In the email, regional CEO Tony Stack demanded an explanation from the government after money to design the new facility unexpectedly appeared in the province’s latest budget. “[The new school] it was not one of the three priorities we identified nor was there ever an infrastructure request for a high school in the PCSP [Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s]Stack wrote in an email to Deputy Education Minister Greg O’Leary on April 18. “Can you provide any background on this announcement that may help with responses or planning for a watershed adjustment?” Stack declined an interview request, but Education Secretary John Hagee said Wednesday that the decision “came out of the infrastructure and budget discussions” and that the facility will allow more than 300 students to avoid being bused to St. Jones. In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office said: “The MHA for the area, the mayor and other community members have long advocated for a new school as enrollment pressures have increased in the area in recent years. “Where the prime minister lives is completely irrelevant.” The new school in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s, a town bordering St. John’s to the west, does not appear on the district’s most recent list of priority capital requests. The document was handed over to the government in 2017-18 and has not been amended since, according to a district spokesman. It details a series of yet-to-be-approved requests to replace schools described as “aging” or “unfit to offer current programming.”
4 school projects in the budget, 3 proposed per district
Money to plan four major school infrastructure projects was included in the province’s latest budget, tabled in April. The district had recommended three of them: new schools at Cartwright and Kenmount Terrace, and the redevelopment of Dorset Collegiate at Pilley’s Island. “The school district has its three priorities. And as I said, through our due diligence, this administration and the Department of Education, we identified that [other] pressure point for this year,” Hagi said. Haggie said 317 students from Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s is currently traveling by bus to St. John’s for class. That number could rise to about 400 by the time the new school opens, he said, adding that for the first time in 50 years, school enrollment in the province increased in 2022-23, increasing by about 1,000 students. In a statement, the premier’s office said increased student enrollment “made it prudent to discuss new school priorities that may not have been previously identified in NLESD.” Hagi said it became apparent to the government that there was a need. “The community was very keen to do this and the local MHA [interim PC Party Leader David Brazil] was a strong supporter of it,” he said. John Hagee, pictured in an October file photo, became education minister after the new school was announced in April’s budget. (Patrick Butler/Radio-Canada)
Major impacts on the power system: CEO of the region
In the same email from April 18, Stack wrote that the new high school in Portugal Cove-St. Philip “will have a profound impact on PWC [Prince of Wales Collegiate] supply system.” The student population at Prince of Wales Collegiate, described by Haggie as “a landmark school in St. John’s”, has been steadily declining in recent years. Enrollment fell below 600 in 2021-22. In each of the first eight years of the 2000s, more than 800 students attended the school, according to figures published on the government’s website. Prince of Wales College accepts students from only two high schools: Leary’s Brook Junior High (379 students in 2021-2022) in St. John’s and Brookside Intermediate (540 students) in Portugal Cove-St. of Philip. “There are areas in the metro [St. John’s] where the distribution of students will have to be looked at as the demographics change,” Hagi said. “We’ve seen a swell in the Portuguese Cove-St. of Philip. We see some aging infrastructure in the area around Prince of Wales Collegiate and its feeder schools.”
“I support the decision”
Hagi said Wednesday it was too early to say how many students will attend the new high school in Portugal Cove-St. of Philip or how much it will cost to build. There is currently no timetable for the completion of the project. The new high school was announced while Tom Osborne was Education Secretary. Osborne, who was not available for an interview, became health secretary on July 6 when he swapped cabinet portfolios with Haggie. Asked if he would have announced the new school if he had been education minister in April, Hagi said: “These decisions are government decisions. We make them collectively. I support the decision.” Department of Education spokeswoman Tina Coffey said the province’s latest budget included $1.25 million in planning infrastructure projects, including four new or rebuilt schools and improvements to the National War Memorial in St. John’s. The department was unable to provide a further breakdown of costs. Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
