Petition text
WHEREAS Villa Maria High School is a secondary school that is private, subsidized, secular, coeducational, bilingual and modern with approximately 200 employees and 1,800 students who benefit from an exceptional education;
WHEREAS the school, founded by the Sisters of the Congrégation de Notre-Dame and located on Domaine Villa-Maria since 1854, is a flagship and heritage institution in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce;
WHEREAS the school has a lease with the Congregation to occupy its buildings until 2030, and the Congregation has no intention of renewing it;
WHEREAS the future of Villa Maria High School is in jeopardy as a result of the Congregation's decision to sell the land in 2031 without affording the school the opportunity to acquire it, despite its excellent financial statements;
WHEREAS the Congregation sold a portion of the Domaine to Marianopolis College for $8 million;
WHEREAS, since the 2023 announcement of the land sale and the ensuing uncertainty, enrolment at the high school has declined;
WHEREAS closing the school would be a collective failure for our community, our heritage and our education system;
WHEREAS the school has the support of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce residents, local elected officials, students, parents, teachers and alumni;
We, the undersigned, ask the Government of Québec to make best efforts to enable the Congrégation de Notre-Dame, Villa Maria High School and Ville de Montréal to find solutions in the best interests of the community as well as to ensure the school’s continued existence and preservation at Domaine Villa-Maria.
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