The Near North District School Board will be voting on high school consolidation in North Bay on September 24th.

It’ll be a re-vote on the previous board’s decision to close Widdifield.

On Tuesday night, a committee of the whole meeting heard a number of presentations about keeping either Widdifield or Chippewa open.

Board Chair Jay Aspin tells BayToday they’re more than ready to vote on the issue.

“The current board has been at it for nine months, currently reviewing everything, we waited for the Ombudsman to give his report, we wanted to make sure we were within that framework and it’s decision time, “ he says.

Aspin says they’ve lost seven million dollars in provincial grants in the past two years because of declining enrollment.

“That’s seven million dollars out of programming for kids, so we can no longer afford to wait,” he adds.

 

(Photo by station staff)

Filed under: Chippewa Secondary School, Near North District School Board, Widdifield Secondary School