OCDSB delays revised elementary review by a week

They need more time: The Ottawa Carleton District School Board says it’s delaying a revised proposal on changes to the elementary system until next week. In a letter to parents OCDSB Director of Education Pino Buffone said it will give them time to “thoroughly consolidate, analyze and incorporate the feedback received, and to allow for any updates to the proposed school locator.” 

• “This additional time will allow us to incorporate the feedback received and present a revised proposal for the elementary program model, rather than a recommendation report,” wrote Buffone. “The Board of Trustees and District staff will discuss this revised proposal at the April 8th Committee of the Whole meeting.”

Buffone said more than 10,000 parents, caregivers, staff, students and community members through the online survey, community meetings and other consultation pathways. 

What’s proposed: The OCDSB planned to change the map boundaries impacting 123 schools. That would see about 11,000 students need to switch educational facilities by September 2026, which is 5,000 more than in a normal year. A total of 30 schools would see grade reconfigurations, which parents say will lead them to having their children in multiple schools. 

• The reason for these changes is the board is in a tough financial spot. It’s facing a $20 million deficit for the 2025-2026 school year after already being in the red for the last four years. 

The impact to parents and students in North Gower 

One of the many parents hoping they will benefit from a revised plan is Kayla Fernet. When her son Connor starts Grade 3 in 2026, he will need to switch from his current school, only to switch back a year later. 

• ”Right now I have my son Connor, who's in grade one at Kars on the Rideau and my daughter Grace is going to be starting kindergarten this fall there under this proposal. The following year, Connor and Grace would both move to North Gower Public School for Grace's senior kindergarten year and Connor's grade three year,” Fernet told the Lookout. “Then the following year, Connor would need to move back to Kars on the Rideau for Grade 4 while Grace would still remain at North Gower.”

Why so many changes? Kars on the Rideau would go from a kindergarten to a Grade 8 school to Grades 4 to 8. North Gower Public currently goes from kindergarten to Grade 5. It will switch from kindergarten to Grade 5. 

By the numbers: North Gower’s school is currently under capacity and has only 122 kids out of its 260 max. But Fernet says that’s a good thing. More space means they have a body break room and other unique features. The reconfiguration would lead to over 290 kids, which would put the school at 108 per cent capacity. An expected 40 per cent would be kindergarteners. 

In turn, this would lower the capacity at Kars on the Rideau from its current 85 per cent down to 44 per cent. Fernet says that doesn’t make sense when it underwent a 28,000-square-foot primary wing expansion in 2011. 

• “They’re losing 308 kids. What would happen to the additional wing with five purpose-built kindergarten classrooms and a brand-new kindergarten yard that led right out to a fenced-in playground? It doesn’t make sense,” said Fernet. 

The board is in a tough spot: The OCDSB has admitted the boundaries won’t work for all parents and students, but said they had to maneuver them in a way that wouldn’t trigger a Pupil Accommodation Review. Provincial rules state that when you change a school's capacity by greater than 50 per cent, community consultations must take place.

At a recent community meeting, Osgoode/Riverside South-Findlay Creek Trustee Jennifer Jennekens said the root issue is they can’t close schools. 

The changes could be a win for Barrhaven 

Barrhaven Knoxdale/Merivale trustee Donna Blackburn thinks the review would benefit Barrhaven. None of her schools would change grades, and only one would have a slight alteration to the boundaries. 

Blackburn said she’s glad to see the removal of alternative schools — something she calls a “boutique program.” The Barrhaven area trustee said they should have been on chopping block back in 2009 when the file was first debated. 

• “Alternative schools are basically from my perspective, private schools in a public system. That's unacceptable,” she said. “When we spend a lot of money on a program like that, it's less likely that the kids in Barrhaven are going to get what they need.”

Blackburn said while she supports the removal of alternative programs, she wants to ensure specialized programs also slated for the removal are not lumped in with that.  “I'm not convinced that it's appropriate to cut those,” she said. 

There will be cuts: During a meeting on March 18, trustees voted seven-to-five in favour of cutting 150 jobs. The board said it was needed due to the deficit. If a solution couldn’t be found, it risked having its financials taken over by the province. 

About 80 non-academic positions will be cut, resulting in savings of $7.08 million. Another 70 staff in discretionary academic roles such as e-learning are also being eliminated, which will save $8.823 million.

• “We are in this situation because the Ford government does not fund public education adequately. We are in this situation because the Ford government doesn't fund special education adequately,” said Blackburn.