Three Oaks Family of Schools Study
The Public Schools Branch commissioned a review of all 56 schools in 2024, with the primary purpose being an assessment of school capacity as compared to school enrolment. In the Three Oaks Family of Schools, there were a number of challenges identified with respect to sufficient space being available to accommodate both the total number of classrooms needed in each school and the spaces required to provide student support on an individual or small group basis.
There was also a recognition of the potential impact on schools as a result of the significant residential construction underway or planned for the City of Summerside and the surrounding areas that are served by the TOSH Family of Schools.
Findings - The Schools
Athena Consolidated School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 322 students, the school currently occupies all available classrooms and, to provide individual or small group learning, utilizes all designated spaces as well as having retrofitted a number of additional areas.
Elm Street Elementary School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 378 students, the school currently occupies all available classrooms and, to provide individual or small group learning, utilizes all designated spaces as well as having retrofitted a number of additional areas previously used for other purposes. Even with an additional on-site classroom being added this year, it continues to need more space.
Greenfield Elementary School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 378 students, the school currently occupies all available classrooms and, to provide individual or small group learning, utilizes all designated spaces as well as having retrofitted a number of additional areas.
Miscouche Consolidated School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 238 students, the school currently occupies all available classrooms (including spaces added in a recent expansion that added four classrooms, music room, technical education area and resource room). To provide individual or small group learning, the school currently utilizes all designated spaces, including the new resource room and former music room.
Parkside Elementary School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 327 students, Parkside is currently using all available classrooms for instruction or other school needs (such as areas for student support, itinerant teachers, school visitors, administration, and staff). The basement has areas used for music, student washrooms, small individual student support areas, a student foods program and storage. This heritage designated building, dating back to 1873, continues to experience significant maintenance issues with rising regularity, even after some much needed improvements in more recent years.
Summerside Intermediate School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 501 students, SIS is currently using all available classrooms to serve its student population and has maximized other areas to support the needs of individual and small groups of students.
Three Oaks Senior High School: with a September 2024 enrolment of 848 students, the school has sufficient classrooms and student support areas to accommodate its current population, and has a few areas that could be used to support future growth. The recent renovations have created a modern, state-of-the-art facility which offers students a full range of programs and activities in a learning environment appropriate to students both today and tomorrow.
In summary, there are four schools – Athena, Elm Street, Greenfield and Summerside Intermediate – which have been identified as having significant space limitations.
Findings - Residential Development
Based on current and projects already underway, the City of Summerside is on track to have over 1,000 additional residential units completed for occupancy within the next 5 years. Using Statistics Canada data from 2021 (last official census), approximately 40% of P.E.I. residences are occupied by families with an average number of 1.4 children per household. Using these numbers and applying them to the 1,000 units would mean an additional 560 children within the City of Summerside. This additional enrollment would result in severe strain on our current facilities. The residential developments currently underway are predominantly in the catchment areas for Athena, Elm Street and Greenfield, suggesting these three schools, as well as Summerside Intermediate, will face the greatest pressure.
Options That Were Considered
Based upon the initial review of each school, discussions with school and system administrators and input received from a recent call for public comments and suggestions, the possible solutions outlined below have been identified for consideration. Given the lack of adequate and appropriate space available in these schools today, there is a need to provide additional classrooms and/or space for student support if students are to receive quality instruction and participate in programs that can be delivered effectively and efficiently to both individuals and groups. In determining the preferred recommendation for the Review, priority emphasis was given to a solution which would address the space deficiencies at the four schools experiencing current space limitations - Athena, Elm 10 Street, Greenfield and Summerside Intermediate - while also allowing the closure of Parkside Elementary and redistribution of its students to other schools.
Acknowledging the lack of existing spaces within the schools, the options are necessarily based on providing additional areas through new construction. Therefore, possible solutions to this need as suggested through public input and discussions with school and system personnel would, individually or collectively, be:
OPTION 1: Construction of additional classrooms and student support spaces at Athena Consolidated, Elm Street Elementary, Greenfield Elementary, and Summerside Intermediate (either permanent attached additions or the placement of on-site stand-alone classrooms).
The addition of permanent or temporary classrooms would be a viable option, at least in the short term, to provide much needed space. However, without attaching to the school and eliminating the outdoor exposure as students and staff move back and forth to the classroom, the stand-alone structures are not seen as a viable long-term solution. Suitable on-site locations at each school may also be a potential limitation for this solution. This option would see the continued use of Parkside Elementary if sufficient space was not provided at neighbouring schools.
