Proposed School Boundary Revisions

My kid has been looking forward to join McRoberts next year which is only 5 minutes walk through the south arm park. We strongly oppose to the boundary changes to McRoberts. Why the school with high ranking and best location will be closed?

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We are strongly opposed to the proposed boundary changes to the McRoberts/McNair catchment areas.

In case the south central boundary changes are meant as a “first step” to the closure of a secondary school in the area, then the district should reconsider moving the French immersion program from McRoberts to Palmer. The reason the LRFP chose over McRoberts for the FI program was because Palmer was more centrally located. However, the consultants did not consider the fact that Palmer is not located on a major street and therefore is not as accessible to hundreds of French immersion students who needs to be transported to get to school. The fact that Palmer is also located across another school, a big church makes things worst. I think McRoberts is a better location for the French immersion program as it is more accessible (has transit going down Garden City / Williams and has three lanes) and has worked for the French immersion program for years. Therefore, the district should reconsider the boundary changes if it is indeed being made with the purpose of closing McRoberts.

I've read most of the comments and agree with the reasons expressed in opposition to the boundary changes. Rather than reiterate what has already been pointed out, I will address my opposition from another point of view. Quoting from the LRFP executive summary, "The LRFP is a Board of Education-driven document that provides a framework for facilities planning and investment decisions and the District’s annual review of its Five-Year Capital Plan and proposed capital projects." IF this plan is anything like the City of Richmond's "Official Community Plan", our school system is in for big trouble. For example, look at all new high rises, condos, being built around the Cambie St and No. 3 Road area. Great to live around but horrible grid lock traffic. Is this "good" community planning? Therefore, is the "proposed boundary changes" in the best interest of the school community or is it too short sighted? We need more two-way consultation before any decision is implemented.

We are strongly opposed to the proposed boundary changes to the McRoberts/McNair catchment areas. McRobert is such a great school and is running well with all its catchment elementary schools combined with Southarm community. My son grows here and is looking forward to step after his big sister’s track to join McRobert to study! It is just about 5 minutes walk crossing the Southarm field for my kids to attend McRobert! Why do they need to travel far away to go to Palmer or McNair afterwards?! All this is just for saving School board budget?! Why have we only been given such short notice for reboundary issue? Why can’t we discuss the consolidation of secondary school now? We all can see what’s gonna happen after first step- trying to redirect some future students from McRobert! We strongly oppose this reboundary plan! It is not fair for us and our kids in this catchment! We need a public meeting to be held, our thoughts need to be considered, and our voice need to be heard!

I don't think there should be any changes to the McRoberts catchment boundaries. I would not support any future plans that will lead to the closure of this high school. It is in a central location with ample parking & drop off, access to transit and the community centre and parks is also convenient for students. Although we drive an extra 15-20 min to attend McR b/c it is our French Catchment, it's a great school and the commute is worth it. It does seem like the district wants to reduce the catchment to McRoberts so they can close it down and profit on the sale. They already have plans to sell Mitchell Elementary land to sell for commercial purposes even though there is an indenture that states that the land was donated to the city for EDUCATIONAL purposes only. The fact that they are willing to ignore that clause leads me to believe that the district does not act on the best interest of students but rather their own pockets. This whole boundary issue sounds shady to me!

I strongly disagree to close McRobert. It is a good school,the Principal and teachers are nice and helpful, changing the school and environment might impact students future, please Keep McRobert!

My daughter and I strongly oppose this plan and don’t understand the reasoning behind this decision. Firstly the Richmond School District Board says they gathered “valuable information from the public” but who exactly is the “public” you asked? All the parents are clearly opposed so this means the board never took our opinions into consideration. The boundary changes will lead to less students attending and give the board an excuse to close McRoberts even though currently McRoberts meets the amount needed (~900 students). And why close McRoberts, one of the best schools in Richmond and that offers French Immersion? If we must close one school, why not close one of the smaller high schools to affect less people? Lastly, why do we need to close a school? The Richmond population will always continue to grow, and the number of students as well. Empty schools will fill up. Why hasn’t the board taken the long-term future into consideration?

We are strongly opposed to the proposed boundary changes to the McRoberts/McNair catchment areas. These boundary changes will shrink the catchment area of McRoberts, therefore lessening the enrolment at McRoberts, while raising the enrolment at McNair. This would make McRoberts a prime choice for closure as mentioned hidden in the LRFP. McRoberts has a very strong, loyal, community. Many of us parents attended McRoberts ourselves, and have purchased homes in the area where our own children are now attending McRoberts. There are so many parts of this community that are interwoven-the preschools, elementary schools, community centre, people who utilize the park every day, and of course, McRoberts. There is a harmony to this area that we are all proud to be a part of. The closure of McRoberts would be devastating to our children who have made life long friendships right from kindergarten. We request that you DO NOT approve these boundary changes and keep McRoberts & the community in tact.

