SUMMERLAND — In three weeks, the school bells will ring out for the last time at Trout Creek Elementary School. However, some Summerland parents are still fighting to keep their children in their neighbourhood school. Parents are raising questions over the school board’s process and decision to close three schools in the district.
“The school board has made a number of errors. And we feel that their autonomy to make decisions doesn’t give them the license to break rules. So we have to have someone step in and enforce the rules,” said Phil Burman, a parent with two children attending Trout Creek Elementary.
School Board 67 was under fire for the last-minute decision to add Trout Creek Elementary on the chopping block in January and for closing a school that is generating the district money.
Trout Creek Elementary receives a small community grant because of its location and student population. The funding was a major reason why Naramata and Kaleden elementary schools were not considered for closure.
Last week, parents got a glimmer of hope when the MLA Dan Ashton announced the government will pay to have a special advisor take a second look.
But board chair Linda Van Alphen said the board is not accepting the special advisor offer because the province’s Ombudsperson is already investigating the matter.
“It is a process that the parents at Trout Creek had asked the school board to engage in,” said Van Alphen. “We’re doing everything that’s been asked of us but we can’t be running two processes consecutively,” she explained.
But Ashton is hoping the school board will reconsider.
“If they’ve done everything right, and everything has been up to snuff on this and up to procedure, what do they have to worry about? Absolutely nothing,” said Ashton.
Parents fear the Ombudsperson may not have answers before schools are scheduled to close. So they’ve taken to this crowdfunding website, looking to raise $10,000 to pursue a Supreme Court injunction to stop the school closure until the Ombudsperson completes the review.
Burman said he hasn’t lost hope that the school board may accept a special advisor.
“I feel like this is the only way that the board can win back public trust,” he said. “They can seek answers with questions they’ve been asking for help with, not just with relation to this school closure, but assistance with their financial challenges, assistance with where to go in the future.”
The school board will be holding a regular meeting Monday, June 13 to discuss how to utilize some newly-redirected funds and parents hope it will change its mind on the special advisor at that time.
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