Joyce Public school could be the model for my School Purple in my school closing fantasy.
It is a school that is doing very well. Parents think that their children are getting a good education from a caring staff but the board wants to close the school and ship the students to Lawrence Highest middle school, a larger building with a worse reputation.
This solution does not solve a problem that this school has. Joyce’s numbers are good with 277 student attending from the surrounding area. If closed they will have to cross a major street to go to school. This will include 200 children under 10 years old.
The board is still pushing its politically aggressive 450 student number as its cut off for small schools when it knows that there is little academic proof that smaller schools serve parents badly. In fact, a jk-grade 5 works quite well at 200 students. There is no pressing pedagogical need to close Joyce.
This is not being done to improve the quality of these children’s education. It is being done for a higher corporate purpose. Board staff and many trustees are trying to sell the land to balance an inadequate provincially mandated budget.
I expect that, in a few years after it closes, the Joyce site will probably go on the auction block and be sold the highest bidder but do not expect the board to make a killing on this deal. It will be sold with its lower zoning status so the price will not be too high.
Today’s Star article completely buys into the board’s public relations. It highlights the unrealistic struggle of the school’s parents to fit into the board’s jk-8 model. The school should remain as it is, jk-5 and keep serving its local residents.
If Joyce PS closes, that community will lose its centre and we all will lose a great community asset. Lets hope that the Joyce community keeps up the fight.
