The push to keep alternative schools open

Good morning! 

I feel like I’m always starting these introductions talking about the weather, but wow it was a gorgeous weekend in Ottawa. I enjoyed my first few days off in weeks exploring Hogs Back Falls, the Chapman Mills Conservation Area, and then Andrew Hayden Park. 

What really struck me is just how happy everyone was. It was a long winter with record-breaking snowfall, so I think the rays of sun and the blooming trees mean a bit more this year. I’m very excited for the upcoming Tulip Festival, which will hopefully have good weather. 

It's a topic we’ve written about a lot recently, but parents are still very frustrated about changes to the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board’s elementary program. The most contentious issue? The removal of the alternative education program. We have a story breaking down what this means and why there are so many concerns. 

The warmer weather also means flood season. Water levels are rising along the Ottawa River, but experts are saying there is no huge reason to be concerned.

Let’s get to it!

— Charlie Senack, Ottawa Lookout managing editor, [email protected], X: @Charlie_Senack

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WEATHER

Monday: 17 🌡️ 10 | ☁️ 

Tuesday: 19 🌡️ 12 | 🌧️ 

Wednesday: 18 🌡️ 6 | 🌧️

OTTAWA NUMBERS

🚴 $2 million: The amount of money raised at the annual CN Cycle for CHEO. Over 500 participants were involved. [Ottawa Citizen]

🏫 $32 million: The budget hole Carleton University is facing. As a result, it will cut back on contract instructors, which the local union warns could result in a “death spiral.” If steps aren’t taken, the deficit could grow to $80 million by the 2028-2029 school year. [CBC]

💵 $16.10: For our friends in Quebec, this the new hourly minimum wage. It went up $0.35, or 2.2 per cent an hour. [CBC]

🏥 $18.6 million: The amount of money the Ontario government is spending to expand the Barry’s Bay hospital. The government says that the project will add approximately 6,000 square feet of space to the hospital, which will accommodate nearly 12,000 visits per year when complete. [CTV]

EDUCATION

Why parents are pushing to keep alternative schools open

Bracing for cuts: The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has plans to move ahead with its controversial new elementary school proposal, which will do a lot of chopping. 

While the cuts will be as drastic as initially planned, many parents say their children will still face negative impacts if the changes are implemented in their current form. One of the biggest is the removal of the OCDSB’s alternative education program. 

How does it compare to a traditional school program? Unlike traditional school programs, alternative schools focus on individualized learning with flexible scheduling. Report cards only have comments, not grades, and sports teams are for everyone and not competitive. 

“There’s no sticker charts or awards. There is no recognition of individual accomplishment. That’s a cultural thing. All the teachers and the principal are addressed by their first names. The idea is to remove the official hierarchy in schools and value each person’s contribution to the school community,” Amanda Case, co-chair of Churchill Alternative’s school council, told the Kitchissippi Times.

• “As a result, kids aren’t trying to outperform each other or be the fastest. If a student finishes their work early in class, instead of being given a fun task, they are reassigned to help their struggling peers.”

Parents say the program has been a lifeline for their families. 

In March, after it was announced alternative education was still being cut, Emily Addison, co-chair of the board’s Alternative Schools Advisory Committee, sent an email to impacted families asking for them to share their lived experiences. Over 50 parents wrote in. They expressed the positive mental health impacts noticed in their children, increased engagement in the school community, and better grades, reported the Ottawa Citizen. 

But the board isn’t backing down: Trustees say alternative education needs to go because it costs too much money to transport the students out of their communities. 

Barrhaven trustee Donna Blackburn received backlash when she called them “boutique schools.”

• “When we spend a lot of money on a program like that, it's less likely that the kids in Barhaven are going to get what they need,” she previously told the Ottawa Lookout. ”When we overspend our transportation budget, that money comes out of the classroom. It breaks my heart when I have to talk to a parent and say, I'm really sorry your child can't attend school all day because we don't have the support in the schools for that if they have high needs.”

Are the savings really that big? Parents are arguing that it doesn’t cost more to run alternative schools because staffing, class sizes, and other resources are all the same as in a traditional school. Even on the transit front, parents say it won’t account for that much of a difference because the students would still need transportation to get to and from school. The board has also noted that the $1.2 million annually it was planning to save would be lower. 

Other changes coming: There were plans to change the grade structures of many schools, but most have been spared after the board admitted there were “numerous concerns about siblings attending different schools.”  