*NOTE: OPTIONS 2, 3 & 4 are contingent upon creation of a new school zone and construction of a new school.
OPTION 2: Grade K-9 school, Dual Track (including all Miscouche Consolidated students Gr 7-9 and all students Gr K-9 from Slemon Park)
A new K-9 school is deemed as a possibility as it would allow rezoning within the Three Oaks Family of Schools in such a way as to reduce the current and projected populations of Athena, Elm Street, Greenfield, Miscouche and Summerside Intermediate while rezoning boundaries would also accommodate the closure of Parkside.
By situating the new school on the eastern side of the City (but within the City boundaries to take advantage of city water, sewer and storm drainage), this school could serve the students located in the communities just east of Summerside that are currently zoned to Athena, Elm Street and Greenfield (thus also reducing numbers at SIS) as well as being geographically closer to accommodate the Early French Immersion students travelling to Summerside (Parkside and SIS) from the Kensington and Kinkora Families of Schools.
A dual track school with both English and French Immersion programs would allow students to remain together as a group from K-9 and then 10-12. Building a new K-9 school that would accommodate 700-750 students would allow redefining the school boundaries of Athena, Elm Street, Greenfield and Miscouche areas to provide relief to those schools as well as Summerside Intermediate and allow rezoning Parkside Elementary to neighbouring schools such that it could be closed. The 700-750 capacity should address the significant enrolment growth expected within the greater Summerside area over the next few years.
Option A includes moving the Intermediate students (Gr 7-9) from Miscouche to the new school as well as the French Immersion students from Belmont-Lot 16 and Miscouche Consolidated. As Miscouche Consolidated has approximately 70 students in the intermediate grades this year, there are advantages to staffing and grouping of students if the total intermediate enrolment was 200+ as in the proposed new K-9 dual track school. Changing Miscouche to a school with Grades K-6 (English program) from the current Miscouche zone and the Belmont/Lot 16 zone would provide available space for future growth and thus accommodate the residential developments occurring within its catchment areas.
OPTION 3: Grade K-9 school, Dual Track (without Miscouche Intermediate Gr 7-9 students)
The only difference in this configuration is having the Miscouche Grade 7-9 students (English program) within the Miscouche and Belmont Lot 16 zones continue to attend Miscouche Consolidated. With the move of all Slemon Park students to the new K-9 school, Miscouche Consolidated would have a Grade 7-9 population of approximately 50-60 students for the three intermediate grades with potential for additional enrolment growth as the population of Miscouche/Belmont grows.
OPTION 4: Grade K-6 school, Dual Track
This third option recommends an elementary school with both English and French Immersion programming again situated within the new Malpeque East zone. Slemon Park Gr. 7-9 students would continue to attend Miscouche but the Gr K-6 students would attend the new elementary school. Other existing elementary zones would be modified to accommodate the closure of Parkside Elementary and provide relief to Elm Street, Greenfield Elementary and Athena Consolidated.
*As the catchment areas served by Summerside Intermediate would not change under this option, it would not address capacity issues at this school and therefore any long term solution would require an addition.
OPTION 5: Grades 5-7 Middle School, Dual Track, Grades 5-7
A new Middle School would accommodate Grades 5-6 students from Athena Consolidated, Elm Street Elementary, Greenfield Elementary, Parkside Elementary and Grade 7 students from Summerside Intermediate providing each school with space for future growth as populations increase. SIS would add the Grade 8 and 9 English students currently zoned for Athena.
To facilitate closure of Parkside Elementary, students in Grades K-4 English would be rezoned to Athena and K-4 FI would be rezoned to Elm Street.
Miscouche Consolidated would keep its current students (Gr K-9 English) except for those in Grades 5-7 resident in Slemon Park who would attend the new school and then move on to SIS.
Recommendations
Recommendation #1: It is recommended that the Public Schools Branch request the Government of PEI approve a new
Grade 5-7 dual track Middle School for the Three Oaks Family of Schools.
Recommendation #2: FURTHER, it is recommended that Parkside Elementary School be permanently closed upon opening of
the new facility.
How To Provide Feedback On Recommendations
Next Steps
The Public Schools Branch Board of Trustees will seek feedback on the provided recommendations, including a public information meeting on May 8, 2025, at 7pm in the Three Oaks Senior High cafeteria.