The community of Owen Sound was well represented at Queens Park on Monday, when more than 50 local residents travelled to the Ontario Legislature to begin to make their case for saving OSCVI. A group of 42 travelled by bus, and were joined by several other supporters who travelled separately.
The bus group travelled with a stack of community petitions and letters of support and concern from the Owen Sound and larger community. The documents were delivered to MPP Bill Walker, who presented them to the Legislature, as the local group looked on from a full gallery.
A group of four students and two committee members were invited to a special private meeting with Education Minister Liz Sandals on Monday: a day which kicked off "Education Week" in Ontario. Attendingthe special meeting were student representatives Kersti Landra (OSCVI Co-President), Mitch Hendry (OSCVI Past Co-President), Dylan Williams (student committee spokesperson), and Isabel Drummond (OSCVI student rep on the ARC committee), as well as committee members Kimberley Love (OSCVI parent), and Styn Furness (Chair of OSCVI Alumni).
The community petition – which was launched just 8 days earlier – had secured an astonishing 2,152 signatures before MPP Walker presented it in the Legislature. That number is equivalent to 10% of the population of Owen Sound.
The Minister reached out on the weekend to invite the OSCVI group for a private meeting on Monday. The scheduled 15-minute meeting extended to half an hour, and the group said it was very productive. The Minister recognized both Hendry and Landra, who had met the Minister last week in Meaford. Early on in the Ministry meeting, the students were asked how they secured so many signatures so quickly. "We didn't have to do much," Dylan Williams explained. "The community came to us. They were tracking us down because they wanted to sign." The students have had a booth at the Owen Sound Farmers Market for the past few weeks, and the City of Owen Sound donated the free use of space at the Bayshore for signatures last weekend. Petition signatures were still arriving by mail and by foot on Monday.
The meeting with the Minister focused on sharing the concerns of OSCVI students, who are still dealing with the shock of the abrupt and unexpected closure of their school in just a few weeks, and on the depth and breadth of community support for the OSCVI students. While Ministry guidelines suggest a 24- to 30-month notice for the closing of a school, the students of OSCVI had only a matter of weeks. The meeting was an opportunity to express how the abrupt decision had affected students and staff.
OSCVI Alumni Chair Styn Furness spoke directly to the Minister about the concerns of the alumni group – who fundraised almost $900,000 for the OSCVI building. The group were never notified or consulted about the proposal to close the school. The Minister reviewed photos of both schools during the meeting, and was impressed by the auditorium at OSCVI, saying "we don't fund auditoriums like that".
The Minister provided additional information on the Administrative Review process. This appeal process is open to any group who feels that the ARC process was improperly managed, and requires the support of the school community. The file is reviewed by an independent third party, and if they conclude that the process was flawed, the decision of the ARC is "set aside", and a committee must go back to consult again.
The group called the meeting "a good beginning". They are now focused on the Administrative Review process. They hope to secure most of the eligible signatures in the coming days, and to file for the formal review in the next week.
Signatures for the community petition, and letters of support or concern will still be helpful, says Furness.
