It’s been a summer of ups and downs for parents and students in the Saint John area.
After Education Minister Serge Rousselle ruled in June that Lorne Middle School and Brown's Flat Elementary would close in September, parents banded together to successfully reverse the decision through court.
But now, the community learned it was too late, as the debate caused the facilities to not be ready for the first day of school.
Kelly Lamrock is the lawyer for the parents who fought to keep the schools open. He says he will be in Saint John court on Wednesday to fight the recent decision.
"I’ve had a chance to speak with my clients, who were of course victorious in court, and I think profoundly disappointed, would be fair to say, at the decision of the government to attempt to evade accountability under the law," he said.
Students from Brown's Flat Elementary will now attend Westfield School, while students from Lorne Middle School will go to Princess Elizabeth School.
The school district issued a statement Tuesday, saying while the process unfolds they will continue with the plan of having students assigned to other schools. They said it would be impossible to make the necessary changes to have the schools operational on such short notice.
Classes were scheduled to start a week from Tuesday, but some parents say they will bring their kids to Lorne Middle School that day to show the district they don't agree with the decision.
Lamrock says he will ask the court to make a declaration so they can put the issue to rest.
“The judge somehow said the school’s not open, the judge said the school’s open, we're going to ask the court to make that clear and then take steps to make sure the district is working in good faith to comply with the law, rather than trying to sneak around it," he said.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Ashley Blackford
