LANGLEY, B.C. — Work is underway on seismic upgrades at Shortreed Community Elementary.
“Every student in B.C. deserves to have the best learning experience possible, in a safe and supportive environment,” said Jennifer Whiteside, minister of education, in a statement. “With every school seismic upgrade in B.C., we are taking tangible steps toward a more secure future for students, families and staff.”
The province is contributing $8.9 million in the project, which is expected to be completed in early 2023. Students and staff will be able to remain at Shortreed while the work is in progress.
To provide swing space for the school, portables have been set up for the construction period. Once complete, the school’s capacity of 470 students in kindergarten to Grade 5 will remain the same.
“The board appreciates the ministry’s support in helping create a safe learning environment for all students,” said Rod Ross, chair of the Langley Board of Education. “We are pleased to see the province making educational investments in our community.”
Shortreed is a community school and is available to neighbours and residents of all ages to participate in educational, recreational and social programs and services.
Since September 2017, B.C. has announced more than $1.2 billion for seismic upgrades or replacements at 58 B.C. schools, giving approximately 31,500 students a safer place to learn, with many more to come.
“The health and safety of students is always top of mind for families,” said Amy Synesael, president of Shortreed Community Elementary’ s parent advisory council. “We look forward to seeing the work in progress. The completion of the project will help put parents and guardians at ease knowing that their children are safe at school in the event of an earthquake.”
Recent Comments
comments for this post are closed