Program Designation of Second Elementary School in Sage Creek
At the May 17 Public Board Meeting, the Louis Riel School Division (LRSD) Board of Trustees approved the designation of the second school in Sage Creek to serve Kindergarten to Grade 8 French Immersion program students residing in Sage Creek and Bonavista. Once a second school is constructed in the community, the current École Sage Creek School (ÉSCS) will be designated for Kindergarten to Grade 8 English program students.
The Senior Leadership Team (SLT) has proposed to government officials and community members the construction of a second elementary school in Sage Creek with a capacity of 850 students. Current enrolment data indicate that, year over year, a greater number of Sage Creek families are choosing the French Immersion program for their children. Additionally, LRSD is experiencing overcrowding and unsustainable growth at École Van Belleghem related to the Bonavista residential development.
On May 10 and 12, Superintendent Michalik presented an update to families in the English and French Immersion programs at ÉSCS about where the division is in the journey to a second school in the community. More details are available here.
French Immersion program students living in Bonavista currently attend École Van Belleghem and the school is projected to be over-capacity by 2025. Members of the SLT will meet with families at École Van Belleghem on Tuesday, May 24 to discuss the recent motion.
Observed and Projected Enrolment Trends at École Van Belleghem:
A French Immersion school built for 850 students could accommodate students in Sage Creek and Bonavista.
French Immersion Projection for New School (with students from Bonavista):
This designation is directly connected to other proposed solutions to address enrolment pressures in the division’s Southeast quadrant. Since opening in 2017, ÉSCS has not had sufficient capacity to accommodate all Kindergarten to Grade 8 students from both the English program and the French Immersion program. This has led to several temporary accommodations including:
- Offering the French Immersion program and English programs in the same building (something we do not typically do in LRSD).
- Having Grades 7 & 8 students attend Collège Béliveau and Windsor Park Collegiate (beginning in Sept. 2019).
- Having Grades 5 & 6 English program students attend Shamrock School (beginning in Sept. 2020).
Although these temporary solutions worked for a few years, WPC and Collège Béliveau as Grade 7 to 12 schools will be over-capacity next year and beyond. With increasing enrolment pressures in the Southeast quadrant of the division anticipated to continue due to demographic dynamics and new developments, the SLT has presented a number of related long-term, sustainable and achievable solutions that are currently before the Board. More information is available here.