KAILIE OORTWYN,
Office of Laurie Scott, MPP
NORTH DURHAM: As part of Ontario’s ongoing efforts to build and improve local schools, the province provided the Durham District School Board with approval to proceed to tender a new Beaverton Thorah Elementary School. This will be supported by an investment of $16.2 million, which includes additional funding of $4.9 million.
The Government of Ontario is delivering more than $26.6 billion in education funding for the 2022-23 school year, including an increase of over $600 million this September, which is the highest investment in public education in Ontario’s history. Investing in the province’s schools is an integral part of Ontario’s Plan to Catch Up, which is squarely focused on the priorities of parents and includes five key components:
1. Kids being back in the classroom, on time with a full school experience including extracurriculars like sports, band and field trips;
2. Investing more than $175 million for enhanced tutoring support programs, delivered by school boards and community partners, with a focus on reading, writing and math;
3. Updating the curriculum, to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow, including opportunities in the skilled trades;
4. Providing more money, to build schools and improve education; and
5. Allocating $90 million – the highest amount in Ontario history, and a 420 per cent increase from 2017-18 – to support student mental health.
The new school will provide more student spaces in a new, quality learning environment, for the growing student population in Beaverton, as well as affordable child care spaces for local parents. The investment is part of the Ontario government’s commitment to provide $14 billion to support school construction over 10 years.
“This additional funding for a new Beaverton Thorah Elementary School is great news for our community,” said Laurie Scott, MPP for Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock. “This investment will ensure families and students have access to a quality learning environment in the years ahead.”
“Our government is investing $14 billion over ten years to build new schools, improve existing facilities and create child care spaces, to ensure young people can reach their full potential,” explained Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “By building the new state-of-the-art Beaverton Thorah Elementary School, as well as investing in tutoring and mental health supports for the year ahead, we are getting students in Beaverton back on track now and well into the future. While we make progress building this new school for Beaverton, we remain focused on getting students back to class this September, in more normal classrooms with extra curriculars, sports, and clubs.”
“This is great news for students and families in Brock Township. On behalf of the DDSB’s Board of Trustees and the Beaverton and Thorah Central Public School communities, I want to thank the Government of Ontario for advancing this eagerly anticipated approval. The updated design is essential to supporting our community as it continues to grow. We look forward to breaking ground on this project.” stated Chair Carolyn Morton, Trustee for the Townships of Brock, Scugog, Uxbridge.
Highlights of the project include: 418 student spaces, 49 child care spaces, three child care rooms and one EarlyON room.
The new school will be located at 270 King Street, in Beaverton.