Students, teachers and staff at Abbotsford Traditional Secondary school will soon have a safer learning environment now that work is underway to seismically upgrade the school.

“Parents and families want to know their children are safe at school and these upgrades mark another important step as we continue to create seismically safe schools across the province,” said Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Education. “Our government knows the value of safe learning spaces and a good education. Seismic upgrades like this are one of the many ways we’re helping children engage with the joy of learning.”

The almost $19-million project funded by the Government of B.C. includes reinforcing the walls and roof structures, as well as other infrastructure improvements to make the building seismically safe by September 2022.

“We are pleased to see that the seismic upgrades are now well underway at Abbotsford Traditional Secondary,” said Stan Petersen, chair, Abbotsford Board of Education. “These essential upgrades ensure the students, staff and school community will continue to have a safe and trusted setting for learning and connecting for years to come.”

This investment in student safety is part of the Province’s work to accelerate the Seismic Mitigation Program to ensure every B.C. student can attend a seismically safe school as soon as possible.

Since September 2017, the Province has announced over $1.2 billion for seismic upgrades or replacements at 58 B.C. schools, giving more than 31,000 students a safer place to learn, with more to come. This includes $46 million to improve schools for students in Abbotsford.

Learn More:

Abbotsford School District: https://www.abbyschools.ca/

The Ministry of Education’s Seismic Mitigation Program: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content?id=14848EBBEF10466D8C70DAAE25B4A1D4