Sandowne Public School prepares to host 450 Elizabeth Ziegler students for upcoming schoolyear

For the first time in many years, Elizabeth Ziegler Public School in Waterloo won’t be welcoming students back for the first day of classes. Its students are heading to Sandowne, a school who’s population is set to triple in size.

In April, Elizabeth Ziegler was forced to close after a slab of concrete fell from the school’s façade, unearthing a long list of other issues that need to be repaired and upgraded before students can return to class.

Sandowne Public School will be welcoming the students displaced by those repairs this school year, adding approximately 450 new students to their existing population, which used to be just over 200 kids.

“In 2025/26, we have the unique and exciting opportunity to build a “New Sandowne” – uniting our original Sandowne community with the Elizabeth Ziegler community,” said Sandowne Public School in a post on their website.

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The Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) has been working all summer to ensure that this school year is a smooth one.

“We’ve been working really hard on the transition, recognizing that when you increase the school by about 450 students, there are going to be some changes,” said Scott Miller, WRDSB director of education.

12 portable classrooms will be installed at Sandowne Public school to help accommodate their new student population.

A number of new staff are also being added to Sandowne for the upcoming school year. Miller said that not all of the staff from Elizabeth Ziegler have moved over to the new school with the students, and that some opportunities have been given to educators who weren’t previously employed at either school.

“We really want the input from the community as we move forward,” said Miller. “How are we getting feedback from the community and really ensuring that they feel their voices are heard.”

As for when we’ll learn more about the construction happening at Elizabeth Ziegler, Miller said that updates will be made available once contractors get into the building.

Elizabeth Ziegler is slated to reopen in September, 2027.