September 6th, 2016

Welcome to the 2016 – 2017 school year!

The first day of school is always exciting, and the start of this new school year is no different…especially when your first day is in a brand new, shiny school. As our students, staff and families take their first steps into their new schools, it marks the beginning of new learning adventures, friendships, and a fresh start.

We are so happy to welcome Vista Hills Public School to our WRDSB community, and congratulate Riverside Public School on their re-opening!

Adding Vista Hills PS brings our school count to 118 and we couldn’t be more thrilled to expand our school reach to the new community in west Waterloo. The three-story elementary school has a double gym with a stage, and is equipped with art, science and music specific classrooms in addition to two special education classrooms! The school has capacity for 646 Vista Hills Hawks with its’ current population made up of new WRDSB students as well as in-boundary students Abraham Erb Public School, Cedarbrae Public School, and Edna Staebler Public School.

In addition to the first-day excitement at Vista Hills PS, the Ontario Minister of Education Mitzie Hunter made a special visit. We were also honored to have Kitchener-Centre Liberal MPP Daiene Vernile, WRDSB Chair of the Board Kathleen Woodcock, WRDSB Trustee Ted Martin, and John Bryant, WRDSB director of education. They were joined by Lila Read and Mark Schinkel, senior superintendents of student achievement & well-being, Elaine Ranney, superintendent of student achievement & well-being for Vista Hills PS, as well as Matthew Gerard, superintendent of business & financial services, and Ian Gaudet, controller of facility services.

But the thrill of the new school year didn’t stop there…

Over the summer, the old Riverside PS was emptied and staff moved into a new two-story building, located just down the street in a new Elmira subdivision. While the landscaping and some last minute details need to be complete, the inside was ready for learning! The school is now fully accessible and energy efficient, has a full-size gym, equipped with a bus bay to make getting on and off the bus safer and easier, and a much bigger schoolyard to play, have fun and explore. There are also no more portables or portapacks!

As the morning bell rang for both schools to start their new chapter, their students waved goodbye to their families as they began a new year of learning and discovery.

Thank you to CTV Kitchener and The Record for coming out and joining us on our first day and big reveal, and to everyone who shared their #WRDSBFirstDay with us on Twitter and Facebook!

 

Vista Hills PS ribbon cutting!

Vista Hills PS officially opens their doors with a ribbon cutting and first day of school celebration!

 

Riverside PS ribbon cutting!

It’s all smiles at Riverside PS as we celebrate their re-opening!