The Kamloops-Thompson School District is proposing to turn Brock Middle School into a Grade 8 to 12 high school in September of next year.

The plan which would also expand NorKam Secondary from grades 10 to 12 to grades 8 to 12, will come with a series of other catchment changes for elementary schools on the North Shore.

As it stands, AE Perry, Arthur Hatton, Bert Edwards, Kay Bingham, Parkcrest, and Rayleigh elementaries will all become K to 7 schools, with SD73 also proposing to re-open George Hilliard Elementary as a K to 7 school, in the fall of 2024.

“Oftentimes our decisions around catchment changes and lines and where they are located are not to do with particular students but it is to do with numbers and in terms of what is going to make the most optimal use of the space,” SD73 Board Chair Heather Grieve said on NL Newsday.

“We never want to pit families against families or students against students to say you know what, ‘this student needs to be at the school more than this one.’ We want to have dialogue.”

Prior to the fire at Parkcrest Elementary, George Hilliard was home to the Twin Rivers Education Centre, which runs three programs – Four Directions, Bridges, and Alternative Education. It was moved to the former Happyvale Elementary in the fall of 2019.

The new plan could see Bridges students moved to Brocklehurst Secondary by Fall 2024 with the Alternate Education and Four Directions students staying at Happyvale.

“There was information that was sent to all of the school communities where people were actually information about the different consultation dates that were happening,” Grieve added.

“If people are curious about it, there is information that you can find on the SD73 website as well. When you look at the North Shore consultation, it will give you a calendar of events and Zoom meetings that you can join to participate.”

The decision on George Hillard will affect the catchment areas of the other elementary schools in North Kamloops, as pictured below.

Back on June 14, 2021, the school board was told that expected enrolment at Brocklehurst Middle School was set to hit 936 students by 2028. It began a study to see whether Brock Middle – the ninth largest middle school in all of B.C. – was too large. The board says it has held 27 consultation sessions since then, with two more rounds taking place this month.

“It would be very unlikely to be honest that we’re going to find consensus in terms of decisions but at least we can be informing and engaging with our community around what people would like considered,” Grieve added. “Are there ways we can go about it that will make it sort of the best experience possible?”

“But even when it is a positive change like opening of a school, we are still asking families to adjust as it still comes with some stress and concerns just about what that will all look like.”

Brock Middle was a high school until 2010, when it was turned into a middle school as part of a previous restructuring in SD73.

Grade 10, 11, and 12 students from Sun Peaks will continue to be bussed in to NorKam. Younger students will continue to attend the K to 9 Sun Peaks School, with SD73 noting that students in Grade 8 and 9 who want to attend Brocklehurst or NorKam will have to adhere to the transfer request process.

A report outlining the potential recommendations is set to go before the Board of Trustees on June 19, at which point a decision could be made.