The Sudbury Catholic District School Board will be better positioned to address the accommodation needs of its students with an investment of $13.8 million from the McGuinty government for the construction of a new green school, Sudbury MPP Rick Bartolucci announced yesterday.

“Building and improving school facilities creates safe and engaging places for our students to learn and grow,” said Bartolucci. “This kind of significant education investment will go a long way to support students in Sudbury for generations to come.”

As part of a $500 million province-wide investment, the government is giving kids better places to learn by improving publicly funded schools.

Ontario is investing in a variety of ways to improve schools and make schools better places to learn. Projects include building new schools, expanding existing school facilities and reconfiguring school space to reduce energy costs. This also creates economic benefits, such as work for local companies and helps to support a stronger, greener economy.

The Sudbury Catholic District School Board will be creating a new 550 pupil place, “dual track,” quality teaching and learning environment in the City’s South End, which will include a Multi-Media Technology Plaza, based on an education village model, one-site, JK to Grade 12 campus. Students from St. Christopher and all of the Grade 7 and 8 students from St. Francis and St. David Elementary Catholic Schools will be consolidated into the “new green school” on the St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School site. Students from St. Michael Catholic School will be consolidated into the St. Francis Catholic School (JK to Grade 6). St. Theresa and Corpus Christi Catholic School students will have the option of attending either St. Francis Catholic School or the new school (flexible boundaries). However, once the transition of the current students of Corpus Christi and St. Theresa is completed to either the new school or St. Francis, new boundaries will apply to new families.

Catherine McCullough Director of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board is very pleased with the latest funding announcement from the McGuinty government. Joined by Trustees, Senior Administration, students, parents and staff, McCullough announced that teaching and learning through newly built 21st century schools will now have a whole new meaning. “With the support of the Provincial government we will have the ability to change the way a child learns,” said McCullough. “Our new green school will have lower energy and utility costs than traditionally built schools, and the money saved can go back into classrooms to our students.”