Southeast Galt School Closure Review

Will there be a new school built east of Dundas Street and when will it open?
This has not been determined. WCDSB has a school site reserved and the City of Cambridge has purchased land on behalf of the Board. The need for a new school will be assessed by the ARC. The timing of the school will depend on residential development and funding from the Ministry of Education.

When will boundary changes or school closures be implemented?
The timing of implementation will be determined by the ARC and will depend on the preferred option. No changes will occur for September 2012 as the School Closure Review process will not be complete. If the preferred option consists of boundary changes only and does not rely on construction then the earliest any changes could occur is September 2013. If the option is dependent upon a new school being built, then changes may take an additional two years.

What happens once the School Closure Review is finished?
Following a decision by the Board of Trustees, transition planning will begin. A Transition Plan will be created to help students and families become familiar with their new school communities and help everyone prepare for the move. Examples of how this has been done in the past can be found in Appendix D of the Board’s Pupil Accommodation Review policy.

Has the future residential growth east of Dundas Street been factored into Holy Spirit’s enrollment projections?
Yes. This development currently falls within Holy Spirit’s boundary. The current projections anticipate that residential development will begin in 2014 and will not be completed within the next 10 years. Therefore, there is minimal impact on the five year enrollment projection for Holy Spirit and the ten year projection does not include the entire new community.

What is an Accommodation Review?
An accommodation review is a formal process that is used to evaluate and change how students are accommodated in our schools. There are two types of accommodation reviews: a Boundary Review and a School Closure Review. The Southeast Galt review will follow the School Closure Review process.

Which school(s) will close?
A School Closure Review does not necessarily mean that a school will close. This will be determined through the Southeast Galt School Closure Review process.

Has a decision already been made?
No. Nothing will be decided until the Board of Trustees votes at the end of the review process.

Who makes the final decision?
The Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) will make recommendations to the Director of Education. The Director will bring recommendations forward to the Board of Trustees. The Trustees will make the final decision.

How can I participate in the review?
There are many ways to participate in the review process.

• Visit the SE Galt website regularly
• Sign up for email updates (you can do this by emailing planning@wcdsb.ca)
• Attend the public consultation sessions
• Complete and submit the comment sheets provided at the public consultation sessions
• Email comments or questions to planning@wcdsb.ca

How are the public comments used?
All written comments are read by the ARC, Trustees and WCDSB staff. Comments are taken into consideration by the committee when evaluating accommodation options and making recommendations. Comments are also taken into consideration by the Trustees prior to making a decision. All written comments will be posted on this website, and become part of the public record.

If a parent representative on the ARC cannot attend an ARC meeting can they send a substitute?
No. The two parent reps and the Principal from each school can update each other if one is absent.

How are the enrollment projections created?
Enrollment projections are developed by the WCDSB Capital Planning Department. The projections take into consideration new housing development, historic enrollment trends in that particular area, census data, and live birth data. Live births are used to predict the number of JK students four (4) years later.

What are the walking distances for students?
JK-Grade 3 students living within 0.8km of their school are not eligible to receive transportation and therefore are considered walkers.
Grade 4 – Grade 8 students living within 1.6km of their school are considered walkers.

Glossary of Terms

• SPI: Holy Spirit School abbreviation
• AMB: St. Ambrose School abbreviation
• ANN: St. Anne School abbreviation
• FRC: St. Francis School abbreviation
• VIN: St. Vincent de Paul School abbreviation
• Accommodation Review Committee (ARC): A committee established to carry out a boundary review or school closure review.
• Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Enrollment: The enrollment calculated based on the number of students attending a school, with Junior and Senior Kindergarten students that are not enrolled in the full day kindergarten program counted as 0.5 since they are in the school half of the time.
• School Information Profile (SIP): A data collection tool used to assess and compare background information for each school in the review.
• Total Enrollment (or Total Bodies): The total number of students enrolled.
• Full Day Kindergarten (FDK): A Ministry of Education program where all Junior and Senior Kindergarten students will be enrolled in school full time by 2014.
• Facility Condition Index (FCI): A ratio used to measure the relative condition of a building, taking into account all building systems. It is calculated by dividing the Cost of Repairs for the building by the Current Replacement Value.
• On-The-Ground (OTG) capacity: The rated capacity for a facility as indicated on the Ministry of Education’s School Facilities Inventory System.
• Operating Costs: Refers to all of the expenditures required to operate and maintain schools and facilities including but not limited to hydro, natural gas, water, snow clearing, cleaning, waste disposal, routine maintenance, and salaries.
• Utilization/Percent Capacity: Calculated by dividing the FTE enrollment by the school’s OTG capacity.