On Wednesday, I joined The Hon. Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, MPP Goldie Ghamari and Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Trustee Lynn
Scott for an important announcement about the progress of the new public high school in Stittsville. The provincial government has approved the tender award and additional funding so that construction can begin.

I’ve been following efforts to build a public high school in our Stittsville community ever since I moved here with my family over a decade ago. Yesterday’s announcement is a significant milestone towards the construction of this much-needed school in our community.

This great news for Stittsville, in particular for the growing Fernbank community, where the school will be within walking distance for thousands of young families.

Thank you to the many residents and parents who have helped support this project over the years. The school board is targeting an opening date of September 2023. I can’t wait to see students walk through the doors on the first day of school!

Here’s the press release from MPP Ghamari from yesterday.

As part of Ontario’s ongoing efforts to build and improve local schools, the province has given Ottawa-Carleton District School Board approval to proceed to award the tender for a new Stittsville Secondary School.

The $48 million investment will provide a new, quality learning environment for the students of Stittsville. This project is part of the province’s capital investment program to support students with better learning spaces.

“The funding for this new school is great news for our community,” said Goldie Ghamari, MPP for Carleton. “This investment will provide a quality learning environment and new opportunities for the children of Stittsville.”

Ontario’s investment in new and updated schools will create the foundation for a modern learning environment for hundreds of students across the province.

“From modernizing our curriculum to revitalizing our classrooms and their facilities, we are investing in our students and giving them every tool to achieve their full potential,” said Education Minister Stephen Lecce. “Progress towards the construction of the new Stittsville Secondary School further demonstrates our government’s historic investment in Ontario’s schools and our overall commitment to supporting our students and families.”

The new school construction will allow for 1,353 classroom spaces for students in grades 7 to 12.

Stittsville Secondary School will be located at 700 Cope Drive in Ottawa.

La province donne le feu vert à la construction d’une nouvelle école secondaire publique

Mercredi, je me suis joint à l’honorable Stephen Lecce, ministre de l’Éducation, à la députée provinciale Goldie Ghamari et à la commissaire Lynn Scott de l’Ottawa-Carleton District School Board pour une annonce importante concernant l’état d’avancement du projet de la nouvelle école secondaire publique de Stittsville.
Le gouvernement provincial a approuvé l’appel d’offres et l’octroi du contrat ainsi que le financement supplémentaire nécessaire au lancement des travaux de construction.

Je suis les efforts visant à bâtir une école secondaire publique dans notre communauté de Stittsville depuis que j’ai emménagé ici avec ma famille il y a plus de dix ans. L’annonce d’hier constitue un jalon important en vue de la construction de cette école dont notre communauté a tant besoin.

Il s’agit d’une excellente nouvelle pour Stittsville, en particulier pour la communauté en pleine expansion de Fernbank, où l’école sera située à distance de marche pour des milliers de jeunes familles.

Merci aux nombreux résidents et parents qui ont contribué à soutenir ce projet au fil des ans. Le conseil scolaire vise une date d’ouverture en septembre 2023. J’ai très hâte de voir les élèves franchir les portes au premier jour de classe!

Voici le communiqué de presse d’hier de la députée provinciale Ghamari.

Dans le cadre des efforts continus de l’Ontario visant à bâtir de nouvelles écoles et à améliorer des écoles dans la localité, la province a donné à l’Ottawa-Carleton District School Board l’autorisation de procéder à l’appel d’offres et à l’octroi du contrat pour la construction d’une nouvelle école secondaire à Stittsville.

Cet investissement de 48 millions de dollars permettra d’offrir un nouvel environnement d’apprentissage de qualité aux élèves de Stittsville. Ce projet fait partie du programme provincial d’immobilisations visant à soutenir les élèves grâce à de meilleurs espaces d’apprentissage.

« Le financement de cette nouvelle école est une excellente nouvelle pour notre communauté », a affirmé Goldie Ghamari, députée provinciale de Carleton. « Cet investissement permettra d’offrir un environnement d’apprentissage de qualité et de nouvelles possibilités aux enfants de Stittsville. »

L’investissement de l’Ontario dans la construction et l’agrandissement d’écoles jettera les bases d’un milieu d’apprentissage moderne pour des centaines d’élèves de toute la province.

« De la modernisation de notre curriculum à la revitalisation de nos classes et de leurs installations, nous investissons dans nos élèves et leur donnons tous les outils dont ils ont besoin pour atteindre leur plein potentiel », affirme Stephen Lecce, ministre de l’Éducation. « Les progrès réalisés en vue de la construction de la nouvelle école secondaire de Stittsville démontrent une fois de plus l’investissement historique de notre gouvernement dans les écoles de l’Ontario ainsi que notre engagement global à soutenir nos élèves et nos familles. »

La construction de la nouvelle école permettra d’accueillir 1 353 salles de classe destinées aux élèves de la 7^e à la 12^e année.

L’école secondaire de Stittsville sera située au 700, promenade Cope, à Ottawa.

The post Province gives green light for new public high school appeared first on Glen Gower | Councillor / Conseiller | Stittsville.

Many of you are asking how our new Stittsville public high school is coming along.  The OCDSB has acquired the site, at the intersection of Robert Grant Avenue and Cope Drive.  We have also engaged the architectural firm of Edward Cuhaci & Associates to design the school.  OCDSB staff are busy engaging with the architects and with City of Ottawa staff to prepare a site plan and get it through the city’s approval process, a process that will be ongoing for many months to come.

Preliminary work with the architects is underway to match up what we would like to see as essential components in the school design with the character of the site and with the amount of capital funding from the province.

OCDSB Planning staff are preparing for a large-scale accommodation review that will involve consultation with all our school communities in Stittsville, Goulbourn and Rideau to establish a sustainable attendance boundary for the new high school.  The school configuration is still expected to include Grades 7 to 12, and the accommodation review will therefore also include potential changes to programs and attendance boundaries for our existing elementary schools and for South Carleton High School.

Historically it has taken at least two years to build a high school, but with some processes now taking more time than they used to require, we are hoping for the high school to open in 2021, and expect that its enrolment will begin with the lower grades and phase to a full Grades 9 to 12 over several years.

In the meantime, the OCDSB is proceeding as of this month, February 2019, with a small-scale boundary study to establish an attendance boundary for a new elementary school in the Fernbank lands.  This elementary school is currently the OCDSB’s number one capital priority, but it has not yet been funded by the provincial government.  This school will be in the southern part of the Blackstone development, and its boundary will mean changes to attendance boundaries for specific programs at John Young ES, Bridlewood ES, Westwind PS, A. Lorne Cassidy ES.  These school communities and local community associations have representatives in the working group just established for this boundary study.  At least one public consultation meeting is planned for May 2019, before the working group sends its report to the Board in June.

If you have any questions, please contact me at lynn.scott@ocdsb.ca.

The post An update from Trustee Lynn Scott on elementary and secondary schools in Stittsville appeared first on Glen Gower | Councillor / Conseiller | Stittsville.