Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB, known as English-language Public District School Board No. 24 prior to 1999) is the public school board for the
Region of Waterloo
The Regional Municipality of Waterloo (Waterloo Region or Region of Waterloo) is a metropolitan area of Southern Ontario, Canada. It contains the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo (KWC or Tri-Cities), and the townships of North Dumf ...
in
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. It operates 105 elementary schools, 16 secondary schools, and other facilities, serving more than 64,000 students
in the Region of Waterloo. It has approximately 6,800 staff and a budget of $675 million. It is the largest public sector employer in the Region and the second-largest employer overall. In early 2018, the
director of education is John Bryant.
The board serves
Waterloo Region
The Regional Municipality of Waterloo (Waterloo Region or Region of Waterloo) is a metropolitan area of Southern Ontario, Canada. It contains the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo (KWC or Tri-Cities), and the townships of North Dumfr ...
, which consists of the cities of
Kitchener,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
, and
Waterloo, and the townships of
Wellesley,
Woolwich
Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...
,
Wilmot Wilmot may refer to:
Places Australia
*Division of Wilmot, an abolished Australian Electoral Division in Tasmania
* Wilmot, Tasmania, a locality in the North-West Region
Canada
*Wilmot, Nova Scotia, an unincorporated rural community and former t ...
, and
North Dumfries
The Township of North Dumfries is a rural township in Ontario, Canada, part of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo.
Communities
North Dumfries includes the following communities: Ayr, Branchton, Clyde (formerly from Beverley Township, Wentwor ...
. Within the townships, WRDSB operates schools in the communities of
Ayr
Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Subdivisions of Scotland, council area and the historic Shires of Scotlan ...
,
Baden
Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine.
History
The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
, Breslau,
Conestogo,
Elmira, Floradale, Linwood,
New Dundee,
New Hamburg,
St. Jacobs
St. Jacobs is a community and former village located in the township of Woolwich, Ontario, Woolwich in Waterloo Regional Municipality, Ontario, Waterloo Region, Ontario, just north of the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Waterloo. It is a popular locati ...
, and
Wellesley.
Trustees are elected every four years by the public school ratepayers in their area. Four trustees are elected in Kitchener, three trustees are elected in each of Waterloo/Wilmot and Cambridge/North Dumfries and one trustee represents Elmira/Woolwich. Although trustees are elected in specific areas, once they are elected they must represent the entire region. Annually, two students are elected by their peers to represent the student voice on the school board. They have a voice at the table but no binding vote. Every year in December, the trustees elect a chair and vice-chair for the coming year. Board policy dictates that no one may serve in either role for more than two consecutive years. In 2016, the trustees published a new Strategic Plan consisting of three priorities to provide "first-class public education to Waterloo Region".
In January 2018, the Board announced that it was considering the building of up to 12 new schools and the expansion of 11 existing facilities over the subsequent years, due to an increasing population. An additional 7,100 new students were expected by 2027. At the same time, the Board was considering a study of the feasibility and benefits that might be provided by year-round schooling, but did not agree to proceed with a pilot programme. Their newest school, Oak Creek Public School, opened in September 2022.
The
Waterloo Catholic District School Board
Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) is a school board serving the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is headquartered in Kitchener, and is currently the eighth-largest Catholic school system in Ontario.
As of November 2023, thi ...
operates the
Catholic school
Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...
s which educates approximately one of every three students in the Region.
Safe and secure schools policy
The School Board was criticized for its role in maintaining a confidential file on Ronald Wayne Archer (Ron Archer), a teacher convicted in 2000 of four charges of sexual assault on his student. The file documented allegations that Archer sexually assaulted children beginning in the 1970s. In 2006, the Ontario College of Teachers revoked Archer's certificates of qualification and registration. Members of the public believed that had the file been disclosed, subsequent abuse would have been prevented. In 2001, the Board created new policies to prevent abuse in future.
A Safe and Secure Schools policy was developed including a Code of Conduct that outlines expected behaviour standards of all members of the school community: students, parents, guardians, volunteers, staff and visitors.
