200 units to prop.
new school)
Development land; non-
residential
Martingale Terrace
Bridle Path
Peach Tree Boulevard
July 2014 April 2017
July 2014 April 2017
April 2017July 2014Google Aerial Summer 2015
Boundaries Change but enrollment
stays the same for MHPS
Mitchell Hepburn capacity = 678
Current capacity 113%
New area includes approx. 600
dwelling units of Harvest Run
(expected to be built within the
next 10 years) plus dwellings
currently under construction in
Orchard Park
2017-04-27
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•As a builder, we have seen that
families chose to send their
children to alternative schools
(Catholic, private, French-
immersion) rather than busing
while living in a holding zone;
this will result in reduced
funds for TVDSB
•Doug Tarry Ltd. does not want
to see the creation of another
holding zone