Examining Zorra's School System

Monday, 22 July 2019 08:29

Zorra Township council is exploring the idea of a county-run school system after a woman from Elgin County gave a presentation at a recent meeting.

ZORRA TOWNSHIP - Following one Elgin County's woman idea on a county-run school system, Zorra Township council is looking into it.

Councillors were presented with this proposal during a meeting last Wednesday.

Mayor Marcus Ryan says they have brought this matter to their local advisory committee.

"There certainly would be advantages, there would certainly be challenges with it as well, so it's not a simple matter to discuss and decide. But if people feel there is possible better representation especially for our rural schools in Oxford County, then maybe it's worth looking at."

Heather Derks is going to other municipalities around Oxford County to get their support. Her child's school, located outside of St.Thomas, was turned into a French immersion school in 2018. The students were then transferred to another school in Port Stanley.

He says this was brought forward after her child's school was closed by the Thames Valley District School Board last year.

Mayor Ryan says while they have endorsed the idea, the community's interests have to be considered too.

"As a society we divide up responsibility for all these things between different organizations and the reason we divide them up is not because there's any kind of inherent value in a school board or in Zorra or in Oxford, or in Ontario, it's how do we best deliver these services that as a society we've decided we want. As soon as one of those models isn't working for us, we should be willing to look at it and say is there a better way. There will be challenges. The question is do the benefits outweigh the challenges for our residents? And if the benefits outweigh the challenges then it's frankly our jobs as municipal-elected officials to get on with the work and figure out a better way to deliver that service to our residents."

Her proposal was endorsed by Elgin County council and then reviewed and supported by the Zorra local school committee.

Council have supported the idea but no formal discussions have been held right now.