NEWS RELEASE
YORK-SIMCOE MPP CAROLINE MULRONEY
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Yesterday, Caroline Mulroney, MPP for York-Simcoe, announced construction of Harvest Hills Elementary School and St. Charles Catholic School is now complete and will be welcoming new students this September for the 2022-23 school year.
These projects are part of Ontario's ongoing efforts to build and improve local schools, with the province providing Simcoe County District School Board with $13.8 million, and Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board with $18.2 million to build these vital new schools in Bradford.
The Government of Ontario is delivering more than $26.6 billion in education funding for the 2022-23 school year, including an increase of over $600 million this September, which is the highest investment in public education in Ontario’s history. Investing in the province’s schools is an integral part of Ontario’s Plan to Catch Up, which is squarely focused on the priorities of parents and includes five key components:
- Kids being back in the classroom, on time with a full school experience that includes extracurriculars like sports, band and field trips;
- Investing more than $175 million for enhanced tutoring support programs delivered by school boards and community partners, with a focus on reading, writing and math;
- Updating the curriculum to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow, including opportunities in the skilled trades;
- Providing more money to build schools and improve education; and
- Allocating $90 million — the highest amount in Ontario history, and a 420 per cent increase from 2017-18 — to support student mental health.
These projects will deliver over 500 student spaces at Harvest Hills, and an additional 450 student spaces at St. Charles during the 2022-23 school year. The investment is part of the Ontario government’s commitment to providing $14 billion to support school construction over 10 years. Since 2018, the government has approved nearly 200 school construction projects and the development of more than 300 child care and education building-related projects, of which more than 100 are actively under construction.
“The completion of the Harvest Hills Elementary School and St. Charles Catholic School is exciting news for our community as we continue to support new, modern schools for students in Bradford,” said Caroline Mulroney, MPP for York-Simcoe. “These investments will ensure families and students have access to a quality learning environment in the years ahead.”
“Our government is investing $14 billion over ten years to build new schools, improve existing facilities and create child care spaces to ensure young people can reach their full potential," said Stephen Lecce, minister of education. “By building Harvest Hills Elementary School and St. Charles Catholic School as well as investing in tutoring and mental health supports for the year ahead, we are getting students in Bradford back on track now and well into the future. While we make progress building these schools for Bradford to support hard-working parents, we remain committed to keeping students in class this September in more normal classrooms with extracurriculars, sports, and clubs.”
“Under Premier Ford’s leadership, we’re building more state-of-the-art schools to support the needs of Ontario’s students, families and growing communities. By investing in innovative and modern learning spaces, we’re ensuring students have access to the quality education that will provide them with lifelong skills and education in a safe and healthy environment,” said Kinga Surma, minister of infrastructure. “These investments are one of the ways we’re delivering on our promise to build Ontario, with an infrastructure budget of more than $148 billion over the next decade.”
Highlights of these projects include:
Harvest Hills Elementary School
- 501 new student spaces
- Two child care rooms
- 39 new child care spaces
St. Charles Catholic School
- 470 new student spaces
- Three child care rooms
- 49 new child care spaces
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