Lambton Kent District School Board (LKDSB) Senior Administration presented the Pupil Accommodation Report 2022/2023 to Trustees at the December 13, 2022 Board Meeting.
In compliance with the LKDSB's regulation and Ontario Ministry of Education directions, Senior Administration presented the report, which includes the LKDSB's current and future enrolment demographics, financial considerations and school site information.
The LKDSB has an enrolment of 22,275 in 2022-2023 (14,881 elementary students and 7,394 secondary students), with an overall capacity utilization of 74.16 per cent as of October 31, 2022. Over the past 10 years, there has been a 7.23 per cent enrolment decline, with six elementary schools currently with populations under 150 students and three secondary schools with populations under 400 students. Overall, there are 7,761 empty pupil spaces. The ten-year projections indicate LKDSB enrolment will continue to fluctuate, resulting in an overall decline of 308 students in 2032.
There is currently a full-time equivalent (FTE) of 120 students enrolled in the Elementary Virtual Learning program at McNaughton Avenue Public School as of October 31, 2022 and FTE of 180 students enrolled in the Secondary Virtual Learning Program at Lambton Kent Composite School as of October 31, 2022.
The Ministry of Education maintains a provincial moratorium on school consolidations. In alignment with the LKDSB's Strategic Priority of “Sustainable Stewardship: Optimize human, financial and physical resources" LKDSB annually reviews its capital needs based on its enrolment and programming requirements, and overall utilization of facilities.
“It is positive to see a relative stabilization in the overall enrolment at the Lambton Kent District School Board and this is helpful in our planning for capital projects, staffing, and effectively allocating resources in order to maximize impact on student learning at the school level," said Director John Howitt. “The age and vacancies within our facilities provides an opportunity for refreshing and right-sizing our schools to provide better programming to our students in state of the art facilities. This requires the lifting of the moratorium on school consolidations and working with Trustees to determine next steps for moving forward."
The LKDSB is committed to furthering its mission of “Fostering Success for Every Student Every Day" and responsive, informed decision-making and planning based on its Strategic Priorities and annual Operational Plan.
The complete Pupil Accommodation Report 2022/2023 can be found on the LKDSB website: http://www.lkdsb.net/Board/AccommodationReview/Pages/default.aspx.
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For additional information contact:
Randy Campbell, Chair of the Board, (226) 996-9717
John Howitt, Director of Education, (519) 336-1500 Ext 31297
For reference information contact: Heather Hughes, Public Relations Officer, (519) 336-1500 Ext 31262
