School closures no risk to new classes: officials; Plans to expand kindergarten will require more space
Times Colonist (Victoria)
July 6, 2008 
By: Lindsay Kines

Despite recent school closures, there's enough excess classroom space in the capital region to handle a possible shift to all-day kindergarten by 2009, district officials say.

B.C.'s education ministry recently warned school districts to think ahead before closing or selling off schools in case they need room for expanded early learning programs in the future.

But Greater Victoria school board chairman Tom Ferris said that's not a concern in his district, which has closed seven elementary schools since 2003 due to declining enrolment and rising costs.

"We have enough space to accommodate all-day kindergartens if we were to go in that direction," he said. "We don't anticipate closing any [more] schools in our district, so I don't see it as an issue for us."

Nor is it an issue in the Saanich school district, superintendent Keven Elder said.

"If kindergarten went to all-day, we would have enough space," he said. "If we added four-year-olds in years ahead, we'd just make sure there was space."

As a backup, the district intends to keep a number of the shuttered schools in case it needs to re-open them in the future. But Elder doubts that will be necessary.

"The idea of opening a closed school to create that space is something we'd need to study, but I don't see that as being on the horizon."…

Warder acknowledged, however, that a possible move to pre-kindergarten for children as young as three will influence decisions about future school closures.

"The sooner we understand the definite timeline the ministry has and the concrete things that they'll be doing around pre-school and all-day kindergarten, the better it will be for us," he said….

The province currently provides free half-day kindergarten for five-year-olds in public schools, and full-day kindergarten for children who speak English as a second language, aboriginal students and some students with special needs.

The Early Childhood Learning Agency wants public input on the issue by mid-July and expects to report to government by the end of the year.

In the meantime, government is simply reminding districts to be "prudent" in their planning, Education Minister Shirley Bond said.

"Should we move forward with all-day kindergarten and then four-year-olds, we need to make sure we have space to accommodate those students."

But NDP education critic David Cubberley accused Bond of a "complete reversal" after years of encouraging districts to consolidate students and close schools.

"Suddenly, they see a need for school capacity because they may want to expand," he said. "That makes it look very short-sighted."

Bond counters that the government is already using excess space in schools for StrongStart B.C. centres. The move to all-day kindergarten is an extension of the government's commitment to early learning, she said.

She stressed, however, that the ministry hasn't made up its mind yet on how to proceed with its kindergarten expansion, particularly when it comes to programs for three- and four-year-olds.

"We have homework to do," she said. "We want a model that best meets the needs of children, and we also want to look at the feasibility for government. It would be a very significant financial investment to do that."