The provincial government has approved $17-million in funding for a new Catholic elementary school and child care facility in Sarnia.
The money will be used to build a new French Immersion school to handle the ever-growing population at Gregory A. Hogan.
French Immersion students will go to the new facility and students at Sacred Heart school will move to the recently upgraded and refurbished Gregory Hogan.
"We are very pleased with this tremendous announcement from the Government of Ontario," says John Van Heck, chair of the St. Clair Catholic District School Board. "This is fantastic news for the Catholic school communities of Gregory A. Hogan and Sacred Heart in Sarnia."
Director of Education Deb Crawford says the new school will be built for over 600 students and include six child care classrooms, with 88 child care spaces.
"Once again we are pleased to partner with our friends at London Bridge and the County of Lambton, as together we work to provide excellent quality child care for the families who will be served by this brand new school community," says Crawford.
The board says it will now begin to pursue options for obtaining property in a location that best suits its French Immersion families.
The timing of construction hasn't been finalized but the best case scenario would see the new school ready for occupancy by September 2020.