Parents in Gravenhurst are asking for more education options for their kids and the Trillium Lakelands District School Board is listening.
Board Director of Education Larry Hope says a local group has brought forward some recent study results that show there could be an significant interest in the community for a French Immersion program.
He says the board has decided to take a closer look at this possibility.
Currently, there are nearly 70 students from Gravenhurst that are taking French Immersion at Monck Public School.
The school board is offering transportation for those students, but Hope says if French Immersion is offered in Gravenhurst, that transportation to Monck won’t be available anymore.
Hope says the two elementary schools in Gravenhurst wouldn’t be large enough to host a French Immersion program, but Gravenhurst High School could.
He says this is the reasons why he put forward a motion to postpone a pupil accommodation review for the school that was meant to take place this fall.
However, the volunteer group that originally contacted the board says Gravenhurst Public School would have the capacity to run a French Immersion program.
Group volunteer and parent Luke LaRocque says with GPS predicted to have at least 230 spaces available for the 2018-19 school year, the school would have enough room to fit in 100-150 students for French Immersion.
LaRocque says that is the amount of interested students the board has quoted it would initially need in order to consider running this program in Gravenhurst.
Hope says the idea of a French Immersion program is still in the very early stages and the board staff will need to review its study findings with the trustees before the discussion moves forward.