Rivire-des-Prairies should have its own English high school, parents urge

There are more than 1,300students attending the threeEnglish elementary schools in Rivire-des-Prairies but, once they graduate to high school, they face a long, daily commute.

Thatis whylocal parent Joseph Pagliahas launched a petition callingfor the establishment ofa small English high schoolin the east-end borough.

That way, students wouldn'thave to make the daily trek to Rosemont,Saint-Lonard or Montral-Nordto attend classes, he told CBC Montreal's Daybreak on Wednesday.

"Most have to take public transportation or their parents drop them off," he said.

"It's not a 10- or 15-minute bus ride. It can be up to an hour."

And that's just to Montral-Nord. Students going further can face up to 90 minutes of travel time one way, he said.

Thepetition comes at a time when French-language schools in the area are bursting at the seams.

The Quebec government is putting pressure on the English Montreal School Board to provide space for 3,000Pointe-de-l'Ile school board (CSPI) students.

Rather than hand over a school or share one with the French school board, Paglia said the EMSB could swap buildings with the CSPI to establish an English high school in RDPthat would be "better suited to our needs."

This could free up space for the CSPI and reduce commute times for RDP students, he said. He is optimistic thatthe two school boards could come to an agreement with the Minister of Education's help.

The goal is to collect 1,000 signatures. In four days,more than 500 people have signed the online petition.

Decision needed, one way or another

EMSB vice chair Joe Ortona said he discussed the petition with commissioners Tuesday night, and some are are open to the idea of swapping buildings with the CSPI and establishing a new, smaller school.

It's a solution that goes beyond closing or merging sparsely attended schools, he said.

He cautioned that ifthe board doesn't take action, the education minister may do so himself, as was seen with the closure ofRiverdale High School earlier this school year, he said.

"The fact of the matter is, the CSPI needs space for next semester for 3,000 CSPI kids," he said.

"We're going to have to work out some sort of solution with the CSPIin order to bring forward a common plan. If not, I don't know what [the education minister] is going to do."