But several parents and students from Gloucester High School, which also has low enrolment, said they would welcome students from Rideau.

A larger student population would mean more opportunities for courses, clubs and extracurricular activities, they said. Rideau students will be made to feel “welcome and comfortable,” said Molly Kennedy, a Grade 10 student at Gloucester. “We will celebrate the best of both schools … and create new traditions.”

The proposed closure of Rideau has also upset many parents in Manor Park because their children would also be directed to Gloucester High School. Many teens in that neighbourhood consider Lisgar Collegiate their neighbourhood school, parent Pam Kent told trustees.

“Please do not ask them to travel great distances every day to a neighbourhood they are not at all familiar with, to attend a school they do not know, with a peer group that is not their own,” her brief said.

After hearing from more than 25 delegations, trustees began debate but failed to reach a decision, and will resume the meeting Thursday at 7 p.m. at the board office at 133 Greenbank Rd.

jmiller@postmedia.com

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