In 2017
It's OK to be white
"It's okay to be white" (IOTBW) is a slogan which originated as part of an organized alt-right trolling campaign on the website 4chan's discussion board /pol/ in 2017. A /pol/ user described it as a proof of concept that an otherwise innocu ...
posters were taped to the doors of two collegiate institutes. A spokesman for the school board said "Our schools are safe spaces. We want to see them be safe for all of our children, so to see this kind of thing emerge is a worry."
List of secondary schools
*
Bluevale Collegiate Institute
Bluevale Collegiate Institute (BCI; simply known as Bluevale) is a secondary school in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, run by the Waterloo Region District School Board. As of the 2019–2020 school year, Bluevale has an enrollment of 1,240 students. T ...
,
Waterloo
*
Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute
Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute is a public secondary school in Kitchener, Ontario, run by the Waterloo Region District School Board. It is part of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. The school is located at 301 Charles St. E. As o ...
,
Kitchener
*
Eastwood Collegiate Institute
Eastwood Collegiate Institute is a public high school located at 760 Weber Street East in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1956. The school teams are known as the "Lions
". Eastwood is known for its Provincially ranked soccer team ...
,
Kitchener
*
Elmira District Secondary School
Elmira District Secondary School (EDSS) is a secondary school serving the town of Elmira, Ontario, Canada and the surrounding area. The school is run by the Waterloo Region District School Board.
Continuation school
The first secondary educatio ...
,
Elmira
*
Forest Heights Collegiate Institute
Forest Heights Collegiate Institute (FHCI), shortened as Forest Heights or simply Forest, is a high school in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada that was established in 1964. It is run by the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB). As of the 2019â ...
,
Kitchener
*
Galt Collegiate Institute and Vocational School,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
*
Glenview Park Secondary School
Glenview Park Secondary School is a high school in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, for students in South Galt. The school was opened in 1957. It is also one of the two International Baccalaureate (IB) Schools in Waterloo Region.
Sports teams
Glenvie ...
,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
*
Grand River Collegiate Institute
Grand River Collegiate Institute is a public secondary school in Kitchener, Ontario. The school is located at 175 Indian Road. It is part of the Waterloo Region District School Board. As of November 2017, there are approximately 1250 full-time st ...
,
Kitchener
*
Huron Heights Secondary School,
Kitchener
*
Jacob Hespeler Secondary School
Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB, known as English-language Public District School Board No. 24 prior to 1999) is the public school board for the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Region of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It o ...
,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
*
Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School
Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School, commonly called Kitchener Collegiate Institute or KCI, is a public education, public secondary school in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It is a member of the Waterloo Region District School Boar ...
,
Kitchener
*
Preston High School,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
*
Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School,
Waterloo
*
Southwood Secondary School
Southwood Secondary School is a high school in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, for students in West Galt and North Dumfries.
History
Southwood was founded in 1962. Although it has one of the lower student enrollments in the region, that does not see ...
,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
*
Waterloo Collegiate Institute
Waterloo Collegiate Institute (WCI) is a secondary school in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school is run by the Waterloo Region District School Board. During the 2019–2020 school year, 1,475 students were enrolled at the school. It has magnet ...
,
Waterloo
*
Waterloo-Oxford District Secondary School
Waterloo-Oxford District Secondary School is a high school just outside Baden, Ontario, Canada operated by the Waterloo Region District School Board. It opened in 1955 and is one of two rural high schools in Waterloo Region, the other being Elmira ...
,
Baden
Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine.
History
The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
See also
*
List of Waterloo Region, Ontario schools
This list of schools in Waterloo Region shows the colleges and universities, secondary schools, and elementary schools based in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
Currently, four school boards operate in Waterloo Region. Pub ...
*
List of school districts in Ontario
This is a list of school districts in Ontario.
There are 76 public school boards in Ontario, including 38 public secular boards (34 English boards and 4
French boards (ACÉPO)), 38 public separate boards (29 English Catholic boards, 8 French Cat ...
*
List of high schools in Ontario
The following is a list of secondary schools in Ontario. Secondary education policy in the Canadian province of Ontario is governed by the Ministry of Education. Secondary education in Ontario includes Grades 9 to 12. The following list include ...
References
External links
Maps and Directions - a map of the region, with all schools marked on it.
{{Waterloo Region schools