NLESD School Review Process

2019-20
Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems (Phase II)

The Board of Trustees of the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District recently undertook a review of the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy school systems in the fall of 2019, with the potential for closure of a school within this system. During the March 28th public meeting of the Board of Trustees, the Notice of Motion which was previously given at the December 7, 2019 public meeting related to this system was withdrawn.

As such, Trustees did not proceed with the previously outlined Motion (available below) for the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems.

MOTION: Gill Memorial Academy/Phoenix Academy School System, Gill Memorial Academy (K-12), Phoenix Academy (K-12), Sandstone Academy (K-6)
WHEREAS the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District is committed to providing the best possible educational programs for students; and
WHEREAS a reorganization of schooling in the Gill Memorial Academy/Phoenix Academy School Systems is required to achieve that objective;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that: Sandstone Academy K-6 will close effective June, 2020 and all students will attend Phoenix Academy K-12 effective September, 2020.
BE IT THEREFORE FURTHER RESOLVED that: The student attendance zone for Phoenix Academy will be rezoned to include the current student attendance zone for Sandstone Academy.

The review began following the October 26, 2019 meeting of the Board, focusing on potential school system improvements in areas of declining enrolment and involved initial consultations with the school councils and/or school community. For all early information and the initial feedback shared during the first round of community consultations, please visit the archived website here (Fall, 2019).

The Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy school systems include:

These school systems are represented on the Board by Zone 9 Trustee Winston Carter.

Please find below information outlining the:

Correspondence/Memos
Systems Review Presentation
Information Booklet
Consultations
Process Summary
School System Contact Information.

As the Notice of Motion tabled in December did not directly impact Gill Memorial Academy, the District was not required to further engage with the GMA school community. Please note, the second round of consultations primarily focused on the Phoenix Academy feeder system, which includes Phoenix Academy and Sandstone Academy.

NUM	DETAILS
1.	Correspondence/Memos Correspondence provided by the District to the school community can be found below: Memo to Families - Results of the March 28 Board Meeting; Phoenix Academy Notice of Motion Withdrawn (28/03/2020) (PDF) Memo to Families - Reminder; Community Meeting Presenters (14/02/2020) (PDF) Memo to Families - Release of ThoughtExchange Report/ Update of Meeting Location (07/02/2020) (PDF) Memo to Families - ThoughtExchange Deadline (27/01/2020) (PDF) Memo to Families - Public School Community Meeting Announced (21/01/2020) (PDF) Memo to Families - Release of Updated Booklet/Launch of ThoughtExchange (16/01/2020) (PDF) Memo to PA Families - Update (19/12/2019) (PDF) Memo to GMA Families - Update (19/12/2019) (PDF) Memo to Families - Notice of Motions (07/12/2019) (PDF)
3.	Information Booklet In the interest of ensuring an informed community discussion ahead of the March 28, 2020 meeting of the Board of Trustees, the District released an updated Information Book for the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems Review, originally released during preliminary community consultations on November 4, 2019. Information Booklet (16/01/2020) (PDF)
2.	School Review Presentation Please find below the recent Board meeting presentation of the school system review. Board Presentation for the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems Review (07/12/2019) (PDF)
5.	Process Summary As of the Notice of Motion on December 7, 2019, the process for the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy school systems review included: Consultation with the school communities; An inclusive survey mechanism (ThoughtExchange) provided for individuals to outline their thoughts and opinions on the motion(s) being considered during the review (Round Two); A public school community meeting scheduled in the area to invite presentations, scheduled in advance, to be made to the Board; A report on the results of the ThoughtExchange opportunity provided to the school community; and At the March 28, 2020 public meeting of the Newfoundland and Labrador English School Board in St. John's, trustees will make a decision on the motion. Additionally, all communications and consultation activities undertaken with this school community prior to December 7 can be found on the Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems Review Phase One website.
4.	Consultations It was extremely important for members of the school community to be able to provide their feedback during this process. The District provided a number of opportunities for school community members to have their voices heard. ThoughtExchange An opportunity for community members to present views and opinions of the changes proposed was made available to the school community through the online consultation tool ThoughtExchangein January, 2020. As part of the school review consultation process, the school community was asked to provide their input on a question related to the Motion being brought forward at the March 28 meeting of the Board. Below, please find the ThoughtExchange report on the results of this consultation. What are your thoughts and perspectives on the Motion for the Phoenix Academy School System, as outlined on the District webpage? Please review the ThoughtExchange report results here. Please note: Any member of the school community who may have issues connecting with ThoughtExchange using technology (internet connection problems, computer access, language barriers, etc.) should connect with the school administration of a school within this system. District schools are committed to ensuring families are able to provide their valuable input into this process. School Community Meeting The District held a public school community meeting on Tuesday, March 17 at Sandstone Academy, Ladle Cove. Members of the school community who wanted to make a presentation to the Board of Trustees were invited to do so by making their intentions known in advance.
6.	Contact Information Should you have any questions about this process, please contact the Director of Schools for your school system: Phoenix Academy and Gill Memorial Academy School Systems (Phoenix Academy, Sandstone Academy, and Gill Memorial Academy) Maria Antle · 256-2547 (ext. 314) · mariaantle@nlesd.ca.

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