Parents, teachers and community members will have their first chance to give input on the possible closure of five East Vancouver schools Monday night.

The first of 10 public consultation meetings will focus on Sir Guy Carleton Elementary and will begin at 7 p.m. at Windermere Secondary.

Vancouver School Board Chair Patti Bacchus told CTV News that she did not expect the meeting to be an easy one.

"Tonight's going to be difficult," she said.

But she added that the "malnourished" board, which faces a multi-million-dollar budget shortfall, doesn't have a lot of options left.

"We're in somewhat of a corner as a board," Bacchus said.

The Vancouver School Board announced its potential closure list earlier this month after whittling it down from a shortlist of 11. Several factors, including current and future enrolment as well as availability of space at neighbouring schools, went into the decision.

The five schools under consideration for closure at the end of this school year are:

  • Champlain Heights Annex (81 per cent enrolment)
  • McBride Annex (50 per cent enrolment)
  • Sir Guy Carleton Elementary (64 per cent enrolment)
  • Sir William Macdonald Elementary (24 per cent enrolment)
  • Queen Alexandra Elementary (69 per cent enrolment)

There will be two public meetings per school in the coming weeks. Information meetings are expected to last until Nov. 1, followed by public feedback sessions from Nov. 2 onwards.

Related: for the complete consultation schedule, click here.

A final decision on whether the schools will close is expected sometime in December in the hope parents can make alternate arrangements for the 2011-2012 school year.

The potential closures are part of the VSB's plan to tackle what it says is a $17.23-million budget shortfall. The board voted in June to cut 137 full-time positions.

Former education minister Margaret MacDiarmid was shuffled out of her position Monday, and replaced by George Abbott.

The education ministry and the VSB have been locked in a war of words since March, when the board announced a massive budget shortfall.

Bacchus said that she welcomed Abbott's appointment, but added, "I think we'll certainly want to bring him up to speed on the problems that we have."