It’s clear there is still concern out there from some parents over the Avon Maitland District School Board’s decision to house the region’s Grade 7/8 students in South Huron District High School (SHDHS) starting next September.

As previously reported, the move is one of the results of last year’s Accommodation Review Committee that studied the southern portion of Huron County’s schools to deal with the problem of declining enrolment and empty desks at some schools.

As a result, both Usborne Central and Zurich Public schools will be closed after this school year. Kindergarten to Grade 6 students from Usborne will move to Exeter Elementary School (currently called Exeter Public) while Kindergarten to Grade 6 students from Zurich Public will move to Bluewater Coast Elementary School (now called Hensall Public). The 7/8 grades from Zurich, Usborne, Hensall, Stephen Central and Exeter Public will move into the high school, a decision that was controversial during meetings last year and something that has continued to be an area of anxiety from some parents this year.

Some of those worries were expressed at last week’s school transition committee meeting at SHDHS after board business superintendent Janet Baird-Jackson presented proposed changes at the high school to accommodate the Grade 7/8 students. Details of those changes are indicated in this week’s story on page one, but in short, some parents are concerned about high school students entering the Grade 7/8 wing of the school. One parent even mentioned the possibility of Grade 12 students dating Grade 7 students.

The board, to its credit, is listening to these concerns, which are valid and not unreasonable. It’s up to the school and the board to do everything it can to make sure parents are comfortable with their children’s safety.

Baird-Jackson said a set of doors on the second floor of the school can be kept closed to further segregate the high school students and the 7/8 students. That should probably be done to ease parents’ minds.

Parents were told at last week’s meeting that there haven’t been problems with high school students mixing with the Grade 7/8 students at other schools in the board that have adopted this setup. Still, the board needs to do everything it can to put parents’ minds at rest. Parents have enough to worry about without having to be concerned about their children’s safety at school.