Twenty-two parents are registered to speak to trustees tonight, as Ottawa’s largest school board continues to hear from the public on proposed changes to programs, school structures and boundaries in elementary schools.
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board is hosting a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the Elementary Program Review, which aims to offer French Immersion in almost every school starting in 2026. As of Wednesday morning, 22 delegations had registered to discuss the proposed changes. The board is advising parents there is limited seating available and is urging people to watch the meeting online.
The public school board launched the Elementary Program Review last Spring, saying it will “determine whether the current program model serves the needs of the community.” The school board currently offers six programs in elementary schools – Full-Day Kindergarten, English with Core French, Early French Immersion, Middle French Immersion, Alternative Program and the Ottawa-Carleton Virtual School. There is also special education and English as a Second Language services.
In January, the school board released the proposed changes to its programs, consolidating elementary school programs into Enhanced English and French Immersion, and eliminating Middle French Immersion, closing Alternative schools and phasing out some special education programs.
“To support this robust learning environment, we are proposing a new elementary program model with two pathways: Enhanced English and French Immersion,” the OCDSB says on its website. “The model aims to improve program quality and accessibility, with a focus on community-based education, dynamic, bilingual teaching and learning environments and a continuum of inclusion.”
The school board says its existing model is “not meeting the needs of all students,” with concerns raised about limited program availability at community schools and limited access to French Immersion.
As part of the changes, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board is changing the grade structure at 30 schools and will alter the boundaries at 123 schools across the city. The changes would see 117 elementary schools offer Enhanced English and French Immersion, four schools would only offer French Immersion and two schools would offer special education.
The proposed changes to the OCDSB programs and school boundaries are scheduled to take effect in September 2026.
Here’s what you need to know about the proposed Elementary Program Review at the OCDSB:
Currently
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board currently offers six programs in elementary schools:
- Full-Day Kindergarten
- English with Core French
- Early French Immersion
- Middle French Immersion
- Alternative Program
- The Ottawa-Carleton Virtual School
There are also special education and English as a Second Language services.
The school board says currently, 63 schools offer English with Core French and French Immersion, 15 schools offer single-track English, 15 schools offer single-track Early French Immersion, 19 schools offer “triple-track,” and there are four Alternative schools and two special education schools. The board also operates one “quadruple-track school.”
For the 2023-24 school year, 52 per cent of elementary students were enrolled in Early French Immersion, compared to 38 per cent in the Regular English Program with Core French and four per cent in Middle French Immersion.
Proposed Elementary Program Review
The Elementary Program Review recommends the OCDSB consolidate existing programs to provide two program pathways for elementary students in Grades 1 to 8: Enhanced English and French Immersion.
The review recommends gradually eliminating Middle French Immersion Programs that start in Grade 4. Alternative schools will close and some special education programs will be phased out.
Under the plan, the OCDSB will phase out the following specialized program classes:
- General Learning Program – Junior (6 classes, 16 students/class)
- Gifted – Primary (1 class; up to 20 students/class)
- Language Learning Disabilities Program – Primary and Junior (11 classes, 10 students/class)
- Learning Disabilities Semi-Integrated Program – Junior and Intermediate (14 classes; 8 students/class)
- Primary Special Needs Program (7 classes; 10 students/class)
Boundary review and changes to grade structures
In February, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board unveiled proposed changes to elementary school boundaries and school grade structures as part of the Elementary Program Review.
All elementary schools will remain open under the program review, but 30 schools will have their grade configurations changed as of September 2026. Some schools that offered Junior Kindergarten to Grade 6 or JK to Grade 8 will see the grade structures change.
With the school board looking to offer Enhanced English and French Immersion in all schools, the boundaries are changing at all schools to avoid overcrowding and balance out enrolment.
The following schools will see changes to their grade structure under the elementary program review:
- Alta Vista Public School: Currently JK to Grade 8, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE,FI)
- Arch Street Public School: Currently JK to Grade 6, will change to JK-Grade 3 (EE,FI)
- Bayview Public School: Currently JK to Grade 4, will change to JK-Grade 3 (EE,FI)
- Carson Grove Elementary School: Currently JK to Grade 5, will change to JK to Grade 6 (EE,FI)
- Charles H. Hulse Public School: Currently JK-Grade 6, will change to JK-Grade 3 (EE,FI)
- Convent Glen Elementary School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 3 (EE,FI)
- Featherston Drive Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to JK-3 (EE,FI) and Grades 4-8 (MFI)
- Forest Valley Elementary School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 3 (EE,FI)
- Glen Ogilvie Public School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 6 (EE,FI)
- Goulbourn Middle School: Currently Grades 6-8, will change to JK-8 (EE,FI, 7-8 MFI, 7-8 G.ENG)
- Hawthrone Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE, FI)
- Henry Larsen Elementary School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE,FI, MFI)
- Henry Munro Middle School: Currently Grades 6-8, will change to Grades 7-8 (EE, FI)
- Kars on the Rideau Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE,FI,MFI)
- La Phare Elementary School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 6 (FI)
- Manotick Public School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 6 (EE, FI)
- Metcalfe Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to JK-Grade 6 (EE,FI,MFI)
- North Gower/Marlborough Public School: Currently JK-Grade 5, will change to JK-Grade 6 (EE, FI)
- Pinecrest Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE, FI)
- Pleasant Park Public School: Currently JK-Grade 6, will change to Grades 4-8 (EE, FI)
- Regina Street Alternative School: Will change to JK to Grade 3 (Alternative, EE, FI)
- Richmond Public School: Currently JK-Grade 5, changing to JK-Grade 6
- Riverview Alternative School: Changing to JK-Grade 3 (JK-Grade 6 ALT, JK-Grade3 EE&FI)
- Robert Hopkins Public School: Currently JK-Grade 5, changing to JK-Grade 6 (EE, FI)
- Roberta Bondar Public School: Currently JJK-8, changing to Grades 7-8 (EE, FI, MFI)
- Severn Avenue Public School: Currently JK-Grade 6, changing to JK-Grade 3 (EE, FI)
- South March Public School: Currently JK-Grade 6, changing to JK-Grade 8 (EE, FI)
- Steve MacLean Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, changing to JK-Grade 6 (EE, FI)
- Vimy Ridge Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, changing to JK-Grade 6 (EE, FI)
- Woodroffe Avenue Public School: Currently JK-Grade 8, changing to Grades 4-8 (EE, FI)
According to the report, both Blossom Park Public School and Sawmill Creek Elementary School will shift from a JK-Grade 8 school to JK-Grade 6
The OCDSB admits the changes to school boundaries and grade structures are “not felt equitably across the district,” with the changes felt more in the “core, some of the older suburbs and some rural areas than the newer suburbs, which are quite stable in this model change.”
A presentation to the March 4 OCDSB meeting noted, “the core has more single-track and smaller schools making the creation of dual tracks with sustainable boundaries an issue. More student movement in these areas.”
While the school board normally sees approximately 6,000 to 8,000 students moving schools as they transition from one grade to the next each school year, the public school board estimates that approximately 11,000 students may experience a change in schools in September 2026.
Parents are invited to fill out a survey on the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board website, and another meeting is scheduled for next Monday. The board is scheduled to vote on the changes in April.
For more information, visit the OCDSB website.
