Central Okanagan school trustees faced an agonizing decision last week in choosing a site for the badly needed new Westside secondary school.
As several trustees noted, it actually wasn’t much of a choice as the board of education was apparently left with one legitimate option – to repurpose École George Pringle Elementary as the new secondary school.
It is not a new move in the school’s history, given it was a secondary school more than 20 years ago until the school board of the day opted to convert it to an elementary and centralize Westside high school students at a now overcrowded Mount Boucherie Secondary.
That was a controversial decision at the time, leaving many trustees now to regret its continuing resonance today.
While making a giant step forward, the school district is faced with dismantling an existing education and community service infrastructure that will pose challenges for those directly affected – students and parents.
Blaming a past school board’s decision may be a place to deposit frustration, however, the reality is none of us live looking in the rearview mirror. We have to always look forward and face the endless consequences of history that come before us.
The Central Okanagan has been on a boom growth cycle for the past two decades, and that growth places pressure on infrastructure elements to keep up, one of those most important elements being new schools.
Much like taking steps to prepare for the potential impact of a pandemic one day, not actively thinking ahead of new school demands when a population is surging, such as was the case also in the Lower Mainland suburb of Surrey, can present challenging consequences.
The current Central Okanagan Public Schools administration seems to recognize that fact and has taken steps to plan for and secure funding for future school sites now even if they might be five, 10 or 15 years away yet.
While often beyond the immediate scope of our attention, these are important decisions, ones that shouldn’t be made by bureaucrats in Victoria, need to be planned out and advocated for by local school district administrations and trustees elected to make those decisions.
Converting George Pringle back to its former state as a high school will impact both elementary English and French Immersion students who now face relocation in September 2022, the community services currently provided at the Webber Road Elementary facility now serving as a neighbourhood recreation centre, public use of a dog park and community garden adjacent to George Pringle, and the Beyond The Bell and Strongstart programs currently in place at George Pringle.
Building a new school is supposed to solve enrolment issues, not create others. Students tend to adjust to their surroundings but it may present challenges for parents, particularly those with children in French Immersion.
So when you hear politicians, city officials or the business community publicly championing urban growth in the Central Okanagan, maybe take the time to give some thought amid that economic euphoria to consider the implications of that growth.
~Black Press