A total of 26 programs which cater to special needs students will be phased out, but those that were supposed to be removed have been saved. For those programs getting cut, current students will get to finish out their programs. 

For French immersion, Kindergarten will continue to be offered half in English and half in French, but Middle French immersion is being removed altogether. 

• The Ottawa Citizen has compiled a comprehensive breakdown which can be viewed here. 

Next steps and unanswered questions: There are some unanswered questions about whether students can be grandfathered so they won’t need to switch schools. Many trustees have supported the exemption, but who would be included and for how long is still uncertain. 

Now that final recommendations have been made public, it will officially be presented to the board for discussion on May 6. A final decision is then planned for May 13.

SPONSORED BY 1440 MEDIA

THE AGENDA

🚎 If you rode the bus over the weekend, you might have noticed your trip was free. OC Transpo says the two-day initiative was to introduce Ottawa residents to “new ways to bus”, which saw over 100 routes changed. Public transit advocates say the free service was not advertised enough and should be tied to events where people would want to go to, like the upcoming Tulip Festival. There are also concerns about it being held over the weekend. [Ottawa Citizen]

👑 King Charles is coming to Ottawa on May 26 and 27 to deliver a throne speech in Parliament. The last time Canada's Head of State read the speech was when Queen Elizabeth delivered it in 1977. The moment will have significance due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of annexing Canada. [CBC]

🍴 The owner of Moe’s BBQ on Bank Street near Hunt Club Road had been broken into by thieves three times in recent years. On Saturday morning, a person broke through the window which will cost more than $2,000 to repair. But they weren’t able to take off with any cash since it’s no longer kept at the restaurant after hours. In total the three break-ins have resulted in over $20,000 in damages. [CTV]

🌷 The Canadian Tulip Festival is fast approaching and organizers think they will see bigger-than-usual crowds this year because of the O-Train Trillium Line. The train service will also be particularly of benefit because of some vehicle traffic difficulties due to construction of the new Civic Hospital campus. The flower festival attracted 465,000 people last year, generating about $58 million in revenue for surrounding businesses. [Ottawa Business Journal]

🛴 Ottawa residents will start to see e-scooters roll out across the city once again for the spring and summer, but this time with 24-hour availability and in more neighbourhoods. City council unanimously approved a five-year extension for the scooters on Ottawa roads. [Capital Current]

🏒 The Ottawa Senators are no longer in the playoffs, but the team says it is eyeing more success next year after one of its most successful seasons in years. Over the last few weeks the Canadian Tire Centre has hosted sold-out crowds, nearby bars have been packed with fans, and the love for hockey in this town has only grown. The NHL’s offseason begins July 1. [CTV]

🚗 On Saturday morning Ottawa fire crews rescued a driver whose car plunged into the Jock River near Richmond. A female driver who was conscious when first responders arrived was treated in a local hospital. [Ottawa Citizen]

👮‍♂️ Ottawa Police are investigating after two bodies were found in waterways in recent days. On Saturday, a body was found in the Ottawa River near Bate Island. Then, on Sunday, a deceased body was discovered by a kayaker in the Rideau River near Smyth Road. [Ottawa Citizen]

ENVIRONMENT

Flooding starts along the Ottawa River

If you’re walking along the Ottawa River, you might notice the water levels are rising. That’s because a flood watch has been upgraded to a flood warning. 

But some good news: It’s not expected to be nearly as bad as the record-breaking floods in 2019 or 2023. The City of Ottawa expected levels to rise 25-30 centimetres around the Britannia and Cumberland areas over the weekend. 

“A flood warning is always something people should pay attention to,” said Jim Lethbridge, manager with public works, emergency planning and response at the City of Ottawa, according to CTV.

• “It means we have active water, it could be water near your parks and roadways—you should pay attention to that. You should be taking a look at your plans that you have for your property and executing them as appropriate to the levels you’re seeing and accounting for anything like wind action, which we might see on some of the larger stretches of the Ottawa River.”

Concerns in Constance Bay: While the outlook is optimistic, residents in areas that flooded in recent years aren’t taking any chances. In the West-Carleton-March area, the city has already been distributing sandbags for the last week, with 20,000 already distributed. 

Gerry Blyth, whose Constance Bay house flooded in both 2017 and 2019, told CBC he’s been getting prepared just in case. 

• “If current patterns continue, we are heading into spring with little to no remaining flood safety margin," he said. 

