Laird School to remain open with reduced capacity after school board review

The fate of Laird School was decided in Warman on Monday. As Hallee Mandryk reports, declining attendance prompted a review by Prairie Spirit School Division.

After months of uncertainty, a review has determined that the Laird School will remain open, but without Grades 7 and 8 classes for the upcoming school year.

“This morning was very robust conversation on all of the possibilities and it was the will of the board that Laird School remain open,” said Kate Kading, board chair for Prairie Spirit School Division (PSSD).

The Village of Laird is around 67 kilometres north of Saskatoon.

Kading shared that this decision was the result of countless discussions which began in September.

In accordance with PSSD protocol, anytime a school has fewer than 51 students enrolled, a review must be conducted. Laird school had 35 students enrolled in September of 2025.

At meeting in March, Laird community members voiced concerns about the possibility of the school closing.

Kading said the input of the community played a major role in the decision to keep the school open.

“We saw evidence of beautiful growth in the community, people who were engaged and coming out to give their opinion. And they brought their small children who weren’t school age yet,” she said.

“That that was just one of the pieces. There was a very layered and nuanced process to this and that. And all of those pieces were taken into consideration.”

A previous estimate calculated a roughly $1.5 million price tag for repair costs to the school over the next eight years. However, Kading stated that a more recent calculation has a lower total, which the province is prepared to pay.

“We sort of put everything on a list so that we had a full scope of what was needed. The actual amount is about $1 million, and we have been approved for a renovation project funded by the government of Saskatchewan,” Kading said.

The former K-8 school will now only host students in Grades K-6 during the upcoming school year. This means that students enrolling in Grades 7 and 8 will be bussed to the Town of Waldheim in the Fall, which is about 15 kilometres southwest of Laird.

“I am very proud of the conversations that were had around the school review. This is not an easy thing,” Kading said.

“It is the hardest thing a trustee will ever do at a board table. And the way that our board moved through this, given the guidelines that are laid out by the ministry, I think is very admirable and I’m very proud of them.”