Pembina Trails renames Ryerson School

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This article was published 03/12/2021 (1446 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Pembina Trails School Division has renamed a south Winnipeg elementary school.

The division’s board of trustees decided to review Ryerson School’s name this past summer following the discovery of unmarked graves at former residential school sites across the country.

The division also received letters of support from Ryerson School students.

“As news of the Kamloops unmarked graves became known across Canada and the board received letters from students, it became quite clear we could not ignore it, and we didn’t want to ignore it either,” Pembina Trails School Division superintendent Ted Fransen told The Sou’wester.

Ryerson Elementary School, named after residential school system architect Egerton Ryerson, will now be called Prairie Sunrise School.

In a news release, the school division said the new name represents a departure from a “dark and painful history.”

“The reason that name was chosen is because we wanted to emphasize a new beginning, a new start,” Fransen said. “There’s nothing more symbolic of a new start and new beginning than a sunrise.”

Fransen said the “vast majority” of people have been supportive of the decision to rename the school.

“There were voices in our community consultation that had an opposable point of view,” he added. “They wanted us to think deeply about the fact we can’t rewrite history, and that Ryerson did many good things for public education in addition to the bad things.

“It was not unanimous in terms of our community voice but, at the end of the day, the board and committee decided the name should be changed.”

Kathleen McMillan, chair of the board, read the requests to change the school’s name.

“I was overtaken by the sincerity and emotional rawness of some of these kids,” she said. “They were so honest and so complete in their expression of emotion that it was really quite the experience.”

The new name was unveiled by the division to students and staff on Nov. 25. Fransen called the ceremony “celebratory.”

“When they heard the name, the smiles were evident,” he added. “They started dancing. The kids were just joyful, and it was a beautiful thing to see.”

Pembina Trails School Division will be opening two new schools in 2023, including the kindergarten to Grade 8 school Bison Run School, located in the new Waverley West community.

The division has yet to rename the high school opening in Sept. 2023 in the same neighbourhood.

In August, Ryerson University also voted to change the Toronto school’s name over concerns about the man the institution is named for and his links to Canada’s residential schools.