St. Agatha parents rally to save school

St. Agatha Catholic Elementary School in St. Agatha, Ont., is seen on Monday, March 18, 2013. (CTV Kitchener)

It’s one of the smallest schools in Waterloo Region, but there’s a big effort underway to save it from closure.

St. Agatha Catholic Elementary School, located in the community of the same name, is up for an accommodation review this fall.

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board says it’s keeping all options open, but parents say they worry the school won’t be kept open.

If that were to happen, 113 students would be housed

“We certainly feel like the board is looking to close St. Agatha,” parent and school council chair Cathy Mallick tells CTV News.

Parents say the school’s small community is a benefit, not a drawback.

Some parents even choose to drive their kids from Waterloo to St. Agatha every day specifically because of the size.

“It has a great sense of community. The quality of education is extremely good,” says parent Matt Milczarczyk.

“I find that my kids get a lot more personal touch from the teachers and staff than they would in a bigger school.”

St. Agatha previously came under an accommodation review in 2009.

The school stayed open through that review, but did have to expand its boundaries to make up for declining enrolment.

Parents are spearheading a drive to keep the school open, including sending a petition to the province asking for changes to the school funding formula.