Charlottetown intermediate school gearing up for new students
Birchwood Intermediate School getting more than 400 new students next fall
A Charlottetown intermediate school is getting ready to welcome hundreds of new students next fall.
Birchwood Intermediate School is expecting 470 new students will start at the school in September, up from just over 200 new students last year.
According to Ron Carragher, the school's principal, only 60 of those new students are a result of the recent rezoning.
Transition team to prepare
Carragher said even though the number of new Birchwood students impacted by rezoning is small, the school is still receiving lots of questions on the matter from concerned parents.
"It's continuing to be everyday that … there's questions from the various stakeholders," he said.
Carragher added his school has been working with a transition team to help prepare for the growth. Carragher also said Birchwood is actively consulting with parents.
Open house
As part of its effort to accommodate the new students and their parents, Birchwood is hosting an open house at the school on Thursday evening.
Carragher said the event is meant to help parents alleviate some of the concerns that may come with sending a child to junior high.
"We certainly realize the anxieties are real," he said.
When asked whether all those new students will mean additional teaching positions for Birchwood, Carragher said the school is still in the process of determining its final staffing numbers.
With files from Natalia Goodwin