School District 79 Cowichan Valley

Cowichan Valley School District
Address
2557 Beverly Street
, British Columbia, V9L 2X3
Canada
District information
GradesK–12
EstablishedDecember 1996 (1996-12)
SuperintendentTim Davie
Asst. superintendent(s)Darlene Reynolds
Jeff Rowan
Schools21
BudgetCA$81,835,263
Students and staff
Students7730
Other information
Websitewww.sd79.bc.ca

School District 79 Cowichan Valley (SD79) is a school district located in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It consists of numerous elementary (KindergartenGrade 7), middle (Grade 89), secondary (Grade 1012), and alternative schools for programs like adult education.

The Cowichan Valley School District serves the communities of Duncan, Cowichan Bay, Chemainus, Cobble Hill, Crofton, Shawnigan Lake, Mill Bay, Maple Bay, and Lake Cowichan.

The current superintendent of the Cowichan Valley School District is Tim Davie, who previously served as the superintendent for the Pacific Rim School District.

History

The current School District 79 was formed in 1996 when School District 65 (Cowichan) was combined with School District 66 (Lake Cowichan).

A French Immersion program was established in October 1997, for the 1998–1999 school year.

On July 1, 2012, after refusing to send a balanced budget to the Ministry of Education in British Columbia by June 30, the elected Board of Trustees was dismissed. Michael McKay was instated and balanced the budget.

Reconfiguration of the Cowichan Valley School District began in 2013–2014 school year. This marks the change from a middle school model (kindergarten–grade 6, grades 7–9, grades 10–12) to an elementary school system from kindergarten–grade 7 and a secondary school system from grades 8–12.

Superintendents

This is a list of the superintendents of SD79 since amalgamation with SD65 and SD66 in 1996. Superintendents in this list that don't have references included, were provided by the SD79 Board Office via email.

Name Tenure Notes Ref.
Geoff Johnson 1996–2000 Former superintendent of SD65 from 1993 to 1996 [1]
Andy Selder 2000 Served as acting superintendent
Brian Hoole 2000–2005
Peter Porte 2005–2006 [2]
Betty Milne 2006–2007 Served as acting superintendent in 2007
Dan Boudreau 2008–2011 [3]
Joe Rhodes 2011–2015 [4][5]
Rod Allen 2015–2019 [6]
Robyn Gray 2019–2024 [7]
Jeff Rowan 2024–2025 Served as interim superintendent; Currently assistant superintendent [8][9]
Tim Davie 2025–present Former superintendent of Pacific Rim [8]

Schools

Elementary, middle, and secondary schools
School[10] Location Grades Principal[11]
École Mount Prevost Elementary School Duncan K7 Sandra Buckland (acting)
Alex Aitken Elementary School Duncan K–7 Updesh Cheema
Alexander Elementary School Duncan K–7 Darren Hart (acting)
Bench Elementary School Cowichan Bay K–7 Mike Martin
Chemainus Community School Chemainus K–7 Ixchel Bradley
École Cobble Hill Elementary School Cobble Hill K–7 Ian Zibin
Crofton Elementary School Crofton K–6 Jennifer Merrett
Discovery Elementary School Shawnigan Lake K–7 Dani Morrow
Drinkwater Elementary School Duncan K–7 Kyla Bridge
Khowhemun Elementary School Duncan K–7 Brenda Stevenson
George Bonner Elementary School Mill Bay 1–7 Jennifer Calverley
Maple Bay Elementary School Maple Bay K–7 Nicole Davey
Palsson Elementary School Lake Cowichan K–5 Fiona Somerville
Mill Bay Nature School Mill Bay K–3 Alison Leslie
Tansor Elementary School Duncan K–7 Brent Ranger
Thetis Island Elementary School Chemainus K–7 Ixchel Bradley
Chemainus Secondary School Chemainus 7–12 Colleen Mullin
Quw'utsun Secondary School Duncan 10–12 Scott Jackson
Frances Kelsey Secondary School Mill Bay 8–12 Kevin van der Linden
Lake Cowichan School Lake Cowichan 4–12 Jennie Hittinger
Quamichan School Duncan 8–9 Claire Whitney

See also


References

  1. ^ "BC School District Database - Teach.Can Education Site". teach.can.tripod.com. Archived from the original on 2004-06-14. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  2. ^ "BC School Board Contact List" (PDF). Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  3. ^ "Leadership changes in B.C. school districts (UPDATED)". Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on 2020-08-13. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  4. ^ "News Release – Superintendent Retirement – Cowichan Valley School District". 2025-09-25. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  5. ^ "Wayback Machine" (PDF). www.publicsectorcompensation.gov.bc.ca. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2025-08-13. Retrieved 2025-09-28. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  6. ^ "News Release: Superintendent Announces Retirement – Cowichan Valley School District". 2025-09-25. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  7. ^ "Cowichan Valley School District Board of Education Announces New Superintendent – Cowichan Valley School District". 2025-09-25. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  8. ^ a b "Cowichan Valley Board of Education Announces New Superintendent of Schools/Chief Executive Officer – Cowichan Valley School District". 2025-09-25. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  9. ^ Trends, Island Social (2024-11-06). "Interim superintendent appointed for Cowichan Valley School District". Island Social Trends. Retrieved 2025-09-29.
  10. ^ "Schools – Cowichan Valley School District". 2025-09-25. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  11. ^ "Public Directory". Retrieved 2025-09-28.