Deputy Premier and Education Minister Gordon Wyant makes the funding announcement outside John Paul II Collegiate Tuesday. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Support for education

Province announces $11.5 million for John Paul II Collegiate major renovation project

Sep 22, 2020 | 6:03 PM

The province is investing $11.5 million for a major renovation project for John Paul II Collegiate in North Battleford.

Light of Christ Catholic School Division Board’s Vice Chair Adrienne Welter said the funding is great news for local Catholic education in the region.

“I think it’s just a wonderful announcement,” she said. “This has been a priority for us for at least five years.”

Saskatchewan Deputy Premier and Education Minister Gordon Wyant took part in a special ceremony outside the local school Tuesday.

“It’s great. Every time we can come out and support a local school division in providing good educational locations for children, these are always very exciting announcements,” he said.

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Wyant said making sure schools are in the best condition they can be in, to create better learning environments for children “is really part of the goal” for the province.

John Paul II Collegiate is an historical school dating back to 1912, with the last major renovation taking place in 2004.

Light of Christ’s Chief Financial Officer Jordan Kist said a large part of the project involves modernizing the school.

“Generally speaking, we needed to address some aged infrastructure,” he said. “So we were quite happy to see that investment to address a number of different areas in the school.”

The project will include incorporating a revised entrance space at the south side of the building, with a small addition to the school. The work will also include a modernized resource centre and theatre, updated gymnasium and lockers, and a modernized home-ec servery and industrial arts space.

“That’s where we will see the largest expansion to the school,” Kist said.

The project will also involve upgrades to the washrooms, common area floors and other existing spaces of the school.

North Battleford Mayor Ryan Bater appreciated how the funding will help preserve one of the city’s historical buildings.

He noted JPII is one of North Battleford’s landmarks. He added it’s great to see the province’s investment for the site.

“Our city’s health is greatly dependent on quality education,” Bater said. “We need children and young people growing up here to be able to develop their skills and talents, find opportunities and pursue their passions. So an investment like this will allow for that.”

Wyant said the province is making a number of investments to infrastructure in Saskatchewan. In the provincial budget, the government announced $5.5 billion over two years for capital improvements in various sectors across Saskatchewan.

In addition, the province gave a $2 billion boost in response to the impact of COVID-19 on the provincial economy.

Wyant said the province wants to make sure the funding is used to support local economies.

He said as part of that “booster shot,” there is a significant amount of investment” the government is making in school infrastructure initiatives across Saskatchewan.

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angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsNOW