A SCHOOL WITHIN A SCHOOL
Educators and students discover an upside to construction delays
Shauna May Seneca School principal Bob Carter was stoked when he was chosen to lead one of 11 new public schools opening in September.
There was one catch — his school would have no building for the first four months.
“Wow. That will be exciting,” Carter thought at the time.
Since September, nearly 700 students have been grouped with their new teachers and classmates in the wrong buildings after construction delays pushed back the opening dates for Shauna May Seneca, in the southeast neighbourhood of Walker, and Kim Hung School in the far west end.
About 390 Seneca students in Grades K-9 have attended classes inside nearby Jan Reimer School, at 360 Orchards Blvd. SW, which also opened its doors in September.
The 286 Kim Hung students displaced from their K-9 school have been relocated in the new Michael Phair Junior High School.
The Edmonton public school district calls the contingency plan a school-within-a-school model. Although other cities have used the approach, it’s the first time the Edmonton district has tried such an arrangement with new schools.
Principals sharing space in Jan Reimer School say there are plenty of perks.
“We were in this together,” Carter said, sitting next to Jan Reimer principal Jan Sawyer Wednesday in the Jan Reimer library.
“Thank goodness we like each other,” Sawyer quipped.
HOW IT WORKS
Each of the principals has an office, and administrative assistants work for one school or the other. Sawyer and Carter opted to organize the building by age group, rather than school. Jan Reimer and Shauna May Seneca classrooms are side by side throughout the building, with paper signs outside each door labelling the class and school.
Although each school operates independently, they take advantage of the opportunities to organize joint activities and help each other.
The two Seneca Grade 4 teachers will sometimes step in to relieve the sole Jan Reimer Grade 4 teacher. Since enrolment in both schools is much lower than the ultimate 900-student capacity, junior high students from both schools play on a joint coed soccer team.
Students enrolled in separate leadership classes in both schools have joined forces on some projects, and plan to continue that collaboration after Seneca students move out.
One kindergarten teacher instructs Seneca tots in the morning and Reimer children in the afternoon.
Sawyer said it’s also a rare treat to work alongside another principal. If she’s wrestling with a problem, or needs to bounce ideas off a colleague, Carter is right there.
“It’s the best professional development I could ask for,” she said.
Grade 7 students from both schools say sharing has gone smoothly.
“You can have more friends. You can be more social. It doesn’t just have to be (kids) around the neighbourhood,” said 12-year-old Jan Reimer student Reyven Gammad.
Ashlan Ali, a 12-year-old Seneca student, was surprised when he found out his new school wasn’t going to be ready on time.
“After that, I was like, it’s pretty nice, too. We get to be in another new school and then move to another new school, and it’s so amazing, because we get to see new schools that are getting built,” he said.
“I think it’s nice that we have two schools under one roof, because you get to see new faces that you’ve never met before, and you become friends with them, but the sad part is, you have to leave them,” said Seneca student Alya Hussain, 12.
MOVING DAY
Dec. 22 will be the last day in Jan Reimer for Seneca students and staff.
School district workers are already in the new building unloading supplies and furniture as construction crews put the finishing touches on the building at 2130 Wonnacott Way SW. Movers will Shauna May Seneca School haul teachers’ material between the schools during the holiday break and, on Jan. 8, Shauna May Seneca School will open for good. It’s a similar situation for Kim Hung students and staff.
Carter had been feeling anxious about whether the new building would be ready on time. He feels more confident after touring the school Tuesday, alongside members of Seneca’s family.
The halls and playground of Jan Reimer are going to feel empty come January, Sawyer said. That school will shut down one set of modular classrooms because just 280 Reimer students will walk the polished concrete halls designed for 900 students. The Orchards neighbourhood is only about 20-per-cent built.
Sawyer said she feels waves of sadness when she’s reminded Seneca folks are leaving. Carter said the transition will be “bittersweet.”
“We are so much the better as a community for our experience,” he said. “And now we’re really looking forward to going home.”