Fighting to keep schools open
Last-minute funding from province reversed decisions to close schools in West Bench, Trout Creek & Osoyoos; McNicoll Park middle was not saved
Students in two local communities got a lesson in democracy when their schools were spared from closing by last-minute funding from the B.C. government.
“Kids, you’re going back to school in West Bench and Trout Creek,” Penticton MLA Dan Ashton told a small group of parents and children at a June 30 press conference held at his Riverside Drive constituency office.
“We all know West Bench is a community and Trout Creek is a community and to maintain these schools is incredibly important,” Ashton said.
“This was an exercise in democracy. When people speak, people like myself listen and governments listen and that’s something these kids need to realize is that (democracy) does work.”
The two schools were kept alive by the $2-million Rural Education Enhancement Fund announced June 15 by Premier Christy Clark, whose government was taking heat from parents around the province concerned about school closures.
Osoyoos Secondary also qualified for the fund, meant to recognize the special status of rural schools as community hubs, but McNicoll Park Middle School in Penticton did not and did indeed closed.
All the closures were intended to cut costs and excess capacities in schools.
Parents were told the Okanagan Skaha School District was running at 75 per cent capacity and facing a $1-million budget shortfall for 2016-17 if nothing was done.
With their hands apparently tied, school trustees faced the wrath of parents for months before the province stepped in at the last minute.
“We would not be doing this if there wasn’t a financial problem. And I’ve got to tell you, it’s not a fun process for any of us,” school board chairwoman Linda Van Alphen said in March.
The lone holdout on the board was Bruce Johnson, who urged other trustees to dip into reserves to keep the schools open while working on options put forward by parents, such as adding a Montessori school at Trout Creek.
The board’s decision later prompted an offer from the B.C. government to appoint a special adviser to help trustees weigh their options, but it was rejected.
It also spawned a parental complaint to the B.C. Office of the Ombudsperson, which found the closure process was “reasonable,” despite two “fairness concerns” stemming from Trout Creek’s late addition to the list of schools being considered for closure.
Meanwhile, the near-closure of Osoyoos Secondary School generated community rallies, rowdy public meetings and calls for MLA Linda Larson to resign.
Brenda Dorosz, who led the Save Our Schools group and is now seeking to run as an NDP candidate in the 2017 provincial election, criticized the B.C. Liberal government for showing up late to the game.
“The Liberals want the public to see them as heroes,” she said after the Rural Education Enhancement Fund was announced.
“I did this for my community, perhaps they did it for votes, but I guarantee they did not put in the hours of research, loss of income and time away from family that our team did.”