Beacon Hill North Community Association

Tuesday June 29, 2010
Now it is OUR turn as a community

Monday November 16, 2009
COLONEL BY UPDATE

Sunday November 8, 2009
URGENT ACTION REQUIRED : Colonel By Counts but needs your help NOW !!!!

EMC : Staff recommends closure of Rideau High School, Colonel By and Gloucester also part of review process

EMC News - Staff of the Ottawa Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) recommended the closure of Rideau High School at a board meeting on October 8.

Rideau, along with Colonel By Secondary School and Gloucester High School were on the chopping block.

Issues of ongoing decline in enrolment at both Gloucester and Rideau were of concern, while Colonel By was added to the study due to space concerns if the an of the other two schools were to close, with students depending on boundaries and prorgramming redirected to Colonel By.

Despite recommendations by the Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) to have no schools close, board staff felt closing Rideau was necessary with enrolment continuing to decline.

"We examined all the information that was gathered," said Michael Carson, superintendant of facilities for the OCDSB. "We carefully considered the recommendations by the ARC. But we as a staff feel that Rideau High School can't be kept open any longer."

If Rideau High School is to close, it would be effective September of 2010.

Trustees questioned the decision and wondered of the benefits such a move would cause for students who attended Rideau.

"We recognize the role Rideau has played in the community,"added Carson. "We do believe that the other schools will provide the same role. We strongly believe the benefits of students attending the larger, combined schools."

If Rideau does close, students would be directed to Lisgar Collegiate Insititue, the Glebe Collegiate Institute and Gloucester High School, with the feeder schools receiving students based on programs and boundaries.

Rob Campbell, trustee for Rideau-Vanier, wondered if the recommendation to close Rideau was because board staff has simply "run out of ideas."

"This school has faced a decline in enrolment for years," responded Superintendent Carson. "This decision is not because we have run out of ideas. This recommendation comes from how best we can serve students in that community. In our opinion, to best serve the students is to close Rideau."

A delegations meeting will be held on November 23, with board staff and trustees debating the issue on December 7. A final decision will be made on December 15.

Evelyn Power Reid, a resident of Beacon Hill North and representative of Colonel By on the ARC, said that board staff failed to truly analyze the ARC's recommendations.

The ARC recommended that the board not close any of the schools, and asked the board to engage in a strategic, long-term planning with more community involvement.

The ARC also recommended that the board conduct consultations with schools suffering from low enrolment issues to identify and resolve the root problems for the declining enrolment.

The group also suggested for additional programs to schools with low enrolment problems while also providing these schools with funding so enrolment can be enhanced.

"We still don't know what is going on behind the scenes," she said. "You really need to look at what's really happening at all the schools, and we feel that isn't happening."

Tim Tierney, president of the Beacon Hill North Community Association said despite board staff's recommendation, Colonel By isn't out of the woods yet.

"There's still a long way to go," he added. "There's still some questions that need to be answered."