Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools is in the middle of an intricate exercise to ensure Rutherford Elementary School will have enough students in the classrooms when it opens in 2025.
The school, which shuttered in 2018, is scheduled to open its doors again for the 2025-26 school year, and the school district intends to keep it from closing again, according to Mark Walsh, secretary-treasurer, and Jacquie Poulin, assistant superintendent. Students may be shuffled around to make things work – according to the school district, Departure Bay, Frank J. Ney, Uplands Park, Randerson Ridge and McGirr would be among the schools affected.
The new Rutherford catchment would go as far west as Brickyard Road, McGirr Road and Turner Road; as far south as Butcher Road, Georgiaview Crescent, Vanderneuk Road, Lost Lake Road and Dewar Road; and as far east as Westdale Road.
Walsh said from a Ney-Randerson Ridge-McGirr point of view, the changes make sense and with the addition of the Rutherford catchment, it is creating “one of the most walkable catchments in the district.” In addition, commuting to Ney should be easier for most families.
“The other piece of good news is public transit is actually superior,” said Walsh. “If you’re older and going to Ney, [buses come] more often … The last thing is that parts of the new catchment will be connected in the next decade to Frank Ney. So if you’re up at the top of Oakridge, there’s a road going in. Depending on the housing market, the road will go in sooner rather than later and you’re now actually in walking distance to Ney.”
Ciliare Elementary has a small population and some of Departure Bay Eco-School’s 420 students would relocate there, said Walsh, although that catchment change will only apply to future students.
Consultation will take place till June 30 and the school district’s website provides information on the process.
“We don’t expect anyone to sit down and go through the report to get the info that they’re looking for,” said Gillian Robinson, school district spokesperson. “We’ll have that all broken down on the website, including catchment maps with the overlay of the old catchment to new catchment. As well, you can click on a school name and find out specifically what’s changing and frequently asked questions.”
Robinson said the district will also survey affected families to “identify any math anomalies.”
“For example, [if] one address is here and another address is there and it just doesn’t make sense, we do want to hear people’s feedback on that,” she said.
A working group was formed to deal with re-opening and one of the directives is to decrease portable usage in the north end, something that Rutherford’s re-opening is intended to alleviate, said Walsh. Departure Bay-Randerson-McGirr-Ney, as a group, are at 120-per cent capacity, he said.
“Twenty per cent of our kids are in portables that frankly, as a result of this process, are not going to need to be there anymore…” said Walsh. “This won’t necessarily achieve it as of September 2025, because transitioning needs to happen, out-of-catchment kids are at some schools that will remain there, but this largely covers, in the immediate term, capacity issues in the north end and it allows for some growth as well.”
The school district is suggesting Rutherford open as a K-6 elementary initially as Poulin said the aim is to “create classes that will be sustainable and vibrant and consistent.” Walsh said if there are 250 students enrolled at the outset, it would be “a pretty good number.” In addition, it will allow for the older students to offer guidance to their younger counterparts.
“We want those older students to be there to be able take on the leadership right away and be able to really lead that building and lead the school community,” said Poulin.
Greg Keller, board chairperson, who had children enrolled at Rutherford when it closed, said the school was the heart of the community. The area has seen “significant growth” over the last six years and opening the doors again is necessary, he said, as it will accommodate the growth the district is anticipating.
“We do know and recognize that it could be challenging for some families who may have to move schools,” said the school board chairperson. “I fully understand that as a parent, and I was challenged with that myself and I think in the long term, we’re hoping to rebuild that sense of community in the neighbourhood.”
While work was done on Rutherford to prepare it as a swing school in 2021-22 while Pleasant Valley Elementary received seismic upgrades, it is still in line for earthquake mitigation.
“If you’ll recall [in] 2016 approximately, the building code changed and so Nanaimo went from being in good shape seismically to almost all of our schools needed [work],” said Walsh. “So Rutherford will be put on the seismic list again, but it’s not the same level of risk like Nanaimo District Secondary or Ladysmith Intermediate from a priority perspective … we could be swinging that school, but not likely in the short-term.”
Mike Lundine, current Rock City Elementary School principal, will become principal at Rutherford, Poulin said.
Along with $900,000 from the B.C. Ministry of Education, the school district has set aside $600,000 to fund Rutherford’s re-opening. Walsh said the district will be spent that money on “physical upgrades” as well as equipment such as desks.
For more information, visit www.sd68.bc.ca/board/rutherford-planning.