Tell the VSB: Don't Close Schools!
Closing schools and disposing of school land in a growing city isn't the way to balance budgets or govern a public education system.
The Government of BC expects population and enrolment to grow where VSB projects a decline. We cannot make major decisions without clear data.
We don’t believe in closing schools based on incomplete data that doesn’t fully account for current or future children.
Every school is the heart of a community and should be valued, preserved and supported. Recently, plans for closure and disposal pit communities against one another and undermine confidence in public schools.
We, the undersigned, urge VSB Trustees to:
- Commit to keeping our schools open and maintaining the quality of education in all our communities;
- Ensure transparency and inclusivity in the budgeting process, with a focus on long-term, multi-year strategies that are informed by open data and accurate enrollment projections that consider current and future housing developments, transportation to/from neighbourhood schools, impacts of long-term planning, and meaningful consultations with Host Nations.
- Value and prioritize access to fulsome and visionary educational opportunities for all families in their neighbourhoods.