Regent Park/Duke of York P.S. will be on the Planning and Priorities Committee meeting agenda tonight at7:00 pm.
Sadly there will be only one deputation to defend the school before the committee votes to send the A.R.C. recommendation on to the Board for a decision.
There were other changes in Ward 14. Another elementary school reconfigured from JK to grade 6 to JK to grade 8. Boundary changes everywhere.
The biggest change of all is the reconstruction of Nelson Mandela P.S. which was begun long before this A.R.C. started but used to justify closing Regent Park/Duke of York. Declining enrolment was often cited as the reason for reducing the number of schools in ward 14. Parents were assured that the money raised from the sale of school property made surplus paid for improvements to other neighbourhood schools- although not necessarily in their neighbourhood.
Recently declining enrolment was exposed as being only a temporary phenomenon. The number of elementary school children is on the rise.
Furthermore, the community of Regent Park is undergoing a massive urban redevelopment. The old low rise apartments and town homes are being replaced by new high rise and townhome developments. Former residents in subsidized units were moved out to make way for demolition and construction. This urban renewal will go on to the end of this decade.
No one really knows what school space the Regent Park population will require by 2020. Neither does the TDSB. It’s a safe bet the community will need Regent Park/Duke of York P.S. when the construction of hundreds of new homes is finally completed.
Please come to the Planning and Priorities Committee meeting tonight at7:00 pmin Committee Room A at5050 Yonge St.to support the deputation for Regent Park/Duke ofYorkif you can make it. (This meeting and its agenda was not posted on the Board’s website until five days ago.)
If the motion to close Regent Park/Duke of York passes tonight, it will go to Board for the final vote on Nov. 16th.
In Solidarity,
Janet Bojti, Campaign for Public Education
The Board is using the urban development mess to get an other school sold.
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Thank you writing this excellent blog!
I am frustrated that the board is closing Regent Park/Duke of York! The board should be building a high school in the neighbourhood not closing one of its schools! As a front line worker in Regent I know how busy the Duke of York is school is once the last bell rings. A variety of positive programming that engages hundreds of Regent’s youth are in and out of the school all week long!
http://theidealisticeducator.wordpress.com/