French-language rights, overcrowding among reasons for new school projects, minister says

The provincial government announced eight major school projects earlier this week, and Education Minister Claire Johnson said she knows it can be disappointing when someone's school of choice isn't chosen.

The capital budget announced Tuesday includes $193.7 million for education projects. Funds are earmarked for three new schools, a replacement for two primary schools, two midlife upgrades and two additions to existing schools. All are slated to being within the next fiscal year.

Johnson said the way the projects are chosen isn't random. Something called the "quadruple bottom line analysis" tool is used to determine which school project proposals submitted by each district have the greatest need, she said.

The tool looks at several indicators, including overcrowding and the age of the school in question, Johnson said. According to a government news release from 2019, the tool was developed in 2014 and includes 15 indicators divided into four categories: economy, environment, social and cultural.

Two of the projects, the new francophone schools in Sussex and Hampton, were added to ensure minority language education rights are being protected, she said.

That is one of the indicators considered when assessing need, said Johnson. 

"In those areas, those predominantly anglophone areas, we noticed that there are actually a lot of French-speaking families in those areas, and what was happening with them is that they were either … opting into going into English schools because it was easier and more accessible, or they were travelling really long distances to get to the nearest French school."

Along with the new schools and additions, Johnson said there are projects that fit into the capital budget such as washroom upgrades, ventilation upgrades and security-standard upgrades.

There is a discrepancy between the security systems for certain schools, she said. For example, some schools have a vestibule — a space between the outdoor and main part of the school — while some do not. 

While the Moncton region has seen a surge in enrolment in recent years, the new capital budget doesn't include any projects for the area.

Johnson said sometimes this type of situation requires stepping back and looking at the issue from a broader perspective. 

"Sometimes in a neighbouring community, there can be a new school or an addition or something that's built there that will indirectly help with the overcrowding in the Moncton area," she said, referencing the midlife upgrade for Polyvalente Louis-J.-Robichaud in nearby Shediac.

As well, Johnson said the projects need to fall within the financial limits of the department to avoid overpromising.

"We've seen unprecedented population growth here in New Brunswick, and people are choosing to stay here, and they're choosing the public system," Johnson said.

"I like to remind myself that managing growth is a lot more fun than managing decline, so that makes it a little bit easier while we tackle these challenges."