School District 43’s plans to adjust catchment boundaries is getting a rough ride from another group of parents in Port Moody.
Families of children attending Pleasantside elementary are raising concerns about district plans to require some children to attend Moody middle school instead of having the choice of Moody or Eagle Mountain.
One parent says the change will split up friendship groups of Grade 5 students and will make transitioning into middle school more difficult for these kids.
“We just don’t want our school cut in half,” said Shannon McCluskie, who has an online petition (available on change.org) against the changes with 138 signatures.
The proposed boundary changes to be discussed at a board of education meeting next Wednesday is the district’s solution to addressing class size and composition issues related to a Supreme Court of Canada decision restoring the teachers’ collective agreement.
But McCluskie said she thinks the board is being overzealous in trying to adhere to a provincial memorandum of agreement because the consequence for non-compliance is that the “teachers get extra prep time. It’s not the school shutting down.”
In addition to separating friendship groups, McCluskie said the boundary changes would split families, with some kids going to Moody middle and their older siblings attending Heritage Woods secondary, which will present a challenge for some families.
“If there are steps in place and we think this is only a three-year problem, why are we doing such a huge permanent decision for something that doesn’t necessary have to be solved?”
