ARBORFIELD — No final decision has yet been made about the fate of Arborfield School.
The North East School Division board of education discussed the topic at their meeting on Jan. 27. Stacy Lair, the division’s director of education, said the decision at that meeting was to either stop the school viability review or continue with the review.
No official motion was made regarding school closure or discontinuing grades at this board meeting.
The NESD board now has to have a meeting with the community and parents. The board will have a presentation prepared for the parents and community members on Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Arborfield Community Hall.
A motion to end the review, discontinue grades or close the school has to be voted on before April 30.
Lair stressed that this process may seem long but it is important to thoroughly examine the viability of the school and the overall quality of the education students are receiving. The board’s primary responsibility is quality of education, and what that educational experience is for students.
A committee was tasked with gathering feedback from the community and bringing that information to the NESD board. It is comprised of four members from the Arborfield School Community Council (SCC), two members from the town and two members from the surrounding RM.
Just over 30 community members came to the NESD board meeting on Jan. 27. Lair said that the community feedback was overwhelmingly in support of keeping the school as is and continuing to have the school open.
Currently Arborfield School has six full-time teachers as well as an admin assistant and caretakers at the school. The community of Arborfield has a population of 285 and the Arborfield School currently has 65 students, well below the threshold of viability, 67 is the projected number of students for 2023-24 school year.
Lair said that they know they will not get a capital investment from the province to update or renovate the Arborfield School. An application would not be submitted based on the location of the building. The province wouldn’t invest capital funds when there are other schools in the catchment area that could support those students.
Other board highlights were discussions on teacher appreciation week on Feb. 12 and discussion on a draft calendar that will be sent to the union representatives and the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation. Once it comes back to board with feedback, a vote on the final calendar will take place.
Lair also mentioned more planning meetings regarding the new online learning crown corporation and getting a draft framework of how this new provincial crown corporation will work and how it will partner with the school divisions to ensure a seamless transition. Lair is still hesitant of the new crown corporation due to the complexities of online learning and the specific needs of students utilizing this method of learning. Lair said she wants to continue to help support students and will offer her expertise to the new crown corporation through the ongoing consultations.
