NCDSB receives $32.6M to ease school overcrowding

The Niagara Catholic District School Board (NCDSB) is receiving $32.6 million in provincial capital projects funding, with most of the funding designated for a new Catholic elementary school in Thorold.

The intention of building this new school is to ease enrollment pressures at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Elementary school, with $25.8 million being invested into this project.

“This is great news for Niagara Catholic and for families in Thorold who want to send their child to a Catholic elementary school,” says Rhianon Burkholder, vice chair of the board.

Another $2.3 million will be used to build a three-room childcare centre at the school.

The Ministry also provided $4.5 million in funding to expand Saint Michael Catholic High School in Niagara Falls.

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Both schools are currently overcrowded due to a surge in local development.

“We’re building the schools students need and we’re making sure they get built quickly and on schedule,” Minister of Education Paul Calandra says.

“With stronger oversight and accountability through the Putting Student Achievement First Act, we are ensuring projects are delivered on time and focused on students, so that parents can be confident their children have the tools and opportunities they need to thrive.”

This announcement brings the number of NCDSB’s capital projects in progress or approved for funding to four.

St. Luke Catholic Elementary School in Beamsville is scheduled to open in 2027 and a new Catholic elementary school on McLeod and Kalar roads in south Niagara Falls is in the design stage.

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