KAMLOOPS — By early Sunday afternoon, the lineup outside Lloyd George Elementary was growing quickly. Eager parents camped out, braving the cold temperatures, all in the hopes of enrolling their child in the school’s French Immersion Program.
WATCH: Full story by Reporter Tanya Cronin
“It was quite the scene when I showed up, there was campers, those gravity chairs, there was lawn chairs, sleeping bags, someone built a fire,” says Hannah Boyce, mother of 4 year old daughter.
For Hannah Boyce, it was a long night. She arrived at 7:30 Sunday evening, and was fortunate to secure a spot in the kindergarten class for her daughter this morning. The wait well worth it, but not ideal. She says the process must change.
“I’m a single parent and I’m lucky because I have my parents, but lots of people don’t, and if you’re a single parent and you don’t have anybody to watch your child, you can’t sit outside all night long int he middle of February,” says Boyce.
The scramble among parents began at 11 o’clock Sunday morning, and not everyone was lucky. Jason Vanderleelie lined up at 9pm, and despite a 14 hour wait, and living in the school’s catchment area just three blocks away, it proved to be a little too late.
“The only other option is for me to take my kid to what is currently Beattie, but will become the Stuart Wood campus, which is not anywhere near our house or our jobs or the area we bought into, thinking we could raise a family here,” says Vanderleelie.
The number of spots available at Lloyd George for the upcoming school year is 57, with siblings of current students taking priority, and leaving fewer than 32 spots available to new families.
“This year we don’t have a big class leaving our grade 7 so we have less space in the school to take more kindergartens. Some years, we have over 60 kids leaving and can get more kids into kindergarten,” says Alain Blais, Lloyd George Elementary School Principal.
Lineups and lotteries for French Immersion are common throughout the province. In Kamloops there are 109 spaces spread between Lloyd George and South Sahali Elementary. The program is in high demand, and it’s the first time the district hasn’t been able to accommodate families. the board is looking at opening up more space, but options are limited.
“We’re under a mandate by the Provincial Government to cut administrative costs, so if I opened another school, to do that, I would have to put clerical staff, custodial staff, all the so-called administrative type costs. That’s tough to do when you’re cutting back, but regardless of the challenges we face, I think we’ll be able to do something within a year or so,” says Karl de Bruijn, Superintendent, School District 73.
A shortage of French Immersion teachers in BC is another hurdle School District 73 faces. The closure of Stuart Wood has compounded the situation, putting more pressure on the only downtown public elementary school. And it seems this year, the first come first serve approach, has left more parents than ever out in the cold.
“So do I come here next year on Saturday and spend 2 days here? says Vanderleelie.
