New JK-12 Parry Sound school

It has now been confirmed that the new facility will not be ready for occupancy by the first day of school in September 2025. While this is not the outcome we expected, the Senior Team and board staff are actively developing contingency plans to ensure that all students have access to appropriate learning environments when the school year begins.

JK- Grade 6 students who were set to attend McDougall Public School in September will attend that school location as originally planned. Students in Grades 9 - 12 will begin the school year remotely, with a goal to move into the current Parry Sound High School building as soon as possible. All Grades 7 - 8 students will attend the Nobel Public School site.

NNDSB has implemented a comprehensive communication strategy to inform the public, NNDSB families, staff, union partners, and community stakeholders of this delay. Updates will be shared through SchoolMessenger, NNDSB Facebook, and on this webpage to ensure transparency and timely information sharing.

In parallel, we are continuing to work through key operational aspects of the contingency plan, including staffing, transportation, and student supports. We recognize the impact this delay may have on families and are committed to doing everything possible to support students through this transition.

At this time, a timeline for completion of the new build and subsequent transition of the staff and students to the new JK-12 school has not been identified. NNDSB will continue to monitor progress closely and provide regular updates as more information becomes available.

We’ve received input from the community indicating a need for greater clarity. In response, we have removed the FAQ section, housing the rest of the relevant information in the updated contingency plan, and providing supplemental information in the New JK-12 Parry Sound school section of our website.

Plan to Accommodate Students:

The plan is for students who were originally to attend JK–Grade 6 at McDougall Public School to remain at that school. All Grade 7–8 students will attend Nobel Public School.

Students in Grades 9–12 will move to remote learning to start the school year, until the existing Parry Sound High School building is ready to accommodate staff and students. This is a short-term solution until staff and students can be safely accommodated at PSHS. A remote learning plan has been established by our IT and Program teams to make sure that staff, students, and families can smoothly adjust to remote learning. A technology request form was sent to families of Grade 9-12 students in the current PSHS building on Aug. 25 to inventory and prepare devices.

Here is a link to the full contingency plan.

Programming and Preparation of Buildings:

Both McDougall and Nobel schools have been functioning as elementary schools as of June 2025. They received minor updates and accommodations to ensure that the rooms, furniture, and resources are appropriate for the programs and students they will be receiving on Sept. 2.

Transportation:

Students attending Nobel Public School for Grades 7-8 (all students who would have been attending the new Parry Sound High School site) have been added to transportation routes. For students attending McDougall Public School for grades JK to 6, all in-zone students are considered eligible and have been added to transportation. For Grades 9-12 students, when Parry Sound High School is ready to accommodate staff and students, there is no change with respect to eligibility for transportation. The transportation consortium has shared an updated memo with more details here.

PSHS Student Recreational and Social Spaces:

Supervision is already set up for the lunchroom and mini-library during the lunch hours. Students will be permitted to eat lunch in the school hallways as is common practice in secondary schools around the province. The supervision schedule has already been adjusted to add hallway supervision during the lunch break.

Secondary students are not required to remain on campus during the lunch hour. Some students may choose to leave campus to buy food at local establishments or go for walks around the neighbourhood. Picnic tables will also be added to the fenced outside area previously used for the intermediate play yard. Students will have access to this safe outdoor area during the lunch break.

During the school day, students can also use the space in Rooms 272 and 270 for quiet study as they did in the former cafeteria/library combination area.

Updates related to Building Structure, Asbestos Abatement, and Occupancy

As part of the contingency planning for the new JK-12 build, the demolition of the existing Parry Sound High School (PSHS) was broken into two phases. To facilitate the construction of the temporary parking lots, bus loop and fire emergency routing for the new JK-12 school, the one-storey section of PSHS was removed as phase one. Asbestos abatement was completed only in the area subject to demolition, and demolition of that section was completed in a controlled manner to maintain the functionality of the remaining portion of PSHS. This replicated the process completed in Fall of 2021 when a portion of PSHS was demolished to prepare for construction while students and staff continued to attend the school.

Following the phase one demolition, NNDSB received a structural report from a Licensed Professional Engineer. The report states that the remaining structure has not been compromised and remains safe for student occupancy. There are a small number of items to be completed so that the existing PSHS will be ready to receive staff and students. NNDSB is making every effort to work with the Town of Parry Sound Building Department and Fire Department to address these items, as well as any new concerns they may raise. These items can be found in the Additional Information Item for Families document, which is posted here.

Contact information:

McDougall Public School: Brigid Wright, 705 -773-7971

Nobel School: Laurie Payne, 705-773-7988

Parry Sound High School: Heather Howald, 705-773-7979

All of the information that has been collected from stakeholder groups, including teaching and operational staff, students and First Nations representatives, remains relevant as Near North District School Board (NNDSB) moves ahead in its work to build a new JK-12 school in Parry Sound.

It was announced in February 2021 that the Ventin Group (+VG Architects) was awarded the contract to design a school that seamlessly transitions area children from daycare through to secondary school in a building that is modern and reflects the needs of 21^st century education.

The school will include a childcare centre and an EarlyON Child and Family Centre.

There is a program sub-committee and a building sub-committee, both of which will make regular progress reports to the Parry Sound JK-12 Build Committee. That committee will make regular reports to the Board, which will be available in the agenda packages and in the links to the right. Topics of high interest will be issued as media releases, which are available in the links to the right.