Home/school liason for Seventh Day Adventist Church, Shirley Ross and Adventist school board chair Brian Mapplebeck will spend the next year focusing on boosting enrolment in hopes of reopening the school in 2016.
Erin Christie photo
When classes end on June 28, one Oliver school will be shutting its doors . . . at least for one year.
After 58 years of education, South Okanagan Adventist Christian School has determined that it doesn’t make financial sense to remain open for the next school year.
“Of course I’m disappointed, we don’t want to see our school close,” said Shirley Ross, home/school liaison for Seventh Day Adventist Church, which operates the school.
“We know we can’t compete with a state-of-the-art school in a lot of ways but what we do offer is relationships. Because we are a smaller facility our class sizes are small which means students get more one-on-one time with the teacher. I think that’s important.”
“In the public system it seems like they are always fighting for smaller class sizes to better benefit the students – we already offer that,” added Adventist school board chair Brian Mapplebeck.
“We also are accredited with the Ministry of Education and offer in-class instruction kindergarten to Grade 9, as well as independent learning opportunities for Grade 10 and 11. But I think as kids get older they want to go to bigger schools for the social aspect.”
Mapplebeck feels that is one of the reasons enrolment has dropped.
In 2011, Adventist Christian had 32 students and employed three full-time teachers.
In 2012 enrolment dipped slightly – 21 students attending and two teachers. By the 2013 school year enrolment plummeted to a staggering seven students, one full-time staff member and one teachers’ aid. As a result the school was in danger of closing.
Fortunately, noted Mapplebeck, the school is not funded by tuition fees alone, and was able to remain open for the 2013/2014 year.
He says 50 per cent of Christian Adventists’ funding comes from the Ministry of Education, which allows a one-year grace period to recipient schools once enrolment drops below 10 students.
But Ross said despite their best recruitment efforts, the numbers they need to keep the doors open to ensure long-term survival just aren’t there and increasing tuition fees isn’t an option.
“Our tuition is very affordable,” she noted. “And there are subsidies available for families who want to send their kids here but are struggling financially. We don’t think money should be an issue when it comes to education.”
Those who spend their days at the school say its closure will be a big loss for the community.
“I’m sad about it. I know it’s not what any of us want,” said Principal Mandy Coward, pointing to small class sizes and the individualized learning plans as positives that will be lost.
Coward, who relocated to Oliver from Arizona with her husband and children two years ago to take on her role at Christian Adventist, has accepted a position at a school in Port Hardy.
Those thoughts are echoed by Pam Jones, who has two children enrolled at the school and has been impressed with the effect the school’s environment has had on her children’s performance.
“Ever since I enrolled them in this school their grades have gone up. They get straight A’s. And they’re doing really well,” said Jones.
“They get a lot more of their teachers’ time because of the smaller class size, and the teachers play sports and games with them at recess. They get involved.”
Jones says she would consider moving to Kelowna, where the nearest Adventist school is, to keep her kids in the private system.
“I like the way they do things at the Adventist school and so do my kids. They’re pretty upset about having to go to a new school next year.”
But Ross said unless the school can attract new students, Jones and the other families will have to turn to other educational institutions to continue their children’s academic careers.
“We’re hopeful, obviously,” said Ross.
“If we can get enough students in time for the fall we don’t have to close this year, but otherwise, we need a miracle. We really do.”
To find out more about South Okanagan Adventist Christian School, visit www. south26.adventistschoolconnect.org.
Erin Christie
Oliver Chronicle
