A staple in the Wallaceburg educational community for decades is nearing its end.
D.A. Gordon Public School is closing on June, 30. This means Grade JK to 6 students in Wallaceburg will be going to either A.A. Wright or H.W. Burgess some September, with Grade 7 and 8 students heading to their own wing of Wallaceburg District Secondary School.
Ben Hazzard, principal at D.A., said the mood is positive in the school about the changes.
“Our kids have really taken on the mood of being celebratory, trying to really cherish the fact that they have a place in history, the last students at D.A., the last class at D.A. Gordon and they really want to go out in a positive way,” he said. “Our Grade 8s especially, but all of our students are excited about the special events we will be doing throughout the year.”
As D.A. students sport “We Are D.A.” shirts around town, transition planning is under way.
“With six more months at D.A. Gordon, we’ve really started working on more transition planning with the other schools H.W. Burgess, A.A. Wright and WDSS with the Grade 7 and 8s,” Hazzard said. “So we’ve been working a little more together with them now. We’re making sure that our students know other kids and other friends in the other schools.”
Hazzard said the goal is to create friendships before the move.
“Last week we H.W. Burgess students came over to meet pen pals right here in Wallaceburg. They got to meet them, find out things about them, they sat in a circle and shared something they’re looking forward to at their new schools,” he said. “We had one girl come up to us, and she is going to H.W. Burgess, only a few of our students are going to there, and I knew she was a little nervous. She came in to see me with wide-eyes and said ‘Mr. Hazzard, I found a friend’ and she brought in this other girl and they were just saying how they were best friends, they were looking forward to next year. Our goal is to help those relationships begin. When they go on the playground at H.W. Burgess or they are at A.A. Wright and they are able to go and smile at somebody. We’re trying to create interactions where kids can get to know each other, it will lessen anxiety and will help build friendships in general.”
Hazzard said preparations are being made to get the Grade 6s and 7s heading to WDSS ready.
“That process is working well,” he said. “Before March break we’re getting all the 6s and 7s on a bus and taking them down to Ridgetown to let them see what it looks like. The anxiety is the unknown, we have some folks down the road in Ridgetown (where a school-within-a-school fromat is already set up.) We’ll tour the facility, there will be Grade 7 and 8 teachers from town.
Hazzard said they are working hard to ensure a lot of the resources (books, computers, etc.) that were given to D.A. Gordon through Ministry funding a few years ago, will stay in Wallaceburg for the kids to enjoy.
Hazzard will be shifting over to fill the principal role at A.A. Wright in September.
Watch Hazzard explain some more things planned in the next six months at D.A. as it winds down.
