The roar from inside Burkevale’s gymnasium was loud, sustained and strong.
Just seconds earlier, Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop announced the “momentous” words parents, staff, the Penetanguishene Protestant School Board and Burkevale students have longed for years to hear: They would be getting a new school.
Dunlop was joined at Wednesday afternoon’s “important good news” announcement by Education Minister Stephen Lecce for something board chair Lynne Cousens and others connected to Burkevale Protestant Separate School have been seeking for close to a decade.
“I’ve seen first hand what the school has grappled with,” Dunlop said. “Our government's commitment to investing in a new state-of-the-art school for Burkevale facing challenges of overcrowding and aging infrastructure is a momentous step forward."
The province plans to invest $17.1 million in the project at a still undetermined location that’s designed to accommodate 363 students upon completion.
“I’ve known about this since March…April was the longest month,” Cousens joked, referring to how she couldn’t tell anyone a new school was in the offing.
“It means the absolute world to us all. We just need to find some land. This day will become a treasured memory for us all."
Dunlop said Burkevale students will no longer have to “compromise on their learning environment” by working in cramped conditions at the school, which for years has been overflowing and forced the school to use the gymnasium for more than just athletic pursuits.
“This initiative will not only improve student learning but also provide essential space for our dedicated staff and students, fostering an environment conducive to success."
After Dunlop’s words elicited not only received sustained applause and cheers, but also a standing ovation, Lecce joked that he would have to come back to Burkevale on a regular basis.
“On my goodness, I did not know I was coming to this,” Lecce told students, teachers, board members and Penetanguishene staff and politicians. “I will have to come back to Burkevale every week.”
Lecce said Dunlop deserves a great deal of credit for keeping Burkevale’s plight on the front burner.
“None of this today would have been possible without a member of Parliament who fought for this community,” said Lecce, noting Burkevale’s new build has been “a decade in the making.”
Penetanguishene Mayor Doug Rawson said the town is keen to work with the board to find an appropriate site and hinted it could either be located on the former Penetanguishene Secondary School, as part of a new community centre project or a land swap within the town.
“I think there’s potential there for a viable opportunity for us,” Rawson told MidlandToday following the announcement, adding the current Burkevale site could eventually be used to build houses.
“This (announcement) is phenomenal.”
School board supervisory officer Tim Overholt said they’re thrilled the ministry has approved its capital proposal for a new 363-pupil school.
“Our students, school staff, families and board staff will benefit from a new, modern, state of the art facility,” Overholt said. “We are very thankful and appreciative for all the support we have received from our community.”
According to the province, it has invested more than $3.6 billion in capital construction projects in education, including 139 new schools, 109 additions and renovations to existing facilities since 2018, thereby creating more than 98,000 student spaces and more than 8,000 new licensed child-care spaces.
“The previous government closed schools across the province,” Dunlop said. “We’re taking a different approach and building new schools.”
Lecce said the government is more than doubling the funding to build new schools, which represents the single largest investment in school building in Ontario history.
“We are stepping up with a massive investment to build the homes, schools and communities our province needs, and to ensure children have access to state-of-the-art schools close to home that gives them real life and job skills to succeed in the future," he said.
Lecce also discussed the province’s plan to limit cellphone use in schools to deal distractions in classrooms.
“We’re restricting when it is appropriate to use technology,” he said. “We’re excited about September.”
