The Director of Education with the local french catholic school board states that declining enrolment and an increase in cost pressures is the reason the Sports Academies program has been cut.
Carolyn Bastien with Csc Providence provided a statement Tuesday evening regarding the cancellation of the program.
This program allows students in Grade 7 and 8 to focus on developing athletic talent through structured training, education, and support services. This program was offered for hockey, dance, and soccer at both Lajeunesse and L'Essor.
According to the statement from Csc Providence, the hockey program will no longer be offered to Grade 7 students as of this September at L'Essor, and that hockey and dance for Grade 7 students at Lajeunesse will no longer be offered, and soccer will no longer be offered to both Grade 7 and 8 students.
They add that there has been a 50 per cent decline in enrolment for these programs over the last five years, and that there are increasing cost pressures in several areas of the board.
All students currently in Grade 7 of the hockey and dance programs will finish out the program next year as planned. However, students currently in Grade 7 of the soccer program at Lajeunesse will return to their respective elementary schools to finish their Grade 8 year.
According to the statement from Csc Providence, any deposits already collected will be returned to parents.
The Board states they will be undertaking a review of its intermediate and secondary programming and will be consulting on broader budget issues in the coming weeks.