At the March 9 meeting of the Winnipeg School Division Board of Trustees, Sarah Jane Heke made a presentation showing that building swaps can and have been done successfully elsewhere in Winnipeg. This is her presentation, with letters from parents involved in a swap in Louis Riel School Division describing their experience.
The consultation process is underway and hopefully the feedback can assist you, the Trustees, in finding the most suitable resolution for the children of our neighbourhood. As one of the options quoted in the survey, I would like to touch on what we know about building swaps in Winnipeg and the success that has been achieved through the years.
Schools across the city have gone through various incarnations, either in terms of the education delivered, or the buildings in which it has been delivered, and that continues. Many buildings house schools that were not their original occupants and I suspect the concept was no less daunting to those folks as it is for us today. However, what we see today shows us that these school communities flourished in their new facilities, they didn't break up or cease to exist and as schools they are offering modern educational opportunities that likely couldn't have occurred in their original locations. The LaVerendrye Community Council is advocating switching buildings to address the predicament the school faces as it has proven to be the least disruptive, most economical and localised solution. We believe that a building swap would deliver the only immediate resolution to the untenable situation that exists at LaVerendrye while enabling children from both school communities to remain with their peer groups in their immediate neighbourhood, with their siblings and maintaining their individual school cultures while continuing and enhancing programming that is valued by both schools. We don't believe that the exchange of buildings needs to be at the detriment of one or other school community. The intent isn't to sacrifice one school and its individuality for the other and no parent advocating for this option believes it would be acceptable for that to happen.
Both buildings are of similar vintage, both have had similar investments made in them with the Laverendrye building on Lilac Street just about to have significant capital investment in the form of a new gym and classrooms and library. Two well designed newer play structures and swings and a beautiful garden offer the children many outdoor recreation and learning opportunities over and above the well fenced and secure playing fields. The school building has also housed a tremendous on site day care and lunch program that has nurtured many of the school's children; this building can and does accommodate lunch and care programming. Although Ecole LaVerendrye has regrettably outgrown the Lilac Street building, even with the new classrooms accounted for, it is the ideal size for a school community that doesn't exceed 280. This building swap isn't being advocated for because one building surpasses the other, but because one is larger than the other, as is the case with the population sizes of the school communities that occupy these buildings.
The Louis Riel School Division came to the conclusion last year that a building swap was the most reasonable solution to their overcrowding issue at their French Immersion Ecole Marie Anne Gaboury that was 105% over capacity, noting that Ecole LaVerendrye is 128% over capacity. Ecole Mary Anne Gaboury switched schools with its neighbour Hastings School in September 2014. It is understood that LRSD is now considering another school swap for two of its High Schools; this in itself seems to signify the success of the building swap strategy.
When addressing their overcrowding issue, Louis Riel School Division made their final decision in late April 2014, undertook renovations and personalised the buildings according to their new residents and facilitated the swap in time for the new school year in September 2014. Despite similar concerns and fears being voiced within the community, the swap went ahead and as the testimonials attached to your information packages attest, has been very successful. The school communities are intact including their respective onsite daycare facilities that relocated at the same time. Most importantly the children are happy; I have heard that they have settled in well at their new locations and are not suffering any ill effects, they adapted quickly with their friends and teachers. Children are pragmatic.
The following is a testimonial from one of the parents involved in the LRSD building swap as I believe it to be quite powerful in communicating there are positive outcomes of this proposal.
Other parents involved in the Ecole Marie Anne Gaboury and Hastings School initiative have submitted written testimonials commenting on their experience of the building swap. The author of the first letter in our package has kindly provided her contact details so that Trustees are able to make further enquiries regarding the process, or their experience during and since. This information is contained in the packages distributed with the agenda.
Thank you for your time.
Letter from C. Rummery, École Marie-Anne-Gaboury parent & past president of ÉMAG PAC:
Letter from T. McCaffrey, École Marie-Anne-Gaboury parent:
Letter from C. Gerbrandt, École Marie-Anne-Gaboury parent:
