Photo: Contributed

Jamie Schrauwen speaks before SD 83 trustees.

Despite public opposition, School District 83 trustees have approved recommendations to close elementary schools in Armstrong and Salmon Arm before the start of the next school year.

Parents from Armstrong Elementary and Silver Creek Elementary in Salmon Arm crammed a three-hour meeting of the School District 83 board of education Tuesday evening where the tough decisions were made.

The board is looking for $1.3 million in cuts from its 2016-17 budget.

Before the standing room only crowd, trustees passed a recommendation to initiate a school closure consultation for Armstrong Elementary, turn Highland and Lenwood elementaries into kindergarten to Grade 7 (K-7) and Pleasant Valley Secondary into a Grades 8 to 12 school.

As well, trustees OK'd a recommendation to amalgamate Silver Creek Elementary and Salmon Arm West into one school at the Salmon Arm West site and initiate a school closure consultation for Silver Creek.

“We asked for a lot information as to numbers and costs of upgrading Lenwood,” said Jamie Schrauwen, of the Armstrong Elementary parent's advisory committee, who admitted surprise over the move to close the schools this year. “We asked: why we aren't making cuts elsewhere or renting out buildings?”

A 60-day consultation period begins before any recommendations are finalized.

“The public consultation is expected to start immediately,” said Schrauwen, admitting parents are not yet certain how it will be done.

For the Armstrong group, the battle to keep open the red brick building continues.

A delegation has asked to speaking before the school board's next meeting on Mar. 8.

The board was also presented with a petition circulating in the community asking trustees not to close Armstrong Elementary.

“We currently have 1,750 signatures and we want more,” said Schrauwen.

The petition will be put back into the community, and parents are asking people to “fill the sheets.”

Copies will be available at the library and a number of businesses, including Askew Foods.

Further recommendations adopted included:

• Possible reconfiguration of Ranchero Elementary in Salmon Arm to a K-8 school.
• Complete a catchment area review of Ranchero as well as M.V. Beattie and Grindrod in Enderby.
• Look at the financial and educational feasibility of having one Grade 9-12 Salmon Arm high school located at Sullivan Campus.