Province Investing in New School Construction, Upgrades

NOTE: A list of projects follows this release.

Students across Nova Scotia will benefit from an almost $110-million investment in new schools, renovations, buses and the continued expansion of the province's student information system.

The investment is part of the province's 2012-13 capital plan to make life better for families.

"This is a significant investment in the young people of our province," Education Minister Ramona Jennex said today, Nov. 23. "We are putting kids and learning first by providing them with the best learning environments possible. All of these projects are investments in the success of our students."

Six new, leading-edge schools will be built and 18 others upgraded next year under the plan. The Department of Education will also be asking school boards to review and update their capital priority lists to ensure they are current and reflect their most pressing capital priorities.

New schools will or are being built in:

• Liverpool: South Queens Junior High
• New Glasgow: P-8
• Bedford/Hammonds Plains: high school
• Amherst: West Highlands Elementary
• Yarmouth: high school (under construction)
• Lunenburg: Bluenose Academy P-9 (under construction)

"The kids are super excited, and eager for their new school," said Beth Sheppard, Aldershot Elementary Parent Teacher Association. "It's amazing how fast the new gymnasium went up. To see the new renovation, and new technology gives the kids confidence and lets them know that their education is a priority."

The province's new capital plan, which will be announced this month, will invest millions of dollars in projects to make life better for families. It will create good jobs, grow the economy, and provide better health care for all Nova Scotians. The capital plan invests in projects that are most important to Nova Scotians like schools, emergency rooms, courts, roads and hospital equipment.

The following is a list of school construction and renovation projects, grouped by school boards:

Annapolis Valley School Regional Board Renovations: Aldershot Elementary School, Kentville, $753,000; Hantsport School, Hantsport/Hants West, $2.6 million

Cape Breton-Victoria Regional School Board Renovations: Baddeck Academy, Baddeck/Victoria, $2.9 million; Cusak-Cornwallis-Ashby Complex, Sydney, $1.5 million; Malcolm Munro Memorial Junior High, Sydney River, $562,000; Riverview High School, Coxheath, CBRM, $1.2 million; St. Anne's Elementary, Glace Bay, $2.3 million

Chignecto-Central Regional School Board

New: New Glasgow P-8, replaces Temperance Street, Acadia Street and New Glasgow Junior High, $11.1 million, construction starting in 2012; West Highlands Elementary, Amherst, $6.6 million, construction starting in 2012
Renovations: West Pictou District High School, Pictou, $2 million; River Hebert District High, River Hebert/Cumberland, $3 million; Springhill Junior-Senior High, Springhill/Cumberland, $1.9 million

Conseil scolaire acadien provincial Renovations: Centre scolaire Etoile de l'Acadie, Sydney, 960,000; Ecole acadienne de Truro, Truro, $1.3 million

Halifax Regional School Board

New: Bedford-Hammonds Plains High, Bedford, $20.8 million, opening 2013;
Renovations: Atlantic Memorial/Terence Bay, Terence Bay, $900,000; Dartmouth High School, Dartmouth, $3 million; Prince Andrew High School, Dartmouth, $2.5 million

Strait Regional School Board Renovations: St. Mary's Academy, Sherbrooke/Guysborough, $2 million; Strait Area Education and Recreation Centre, Port Hawkesbury, $603,000

South Shore Regional School Board New: South Queens Junior High, Liverpool, $8.5 million, construction starting in 2012; Bluenose Academy, Lunenburg, $840,000, opening 2012

Tri-County Regional School Board

New: Yarmouth High, Yarmouth, $600,000, opening in 2012
Renovations: Weymouth (St. Mary's Bay Academy) $355,000

• Funding for school bus fleet renewal, various boards, $5.9 million
• Student Information System, all boards, $4 million
• Enhancement of school board SAP information technology projects, $ $4.8 million
• Funding for design work of future school addition and alteration projects, $2 million
• Additional additions and alterations to help boards find operating savings, $10 million