Catholic school doom feared

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by Kristian Gravenor

A team of city inspectors conducting a supposedly random check of the fridge at the beleaguered St. Patrick's elementary school (there is no fridge on the premises) ended up shutting down a bake sale intended to raise funds for school activities on December 6. The Roy Avenue school remains open after parents successfully fought the English Montreal School Board's attempts to have it closed and those involved in the fight to keep the school open suspect that the EMSB sent the food inspectors. "That's pushing the coincidence factor a bit far. We suspect that it's the EMSB that's up to more harassment," says Giuliano D'Andrea, who is on a committee to keep the school open.

The event foreshadows another looming showdown between the EMSB and supporters of schools from the former English Catholic School Board, who claim their schools have been unfairly targeted by the board.

At a board meeting Wednesday, the EMSB discussed a plan to axe another former Catholic school, Nazareth Elementary on Laurier, rather than the former Protestant Bancroft School on Clark near Mont-Royal. Bancroft, built in 1911, has undergone extensive renovations in the last two years. A plan to close Edward Murphy Elementary in the east end and Sir Wilfrid Laurier High in Montreal north--both former Catholic schools--was also to be bandied about at the meeting. EMSB spokesman Mike Cohen could not be reached for comment but has previously denied charges that the EMSB holds a bias against former Catholic institutions.