School District 73 trustees voted Monday evening to keep the Grade 7s in Raft River Elementary School.
Reason given for the decision was the number of people opposed to moving the class to Clearwater Secondary School.
The school board did decide, however, that Grade 7 students in Barriere and Chase will have classes in their respective secondary schools instead of in elementary schools. The change will begin in September 2018.
READ MORE: School board looking at moving Grade 7s to CSS (Dec. 12, 2017)
The decisions followed an extensive period of consultation with parents, staff and students in all the communities that included public meetings and presentations, an online consultation portal as well as email and paper-based feedback options.
The District’s long-range facilities plan, which was released in December 2017, contained the proposal to move Grade 7 students from elementary schools to secondary schools in Clearwater, Chase, and Barriere for the 2018-19 school year.
The proposal suggested such a move could benefit Grade 7 students by providing them with earlier access to academic and other specialty programs (such as shop programs), and academic counselling not available in elementary schools.
As well, the proposal addressed emerging concerns regarding space pressure in the elementary schools, particularly in regard to the allocation of special purpose rooms (music rooms, etc.).
“This move will give many young people a unique opportunity to explore their passions and interests by giving the Grade 7s access to specialized equipment and facilities and creating additional space at the elementary schools to address their needs for more flexible space.” said district superintendent Alison Sidow about the decision for Barriere and Chase. “We’re excited to see this proposal move forward in these two communities.”
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