An elementary school east of Kamloops will be open this school year – for now – after the minimum requirement of six students enrolled.
School District 73 superintendent Alison Sidow said the required minimum of six students have now enrolled at Westwold elementary, located about 45 minutes outside of Kamloops. The news elicited a round of applause from trustees on Monday night.
“We need them to stay until September 30,” Sidow noted.
ALSO READ: Fire destroys Kamloops elementary school
In January, the school board voted to keep Westwold open as a K-7 school this year as long as at least six students were enrolled by the end of September.
Westwold was shuttered last fall when no students were enrolled to start the school year. Six students is the minimum amount needed to make the school viable both financially and from an educational point of view.
The school district receives a grant of $166,800 from the Ministry of Education in to operate Westwold, which costs in the neighbourhood of approximately $209,000 to run. With provincial funding for six students on top of that, the district is able to break even on cost.
