Part of the main pavilion at Sophie-Barat high school, north of Montreal, was urgently closed, two weeks before the start of the school year, because the building was in danger of collapsing. The forced relocation of some students highlights the divisions between the “challenge” program, which selects the best performing students, and the “regular” sector of the establishment.
Parents and teachers at this public school in north Montreal learned Thursday evening that damage to the structure of the main pavilion on Gouin Boulevard East is forcing the establishment to relocate first and second secondary students – as well as students in special education.
“For several years, the main pavilion has been under close surveillance due to the fragility of its masonry. During the holidays, more in-depth appraisals were carried out. The experts’ conclusion is clear: part of the main pavilion is dangerous and can no longer be used by students and staff, ”indicates a message sent to the parents of students at Sophie-Barat school on Thursday evening.
This explosive news caused a stir, two weeks before the start of the school year and in the midst of a pandemic. The ills of public schools are beginning to weigh heavily on the morale of students, their parents and teachers: dilapidated or overcrowded buildings, lead in the water, shortage of staff …
“We learned in mid-August that we’ve been working in a school at risk of falling for years. I’m in shock, I can’t believe it, ”said a teacher from Sophie-Barat who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals from her employer.
The Center de services scolaire de Montréal (CSSDM) recalls that this school “is the subject of special attention due to its dilapidation and its heritage character”. The main building, built in 1858, once housed the Sacré-Cœur boarding school. A major renovation and expansion project has been submitted to the Ministry of Education in recent months.
A $ 106 million renovation project for the main building is under consideration in Quebec City. Another project, expansion this one, will soon be the subject of a call for tenders, according to the CSSDM.
The building for the students of the challenge program is at risk of collapsing, but it is the students of the regular sector that are moved to another neighborhood
“Two categories of students”
Teachers and parents are overwhelmed not only by the risk of the building collapsing, but also by the divisions within the school, revealed by the announced move of some students.
The pavilion in poor condition, condemned urgently, welcomes students from the “challenge” sector of the establishment, a program that selects the best performing students. However, it is students from the regular sector of Sophie-Barat, housed in an annex, who will be moved to another building located five kilometers to the east, in the Saint-Michel district (in the St. Dorothy school in the English Montreal School Board, rented to the CSSDM).
The first and second secondary students in the Défi sector will be relocated to the annex (located near the main Sophie-Barat pavilion), where “regular” students are normally welcomed.
“We have the impression that there are two categories of students,” laments Benoit Guinot, father of a student who will enter second secondary in the regular sector of Sophie-Barat school.
“The building for the students in the challenge program is in danger of collapsing, but it is the students of the regular sector that we move to another neighborhood. I don’t understand this decision, ”said Benoit Guinot.
On social networks, parents called this decision “elitist”. Parents and students in the regular sector sometimes feel that they are considered second-class citizens. This is a misperception, argues the CSSDM.
Practical reasons
The service center assures us that the decision to move students from the regular sector to five kilometers from Sophie-Barat (and not those in the challenge program) was taken for simple practical reasons: “Since St. Dorothy’s school is a school elementary, science classes of 2e cycle must be maintained at the main pavilion or at the annex of the Sophie-Barat school, as there are no laboratories at St. Dorothy. The classes are smaller. The lockers are suitable for younger students. We want to limit the number of staff to move and tasks to change in order to be able to organize the school for the start of the school year. We want the trips between St. Dorothy School and the other two pavilions to be exceptional, ”says Alain Perron, of the CSSDM.
The CSSDM would have liked to announce earlier the closure of part of the main pavilion, but it was not learned until August 5, by the engineering firm responsible for inspecting the building, that the structure showed significant failures. And the English Montreal School Board did not approve the rental of St. Dorothy’s school until Wednesday afternoon.
Liberal MP Marie Montpetit denounced on her Facebook page this tile that fell on a public school in her riding.
“I am outraged by this information. I worked hard with the CSDM for four years so that a project could be submitted to offer Sophie-Barat’s students new spaces, she wrote. […] I can assure you that I will quickly discuss the situation with the Minister of Education so that the work can be done as soon as possible. “
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