Capacity crunch looming for School District 57 as enrollment trends upward

“We haven’t talked about that [population increasing] in a long time, in this community,” said Superintendent of SD57, Cindy Heitman. “That is having an impact in our schools and it’s a great impact, we’re happy to see our schools full and have this problem.”

Heitman noted there was a time just over a decade ago when the population was decreasing and a number of schools needed to be closed.

In response, trustees will form a Long Range Facility Use Committee to review current trends and projections and plan for facilities across the school district.

In the meantime, the SD57 Board of Education voted to move a number of schools to catchment-based only enrollment including:

Beaverly Elementary, College Heights Secondary, College Heights Elementary, Duchess Park Secondary, Edgewood Elementary, Glenview Elementary, Hart Highlands Elementary, Harwin Elementary, Heritage Elementary, Malaspina Elementary, Ron Brent Elementary, Southridge Elementary, Springwood Elementary, and Vanway Elementary.

Other local schools not listed will not have September 2022 enrollment restricted based on catchment.

There are challenges in facilities across the city including the Hart, the bowl, and College Heights where populations are expected to increase with little to no extra room to accommodate in many current facilities.

One of the facilities under increasing pressure is DP Todd Secondary, built back in 1977 and opened in 1978.

The current capacity of the school is just over 600 students and the number of students that are enrolled this year is just under 800.

According to Christina Thurston, Chair of the DP Todd Parent Advisory Council things aren’t getting any better either.

Thurston said she has heard from many parents, students, and teachers who are all ready for a more modern learning environment.

by Caden Fanshaw

Capacity crunch looming for School District 57 as enrollment trends upward

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