Enrolment is up at the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board and that's resulted in more teachers being hired.
The board is reporting 13,567 elementary students enrolled for the 2022-2023 school year, an increase of 426 students over the same time a year ago.
There are 7,723 students currently enrolled for the Fall semester at the secondary level, 371 more students compared to the start of the 2021-2022 school year.
John Ulicny, Executive Superintendent of Education and Human Resources at the board, says from a secondary standpoint, they've done extremely well at St. Anne in Lakeshore.
"It is our largest contingent of Grade 9 students that we've seen in a very, very long time," he says. "So, Lakeshore is experiencing growth, LaSalle is experiencing growth, we're seeing increased enrolment at St. Thomas of Villanova."
Enrolment is also up substantially at Assumption College Catholic High School on Huron Church Road in Windsor, with their international baccalaureate program, while Holy Names Catholic High School in South Windsor recorded marginal growth compared to the previous year.
As a result of the increased enrolment, Ulicny says the board has hired 82 new teachers, 54 more at the elementary level and 28 more teachers at the secondary level.
"We're also hiring more educational assistants, we're hiring additional custodians, and additional child and youth workers," he says. "We've hired additional psychotherapists to make sure we're addressing mental health needs of our students, and we're continuing to hire additional secretarial support staff as well."
Ulicny points to two main factors for the increase enrolment, including positive news around economic opportunities and economic growth in Windsor-Essex, which he believes is a catalyst in having people relocate to the region.
"Many of the border restrictions have also loosened and are set to expire as of Oct. 1. We have seen an influx of new immigrants into the area and we anticipate that we will continue to see immigrant population increases into Windsor and Essex County, those will trickle back into our schools," he says.
The board is also reporting record enrolment at the adult campus with over 700 students registered, 250 more than the previous year.
Ulicny adds that you would have to go back to 2010-2011 to see the current type of enrollment levels at the elementary school level, and back to the 2014-2015 school year to see similar enrollment levels at the secondary level.