Future of Evangeline School being discussed

Residents in P.E.I.'s largest Francophone region are being urged to attend an public meeting Monday night to discuss options for either a new or renovated school, community centre and daycare in the community.

The Evangeline School was built in Wellington in 1960 and has never seen any major renovations said Janine Gallant, a school board trustee and president of the committee working on the plan.

"Tonight is the family activity, where we're inviting the families to come have supper," said Gallant. "It's to explain the project in more detail and very concretely, what are the needs of the school, the community centre and also of the early years centre."

"It's to see if there is buy-in and to encourage the families to get engaged and let their opinions and their needs be heard."

Roof has been leaking

The school urgently needs repairs, Gallant said.

"The roof has been leaking for years," she said. "Every time it rains we're walking around with pails trying to catch the water." Classrooms are often too hot or too cold, she added.

Gallant is especially excited with plans to incorporate the community, as many of the Island's French schools now do.

"To encourage the community to keep developing, to keep that French cultural identity well and alive," Gallant said.

'Up to the province'

For the first time, P.E.I.'s French-language school board, the Commission scolaire de languefranaise, has made the Evangeline project a priority, Gallant said.

"Now it is really up to the province to decide, when they announce the capital budget in the next month or two, if they're going to go ahead and support the Evangeline region." The school board is urging residents to lobby local politicians.

The board could either renovate the existing school or buildan entirely new school, Gallant said they need the province to weigh in and help them evaluate the best option.

School is community hub

TheConseilscolaire-communautairevangline, an organization that bridges the gap between the school and the community,has an office in the school building.

Itsupports the idea of more community space in a renovated or rebuilt school, to help give area residents a hub in the region.

"The community has a strong arts and culture component to it. So we're really backing the idea of getting a theatre in place here," said NickArsenault, executive director ofConseilscolaire-communautairevangline.

"The school and the community centre here, it is the most important structure in the Evangeline area and it has been for the last 60 years and it has to be for the next 60 years."

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With files from Steve Bruce