By Ashley Legassic

Westwold Elementary shuts its doors after no students enroll

Oct 17, 2018 | 3:27 PM

WESTWOLD, B.C. — It came as a surprise to School District 73 when the first day of school at Westwold Elementary kicked off with no students in the building.

The school is located in the tiny community of Westwold, which is situated between Vernon and Kamloops along Highway 97. School district superintendent Alison Sidow says eight students were expected to register at the school for this year, but those students have opted to attend RL Clemitson Elementary in Barnhartvale.

“So the eight students we were anticipating would show up in September did not, and therefore we’ve shut the doors and are waiting for an opportunity to consult with parents about what our next steps may be,” Sidow says. “Currently the building is simply shut, and we are not using the building specifically for any purposes other than a school.”

Sidow says because the building won’t be used as anything other than a school until parents, district employees and the school board meet, the district is trying to consider what its next steps may be. That could include looking at the birth rate to see if there are students who may attend in the near future, talking to parents about what they want for their children, and considering whether or not it’s viable to keep the school open. Sidow stresses that closing up the school would be a last resort.

“We are in no hurry to close our rural schools. Our rural communities do have families in them. Schools are the heart of many communities, and a school is an essential part of a vibrant community,” Sidow says. “We are not in any hurry to shut or close schools, we are hoping that those students will materialize and parents will make the choice to return to Westwold.”

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As for why student enrollment is down, Sidow says a school with few students can make it challenging for kids to make friends, and have access to extra curricular or sports activities.

“Only several years ago we had 22 students, so we’ve seen a sharp decline over the last three to four years of the enrolment at Westwold Elementary,” Sidow says.  “We did look at some of the birth rate data and we do notice that there has been a decline in the number of young people in the community over the last several years. However when we look closely, it does look like there may be some students ready for school in the next year or two, so again thats why we need to talk with parents to further discern what’s the next best bet.”

Sidow says with the election coming up this weekend and potential new trustees being elected, there will need to be discussions about how to move forward with Westwold Elementary.

“It was a surpise to us and we are hopeful that after some consultation… once we have the new board, (and) we have approval to enter into consultation, that we’ll be able to better understand what the needs of the community are and respond to those needs.”