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West Kelowna  

Big shakeup at schools

A special meeting of School District 23's General Affairs Committee will be held Thursday evening at Mount Boucherie secondary.

At issue, grade reconfiguration across the entire district, specifically for schools on the Westside.

The goal of the district is to reconfigure the entire Central Okanagan school system, where elementary schools would house students from kindergarten to Grade 5, middle schools Grades 6 to 8, and secondary schools Grades 9 to 12.

Reconfiguration was completed in Rutland in 2015.

In a report for the meeting, district Supt. Kevin Kaardal says the Westside presents a "unique challenge and opportunity, given the enrolment patterns and distribution, which show overloading in many elementary schools, but available space in Glenrosa Middle and Mount Boucherie Secondary schools."

He says immediate action on reconfiguration is needed to accommodate growth projections.

Kardaal said reconfiguring all schools on the Westside would require eight to 12 additional portables at Mount Boucherie until either a new middle or high school is built.

Since 2011, the area has seen a growth rate averaging 2.6 per cent each year. It's expected over the next 10 years, approximately 350 residential units will be built each year.

With that in mind, the district has submitted a capital plan to the province for a new middle school on the site with George Pringle elementary, and renovate Glenrosa middle to a secondary school.

Kaardal has presented three scenarios, status quo, a full reconfiguration and a staged reconfiguration.

Parents in West Kelowna are urged to attend the meeting, which begins at 6 p.m.



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