Cole Harbour, N.S., students stage walkout, demand safer school environment

Students from Astral Drive Junior High in Cole Harbour, N.S., from Grade 8 and 9 organized a walkout Friday morning, protesting their concerns with violence on school grounds.

They gathered by a busy road with signs demanding immediate action from Halifax Regional Centre for Education (HRCE).

“We were talking to our vice-principal and principal but no one was really helping,” said Ava Merrick, organizer of the walkout.

An incident on Tuesday sparked the protest, when a student was attacked in the school bathroom. Claire Kelly, an eighth grade student, described the incident as scary.

“I tried to leave but she just blocked the door, so I just tried to get out and she just started attacking me. She punched me in the [and] she was grabbing me,” she said.

Claire said this was not the first time she was attacked.

“Pulling my hair, spraying perfume in my face and shoving gum down my throat with a friend,” Claire said.

She said she does not feel safe, and her mom does not think the school has done enough.

“The supervisor of Astral Drive kept telling me policies, procedures and code of conduct. Yes, every child had the right to education but our children have the right to feel safe in school,” said Claire’s mom, Wendy Kelly.

Astral Drive Junior High is pictured in Cole Harbour, N.S. (Hafsa Arif/CTV Atlantic)

HRCE says safety is its highest priority.

“Violent behaviour is never tolerated. We can assure the community that this was a serious incident and serious and immediate consequences are in place in accordance with the Provincial School Code of Conduct Policy,” the centre said in a statement to CTV News.

Other students at the protest said there have been a number of attacks in school since September and they are worried about the violence they say is happening.

“I’ve had someone throw water on my face on the bus or push me, so I don’t take the bus anymore. When I’ve talked to the school, they’ve said we’ll deal with it. They’ll ask questions about it but then they’ll do nothing about it. The most that’s going to happen is suspend the person because no one was has been expelled for anything,” said Maisie MacDonald.

Ava Merrick, the organizer of the walkout, said after the Tuesday incident they shared their concerns with the school but nothing changed.

“The most we got was, ‘Well, I can let you go the bathroom in pairs maybe,’ and we were like that’s not really doing anything to protect us because people are getting physically harmed,” said Merrick.

There’s a month left until this school year ends, but parents and students don’t want to wait for the fall term for changes.

HRCE said staff will be on site at Astral Drive Junior High on Monday to hear students’ concerns and determine what is needed to increase students’ sense of safety at school.

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.