Major worries include transportation and meeting the needs of District 8's neediest children.

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Diane Henry

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There are a lot of concerned parents about School District 8's proposal to consolidate Hazen White-St. Francis Middle School, Lorne School and Princess Elizabeth School at Millidgeville North School by September of next year. Well over 200 parents turned out for public information and consultation meetings held last week about the recommendation.

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Parents in the North End, such as Elizabeth Gallant, are worried about the district's ability to meet the needs of Saint John's neediest children.

"How are they going to make it so that anyone can go to lunch without feeling like 'I'm the poor little kid in the neighbourhood and I can't compete with the kids living in Millidgeville'," she said. "How are they going to make these kids not feel segregated?" Director of Education for School District 8 Bev MacDonald assures parents school breakfast and lunch programs would continue at Millidgeville North. She also says they care about the children and see the proposed consolidation as the best option for their education.

"We've done the things we've done with PALS and Community Schools and making access to better services for children a priority with us, even though it's not part of our mandate, because we do care.

"If this were to occur we won't stop caring, and we won't lose sight of those children." The reason for the proposed reorganization is simple. The district, like most of the province, is seeing a decline in student population, but for the Northern Peninsula schools the decline has been dramatic. Since the year 2000 they have lost 700 students going from about 1,600 to only 980. This has left the same number of buildings serving nearly half the number of students. The population at Millidgeville North has also dropped from about 1,000 students to only about 200.

School District 8 Superintendent Susan Tipper says the move would provide more resources for the children and better opportunities for teachers to practice team teaching. "You have the opportunity, because there are more classes at a specific grade, to create flexibility. Flexibility not only in terms of team teaching, but a flexibility in terms of special services for students." There are, however, concerns being echoed about children from priority neighbourhoods getting lost in the mix if sent to Millidgeville North School where there would be children from all different backgrounds.

John Gaudet's children attended Millidgeville North School and he says concerns about integration are unwarranted.

"We already benefited by having kids from other areas coming to this school. My kids are friends with them, as they are with each other, so it's already happened. Now it will happen on a much larger scale." In fact, among the 202 students currently attending Millidgeville North School, 37 would normally have gone to Centennial School, 19 are from the North End and would normally have gone to Lorne School, and 51 would normally have gone to Princess Elizabeth School.

Transportation is another big issue for parents living in the two affected priority neighbourhoods, the North End and Crescent Valley. Scott Crawford with the North End One Change group says he has received an overwhelmingly negative response to the idea because parents are worried about being able to get their kids during the day if necessary, since most don't have a vehicle.

"What happens if they have a doctor's appointment, how would they go get their kids? If the kids can't walk to school, they can't walk to school. There are a whole bunch of issues when you're dealing with a neighbourhood where folks don't have a lot of money." Tipper says there isn't much they can do about that.

"Along the way, may something come up? Yes. But I don't think I'm in a position where I have the authority or the ability to offer transportation to parents and families throughout the school day." However, Tipper says they would consider an evening transportation program for extra-curricular activities.

Amalgamating the middle schools would also mean closing Hazen White-St. Francis and Lorne Middle Schools and saving the district nearly $1,000,000.

"It's going to be a better bang for our buck, and for me to say that's not a consideration would be a lie," Tipper said. "It absolutely is a consideration." Parents such as Tammy Calvin are worried about closing Lorne School and leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the North End.

"If we have an empty building the size of Lorne School in our neighbourhood that's going to lead to vandalism, broken windows. It's going to leave a huge gap in our neighbourhood and we don't need that, we want to create a positive image in our neighbourhood."

Tipper says the normal procedure would be to turn the building over to the provincial Department of Supply and Services, and deemed surplus property. However, she adds they would try to find some way of creating a use in the community so they aren't big empty structures.

Meanwhile, there are different concerns being raised from parents of young children in Early French Immersion at Millidgeville North School. They're worried about the possible influx of middle school students. The population at Millidgeville North would go from 202 students to 645. Parent, Colin Tippett, is floating the idea that the early grades at Millidgeville North School be sent to Princess Elizabeth School, which, under the proposal, would house kindergarten to Grade 5.

"We want to make sure the kids are in the same pier group. Our son is in Grade 2, so if he's with Grades 6, 7, 8 in the middle school, we worry he'll get lost." Tippett says he'll move to the West Side in order to access another school offering Early French Immersion if school board officials don't act on his suggestion. Tipper says they'll consider the idea and crunch some numbers to see if that would be feasible.

Principal of Millidgeville North School, Gary Sullivan, says they're already beginning to plan for next year just in case the school merger proposal gets approved. He says if the four schools come together they would have to change the school colours, mascot and team names to reflect all four communities.

"I think for four communities to come together we have to start from scratch." Sullivan also says they're considering physically separating the French Immersion students from the English students in the school.

"French Immersion students, for example, both early and late, would have an opportunity to work together in an area of the building where in that community they would be able to practice their French in the halls." Tipper says the next step will be hearing from the Parent School Support Committees from each of the affected schools, and then going back to the District Education Council for a decision by January. Tipper adds the final decision would have to come from the education minister, likely in the spring.