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Magnet programs hurting some Rainbow schools?

The sinking enrolment affects course offerings, especially at the senior level, he said. The result is Chelmsford is losing its academic and athletic leaders to other schools, which in turn affects its standardized testing scores, Plouffe said.
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The parent council at Chelmsford Valley District Composite School is concerned about the impact of magnet programs on its enrolment and ability to provide a full course load. File photo.

The sinking enrolment affects course offerings, especially at the senior level, he said.

The result is Chelmsford is losing its academic and athletic leaders to other schools, which in turn affects its standardized testing scores, Plouffe said.

“We're not going to prevent students from going to various magnet schools,” he said.

“That would be totally irresponsible on our part, but what we're doing is we're seeing the fact that we're losing these students. We're losing our students, our potential future leaders, to these schools.”

Plouffe presented at the board's Feb. 24 meeting in response to a staff report supporting the continuation of Rainbow's magnet programs.

These programs include Sudbury Secondary School's Arts Education program, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, Lockerby Composite School's Science and Technology Education Program (STEP), established in 1991, the International Baccalaureate (IB) Program at Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School, established in 1999, and the Integrated Technology program at Lively District Secondary School, established in 2002.

These courses are referred to as “magnet programs” because the board provides transportation for students to attend the schools where they're offered, no matter where in the city they happen to live.

While Chelmsford parents are concerned about the impact of these programs, Plouffe said they support the staff report because of suggested provisions to help non-magnet schools.

These provisions include additional funding for staffing and marketing to potential future students.

It was thanks to a presentation from Lasalle Secondary School parents' council chair Dan Keaney in June that trustees voted to have staff look at magnet programs.


Last month, the board launched a formal review of these programs, which is slated to wrap up March 24.

In his letter to trustees, Keaney wrote that Lasalle's image has become diminished over the years, thanks to the magnet programs.

“We spoke with numerous parents in our neighbourhood, as well as colleagues at work, and the consensus was that if we wanted our children to go to a good school, we had to send them to Lo-Ellen Park or Lockerby,” he said.

Keaney added that 20 to 40 per cent of students from area elementary schools are choosing Rainbow magnet schools.

“Put another way, if we maintained the students in our part of town, Lasalle would have close to 1,000 students,” he said. “Currently we have 670.”

The good news, though, is that even if these students are going to magnet schools, they're still in the Rainbow board system, said Rainbow board chair Doreen Dewar.

She said these programs are high quality, pointing out that a group of Lockerby students and a Lockerby grad also gave presentations Feb. 24 in support of the school's STEP program.

As for the concerns of schools such as Chelmsford and Lasalle, she said the board is looking at providing resources to these schools to reach out to students being lost to neighbouring school boards.


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Heidi Ulrichsen

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