Dear Ms. Hunter,
The Bluewater District School Board (BWDSB, the Board) has initiated a Pupil Accommodation Review (PAR) process where it has been recommended that Beavercrest Community School in Markdale, Ontario be closed as of June 2017, and that students enrolled there be bussed to three of the Board's other existing schools that are in closest proximity to Beavercrest.
As concerned community members and parents, we feel that the BWDSB has failed to engage in the process in good faith and that the actions of the Board to date also fail to be wholly compliant with guidelines set out by the Ministry of Education (the Ministry). The proposed transition plan also categorically ignores recommendations set out in current research around ensuring positive academic outcomes for students enrolled within the Board. The following points speak with more detail to these assertions.
The BWDSB announced the initiation of a Pupil Accommodation Review on September 6, 2016, citing a closure scheduled for June 30, 2017. Ministry guidelines demand that upon initiating a PAR, the Board must provide the assembled Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) with terms of reference and guidelines to support the work of the committee. The Ministry also indicates that the Board will ensure that Board staff is available to provide guidance and support information gathering. As of October 6th, 2016, no such materials or supports have been provided. Under a "standard" PAR process, which can be as little as five months long, this represents a marked reduction in time available to the ARC to be able to work efficiently and with a solid foundation and understanding of related processes and expectations.
While the Board has submitted an Initial Staff Report reflecting the economic outcomes for the Board related to the proposed closure, it has failed to provide any other justifications or analyses of impacts both immediately for Beavercrest students and more broadly for the town of Markdale and the greater Municipality of Grey Highlands. Earlier Ministry guidelines demanded that the Board, at the very least, undertake a broader economic impact analysis. To date, no such analysis has been provided. While the current Ministry guidelines do not specifically ask for this degree of analysis, given Markdale's position as host of the largest employer in the region (Chapman's Ice Cream), the failure to openly and appropriately provide evidence of a broader economic impact report or considerations of impacts that might be found therein is entirely unacceptable. The approach being followed demonstrates that this Board chooses only to tick the boxes indicated by the Ministry as "Minimum" standards, and chooses not to strive to be exceptional or even more than average, in its service of the community.
The Board has failed to demonstrate its commitment to students and education by neglecting to describe student outcomes related to school consolidation planning that will by design, result in larger class sizes. The Ontario Teachers' Federation in its policy resolutions relating to the Teaching Profession Act states that class size at the primary level will not exceed 20 students, and 25 students at the junior level. It is worth noting here that the Grade 3 Student Questionnaire EQAO Results say that an incredible 100% of Beavercrest's third graders said yes, "I like mathematics" and "I like to read," surpassing both Board and Province results. It is fair to posit that this positivity can be correlated to the traditionally, although not always, smaller class sizes at Beavercrest, which facilitate better one-on-one engagement opportunities between educators and students.
It is proposed that some students will travel up to 90 minutes by school bus to one of the three receiving schools. The Ontario School Bus Association cites evidence (accessed October 18, 2016) that home-to-school travel times exceeding one hour have a marked and negative impact on academic outcomes for students and impact other Quality of Life factors including intramural engagement, broader community engagement, social development and family life . These dramatically increased travel times also inarguably affect the safety of our children as travel times on our region's highway will be increased.
In its efforts to subscribe to Ministry-outlined Community Planning and Partnerships guidelines, the BWDSB has failed to effectively reach community stakeholders inclusive of potential community partners, for engagement in plans that allow for the co-location of multiple community services and programs within existing public facilities, namely schools in this case, which have space available due to reduced enrollment. The Board hosted a Planning and Partnerships meeting on June 14 of this year. The meeting report indicates a list of "invited" participants. The BWDSB has failed to be transparent as to exactly who was in attendance. Beavercrest is included on the list of facilities indicated as good candidates for program co-location and in fact slightly exceeds the 60% of capacity enrollment that the Board notes as the threshold under which schools become excellent candidates for co-location. It is reasonable, then, to assert that the BWDSB has no intention of authentically engaging the Planning and Partnerships process if schools are pushed off the roster before they even meet the reported criteria of an "ideal facility." Planning and Partnerships guidelines are set out by the Ministry and have been further detailed by the BWDSB.
Related to the Community Planning and Partnerships process, the Board has failed entirely to demonstrate any consideration or planning related to "Community Hub" strategies set out by Ontario's provincial government. These strategies were significantly updated in August 2016, with increased potential to leverage partnerships that take advantage of building vibrant community hubs in existing public facilities. The new guidelines include doubled preparation time for applicants, and a much-expanded list of approved potential programs and services for co-location in a Community Hub model. The new strategies also provide for significant changes to, and amounts of funding available to, facilitate these processes within communities in Ontario (Enabling and Celebrating Community Hubs – Government of Ontario, August 2016). With an announcement to proceed with a PAR by the BWDSB in early September, it is reasonable to assert that its decision-making process made no room for consideration of these new and strengthened strategic guidelines, which were released only weeks earlier. A fulsome, transparent and satisfactory consideration of these could not occur in this extraordinarily short time frame.
It is early in the process initiated by the BWDSB related to Beavercrest Community School. This already extensive list of concerns and mis-steps is very troubling when we are asked to put confidence in the BWDSB to ensure excellence, safety consciousness and thoughtfulness. These reflections are enough for us, as concerned citizens, to demand an immediate halt to the current process so that an exhaustive process review can occur. We are calling on the Ministry of Education to commence an administrative review of the PAR processes of the BWDSB related to Beavercrest Community School. We are also calling on the BWDSB Board of Trustees to exercise their authority and instigate an immediate and indefinite pause in this process so that a mindful and transparent consideration of all of the above can be undertaken!
Sincerely,
Shane Patey for
Save Beavercrest Committee
