North Okanagan-Shuswap School District planning to avert overcrowding

Not long ago the North Okanagan-Shuswap School District thought it might have to close schools.

Now, higher-than-expected enrollment has left the district planning for how to avert overcrowding.

At the same time, it also has to prepare for upgrades as the majority of schools are considered to be in poor condition.

Both issues were on the table Tuesday night in Grindrod, as the school district started public consultations about possible changes to school structures to prevent overcrowding.

It’s part of the process to come up with a new long-term plan for the school district’s buildings.

Five years ago, the last time the district went through this exercise, the situation was starkly different: closing schools was a consideration as the district grappled with declining enrollment.

Now, with hundreds more students currently in the district than officials expected five years ago, the discussion is about reorganizing schools to shift kids from buildings that are filling up to those with extra room.

In Enderby, that could mean moving some younger students into the local high school, A.L. Fortune Secondary — an idea that has generated mixed reaction.

Many schools in “poor” condition

Along with schools that are filling up, many will need upgrades.

A 2018 assessment rated more than half the district’s schools as being in poor condition.

However, officials say that doesn’t mean the buildings are unsafe or unwelcoming

“It is really an indication of how much money it would take to restore that building to new condition in regards to its infrastructure,” explained school district superintendent Peter Jory.

“We have a number of buildings in our school district that are of a certain age and that big ticket item stuff needs to be replaced.”

The school with the worst rating, Parkview Elementary in Sicamous, had to be closed for almost two months this fall over a foul smell, possibly related to wet weather conditions.

However, the superintendent said the main issue at Parkview was the building’s design not its poor condition rating.

Jory said the building along with some others was not designed for the current climate conditions.

“We had a really high level of rain very early in the year and the water didn’t shed away from the buildings in the way that we would have liked,” Jory explained.

So despite many schools with poor condition ratings, Jory is hopeful there won’t be a need for similar temporary closures at other schools.

This current facilities planning process is also expected to help officials secure additional funding for upgrades.

“We haven’t had a long-term facilities plan for a while and that has really impeded on us asking for money,” Krebs said.

“By having this long-range facilities plan in place we can then advocate to the ministry that, ‘Hey, we need this money.'”

More public consultations about the future of North Okanagan Shuswap schools are planned.

Any major change to local school structures is not expected till September 2022.