JOBS

1. School bus driver at Voyago

2. Food services attendant at City of Ottawa 

3. Senior youth worker at the Boys and Girls Club of Ottawa

4. Councillor’s assistant at City of Ottawa 

5. Help desk analyst at Robert Half m

Local jobs are selected by the Lookout team and are not paid ads, unless specifically noted.

GOOD NEWS MONDAY

Matthew Perry House coming to Ottawa

It was a regular night in Ottawa when Friends star Matthew Perry had his first drink. He was 14, in his Rockcliffe Park backyard with his best friends Chris and Brian Murray. The drink of choice? Andrès Baby Duck wine. 

It was the beginning of an addiction that would consume Perry but also create his purpose in life. Now, an addictions treatment centre will be built in his honour. It will provide long-term support and recovery to people who have completed initial addictions treatment. There will be between 160 and 170 housing sites located on Byng Drive, behind the Royal Ottawa Hospital. 

Read more here in the Kitchissippi Times.

EVENTS

All Disco - All 80s - All night with DJ Retro | Queen St. Fare, Queen St. Fare, 170 Queen Street | May 10, 8-11 pm | ALL DISCO - ALL 80s - ALL NIGHT w/ DJ RETRO - Back to the beginning!! | Tickets $22.63

A Queerly Crafty Day in May | 18 Louisa Street #280 | May 11, 11 am - 6 pm | Join us for a chill day of LGBTQ+ friendly crafting and creativity! | Tickets are free, donations are encouraged 

Targ dance mix 2000's - 2000 - 2010 | House of TARG, 1077 Bank Street | May 10, 8 pm - 1 am | The Absolute BEST of Dance, HipHop, Eurodance & Club Classics - 2000s Edition | Ticket $14.11 

We the Zo’s Comedy Show – Haitian Flag Day Edition! NUVO Lounge 295, 295 Dalhousie Street | May 17, 8 pm - 10:30 pm | Haitian Flag Day Edition! It’s going down at Cultures Comedy Club | Tickets $20 

Mother’s Day Brunch at Strathmere Country Retreat | Strathmere, 1980 Phelan Road | May 11, 10 am - 4 pm | Treat Mom to a Heartfelt Brunch filled with Love and Flavour. Enjoy a walk on our trails or the heritage garden before or after brunch. | Tickets $56.84 

Next-Gen Buildings: Leaders Shaping a Net-Zero Ottawa | Algonquin College Ottawa Campus, 1385 Woodroffe Avenue Building C Nawapon Room Ottawa | May 14, 7:30 am - 10:30 pm | Join us for an energizing Better Buildings Breakfast that highlights the innovators driving the future of sustainable buildings in our city. | Tickets $27.96 

Ed Laverty Legacy Sports Fund skills and drills event | Superdome at Ben Franklin Park, 191 Knoxdale Road | May 10, 11 am - 3 pm | ED LAVERTY LEGACY SPORTS FUND EVENT! | Tickets $49.26

Ottawa Small Business Networking Event | Kichesippi Beer Co, 2265 Robertson Road | May 6, 5 pm - 7 pm | Come join us at the Ottawa Small Business Networking Event to connect with local entrepreneurs, share ideas, and grow your business! | Tickets $17.31 

Paint Night for Adults at the Osgoode Legion, Osgoode ON_COSMIC RAVEN | Royal Canadian Legion Branch 589, 3284 Sunstrum Street | May 14 6 pm - 8:30 pm | We'll paint a mystical raven (that wise ol' bird!), surrounded by magical flowers and cosmic symbolism. | Tickets $49.72

May Wellness Series: Slow Flow & Yin with Kyanna | Pure Yoga Ottawa, 279 Richmond Road | May 18, 2 pm - 4:30 pm | Join us for a relaxing evening of slow flow and yin yoga with Kyanna in our May Wellness Series! | Tickets Free

Want to see your event here? You can purchase them through our self-service portal here.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

A Barrhaven sunset as seen from Strandherd Road.

OTTAWA QUIZ

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Many couples marked milestones in their marriages during a ceremony at the Notre Dame Cathedral on Sunday. [CTV]

• Transform your home today with Ontario House Painters' expert painting services, including staining & painting outdoor structures. Contact Miles: [email protected] | 613-218-0689 for a free quote today! [Sponsored]

• Upper Canada Village located about an hour from Ottawa has opened for its 64th season. [CTV]

• The Ukrainian Orthodox congregation near McKellar Park is celebrating its 75th anniversary. [Kitchissippi Times]

• A new exhibit at the Canadian War Museum shares

• the stories of Second World War veterans. [CTV]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Learn how here.