Michael Zwaagstra: Plight of unique Vancouver school underscores need for choice

Last week, a group of parents and former students of Ideal Mini School spoke at a Vancouver School Board (VSB) meeting, decrying a recent VSB decision to relocate the school from its current standalone building in Marpole to Sir Winston Churchill Secondary, a much larger facility. Parents and students worry this will be the death knell of Ideal’s unique learning environment since it will now share space with another school and hundreds more students.

Indeed, Ideal has an unusual name and an even more unique program. It’s a small high school where teachers and students are on a first name basis. There’s widespread integration between grades, and “school meetings” happen on a regular basis. Visitors will notice there are no bells throughout the school day.

Clearly, Ideal isn’t ideal for everyone. Students who desire a more traditional academic environment will likely not be comfortable in this school. However, Ideal isn’t trying to be all things to all people — it knows what type of students it seeks to attract, and tailors its programming accordingly.

Unfortunately, Ideal might not be around much longer, at least not in its current form. The Vancouver school board (VSB), which Ideal is part of, plans to relocate this school from its current stand-alone building to Sir Winston Churchill Secondary, a much larger institution. Parents and students worry this will be the death-knell of Ideal’s unique learning environment since it will now share space with another school and hundreds of more students.