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Richmond gifted school on agricultural land seeks to expand
By Hannah Scott, Local Journalism Initiative reporter
Published 11:34 PST, Tue January 12, 2021
Last Updated: 2:13 PDT, Wed May 12, 2021
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A school for gifted children in Richmond is hoping to construct a new building to accommodate more students, pending Agricultural Land Commission approval.
Choice School is located on agricultural land in East Richmond, and about half of its students are what the school calls “twice exceptional,” meaning they are gifted and also have additional learning difficulties or a disability.
The matter came before Richmond city council last night, when a delegation from Choice School explained that it is one of only 15 designated special education schools in the province, and that its enrolment is essentially at capacity. The school has been on its current site since 1992.
After discussion, council referred the matter to the Agricultural Land Commission, which has final say in whether Choice School will be able to expand.