Earlier this week the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board (SMCDSB) released the new approved Boundary Review changes for Bradford Catholic elementary schools, which will take effect September 2022.
With the municipality's rapid growth and the replacement of St. Charles Catholic Elementary School in the south end of Bradford this fall, the board says a boundary review was necessary to consider current enrolment, capacity and development pressures.
"It gave us an opportunity to rebalance the boundaries in the entire community," said Communications Manager for the board, Pauline Stevenson.
The board looked at four different options in seven different study areas to accommodate the new school and balance the rest of the student population at each of the five Bradford Catholic elementary schools: St. Marie of the Incarnation, St. Charles Replacement School, St. Angela Merici, St. Jean de Brebeuf and St. Teresa of Calcutta.
As part of the consultation process, online and public meetings were held, as well as a survey that allowed families to submit their feedback and concerns.
A public meeting was held last month, where parents from the St. Angela Merici community raised concern over the changes. In all presented boundary options, their children would have had to transfer to the new St. Charles school, three kilometres from their neighbourhood.
The final report from the Board released at a meeting on Feb. 28, showed the final approved boundaries, with a new option, developed based on the feedback received through the consultation process, related to the students that are within the walk zone to St. Angela Merici, and comments received regarding the impact of placing four portables at St. Teresa of Culcutta.
In a letter addressed to parents on Thursday, Kim Weishar, superintendent of programme services, highlighted the following changes that will be made to the school boundaries effective fall 2022:
St. Marie of the Incarnation
- Students currently in the St. Marie of the Incarnation boundary who live south of Line 8 and West of Side Road 10 will be included in the new boundary for St. Charles.
- Students currently in the St. Marie of the Incarnation boundary who live east of Professor Day Drive and north of Line 8 will be included in the new boundary for St. Jean de Brebeuf.
- Students currently in the St. Marie of the Incarnation boundary who live west of Professor Day Drive, north of Blue Dasher Boulevard, south of Line 8 and east of the green space will be included in the new boundary for St. Teresa of Calcutta.
St. Angela Merici
- Students who are currently in the bus zone, i.e., not in the walk zone for St. Angela Merici will now be included in the new boundary for St. Charles.
"The decisions were not made lightly, and we understand that change isn’t always easy. Many of our schools are already over capacity and there is continued projected growth for the area. These changes were necessary in order to balance enrolment and plan for future growth," said Weishar.
The letter also stated that a transition committee is being established to ensure all affected students have access to the same supports and resources that they currently receive, including Individual Education Plans, access to technology and school counsellor supports.
Stevenson says adding another Catholic elementary school to Bradford is #1 on the Board's priority list, which was forwarded to the Ministry of Education last week.
"We are working closely with the Ministry to get that in place as soon as possible," she said, at which point, another Boundary Review will need to be conducted.
Affected families will receive a separate email with more information on the changes next week.
For more information, visit the SMCDSB website here.