Additionally, how can the school board impose such a change and make this decision themselves? This matter involves the livelihoods and futures of the students and the families. The community as a whole should have a say, not just the school board. Having the school beside the community center is a huge bonus for students at McRoberts. They use the community center in conjunction with the school and it is a safe place for the students to hang out to do their homework, socialize and play sports. Youth coordinators at the community center also work with McRoberts students in leadership/ community project clubs. Closing the school down and moving all future students to McNair will lead to the vanishing of this educational cultural environment. How will this help our kids? This is extremely upsetting and disappointing that the school board has chosen to use this approach to determine our kids future.

I oppose the closure of McRoberts.

I strongly oppose to the boundary revisions and the potential closure of McRoberts. This is a devastating news for my son who really likes his school and has formed a good bonding with his teachers and fellow classmates. He enjoys the activities in the South Arm Community next door. Closing a school will affect the lives of many students and their families. This decision should not be done by a small group of board members. The opinions of the affected families should be considered.

It is disappointing to hear about the plan for Mcroberts. We moved into this area so that our kids could walk to Mcroberts as where we lived before the high school was too far away to walk to as McNair would be. High schools are important to help build community and Mcnair is not the community school for the Broadmoor area. I think much more thought is needed before any decision is made, besides families need and deserve more information about future plans.

I oppose the boundary revisions that will effect McRoberts Secondary school. I don't believe the School Board has been transparent in the boundary revision process as there is no information on how the boundary revision process may eventually lead to the potential closure of McRoberts because of reduced student populations. Also, information about the potential closure of McRoberts secondary is buried on page 106 of the long range plan document. The boundary revisions and long range plan also do not consider the schools as communities rather just buildings with French and English program streams. A school is more than a building, it is a community.

I oppose the closure of McRoberts. The school is a needed resource in the community closing it makes no sense, families have moved to this catchment JUST to attend this school! It is a safe, stable, productive school and creating this disruption will bring no value for the staff the students and the parents. Why are we trying to get rid of something that works well?
The school has great facility close to the community centre and park, this school is the core of this community! Please apply some community sense to this!
My family moved from Alberta to the lower mainland and we chose McRoberts ONLY because of its reputation , rankings and location. People’s lives will be impacted please consider before making any decisions that impact how our students learn.

We’re appalled that the School Board would go about making such an important decision in this manner! Informing families about the boundary changes, but omitting the reason for doing so is sneaky and disrespectful. The Long Range Facilities Plan should have been made transparent to the public so that open and honest discussions could be held. As McRoberts parents, finding out about this information from someone other than the School Board is unacceptable and we strongly oppose the proposed school boundary revisions!

I strongly oppose to close McRoberts and my son feel sad about the closing of his school. He love the teachers here as well as his friends. It is very inconvenient for him to go to McNair, because we live at Williams and No 3. Our whole family oppose the closing of McRoberts. Hope school board can understand our feeling and consider our opinions. Thanks very much!

The revision of the boundaries and ultimate closure of McRoberts school is a move that will destroy the south arm community. McRoberts school is not only an excellent academic school but it is the hub that ties kids together with the South Arm Community Center and the surrounding facilities. The school is right beside a police station which eases parents minds in terms of school safety. We purposely moved to Saunders area for the McRoberts school catchment for our child and have encouraged many friends and family to be in the same area because all parents are concerned with the future education of their children. Closing down McRoberts school and forcing more kids to McNair will only enlarge class sizes and the consequence is a deficiency in the education of our kids. Teachers are already overworked, how will increasing the class size help our kids? Geographically the travel times for the kids to go to school will also increase, keeping them on the traffic ridden streets much longer.

As father of two students currently attending at Mc Roberts, and also as a Richmond resident who believes in community values, I dispute the reasons supporting PSBR regarding Mc Roberts. All the arguments written in the minutes on the meeting days ago taken by the Mc. Roberts Vice Principal reflects my opinion on why Mc. Roberts shouldn't be closed. More details upon request.
I also question the short window on which we received the notice, which is insufficient to schedule such meeting, and for expressing these comments with proper time for analyzing, as two days are not enough.
I question the way this notice was implemented, with only 2 days to express our opinions. I wonder if that can be considered a good practise, and also if it is valid.
I propose SD38 to call for a new meeting, inform parents about such meeting with reasonable time, enough to meditate about such relevant concept.
I will appreciate SD38 please to answer to this comments.
Thanks for reading these comments.