Morden's new school, set to open next school year, has officially been named and more of the details about programming for the much-anticipated new learning space are being released.
Western School Division Board Chair Brian Fransen said the board passed the official name at the last public meeting, as they needed to submit a name to the government. A small change has been made to the name previously announced.
"Of course, as we've been moving further along with the planning for the school, we've determined that it will be a dual track school, French Immersion and English. We thought it would be a good idea to include a little bit of French in the name of the new dual track school. So, we determined as a group, we would name the school, 'École Discovery Trails.'"
Newly named Principal Samuel Jerema explained what that means for those in the French Immersion program, currently attending Maple Leaf Elementary and École Morden Middle School (EMMS).
"All of the students that are currently in the French Immersion program grades K to five are going to be grades one to six next year and then we'll onboard our new kindergartens, but all of those students are moving from either Maple Leaf or École Morden Middle School to the new school. So, the French Immersion program is essentially moving there, grades K to 8. However, in 2024, we're going to start with K to six, and then those grade sixes are going to grow into the school and become the 1st grade sevens in the first-grade eights."
Jerema stated there has been a gradual increase in enrollment in the French Immersion program over the last few years, but essentially the program isn't growing any bigger at this time, it's just transitioning to École Discovery Trails.
"One thing that I'm excited about in the new building is to have some cross grade buddies happening from grade eight. I think there’ll be grade 8 leaders in the building eventually. Even the grade sixes are just going to be a couple years older than our grade fours, and so the leadership those students will be able to provide to our younger students is an exciting opportunity as well."
Jerema noted with EMMS is so full, with close to 700 students, people may be surprised at how little room the transition will make over the next couple of years.
He looks forward to learning from colleagues at École Morden Middle School about the work being done there. He is grateful for the programs in place and the collective work that has been done, and for the foundation this work has laid as the division gets ready for a large transition in the years ahead.
"My dream for any school is that it would just be an environment where students can come and thrive and learn and grow. Running a dual track school, there's always a balance because you do have two different programs that need a lot of support. And so, for me, I really want to make sure that bilingual building where both programs are valued and are able to serve the community the best that we can.”
He is excited about making the new school a place for the community to come together, whether it's for sporting events with the new track and full-sized soccer field or inside the school at other tournaments.
Contact the Western School Division Office if you have any questions.
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