November 17, 2011: At the November 16, 2011 Board meeting, trustees of the Halton District School Board selected names for the two new high schools currently under construction in Oakville and Milton. The names for the new schools were selected from a shortlist of names collected on-line and in ballot boxes in neighbourhood schools and public libraries.

The name chosen for the new Oakville high school, located at 2820 Westoak Trails Blvd., is Garth Webb Secondary School. 

Garth Webb is a Burlington resident and World War II veteran of the D-Day Normandy campaign.  Mr Webb spearheaded the establishment of a non-profit organization, called the Juno Beach Association, and began raising the $10 million necessary to build an interpretation centre as a lasting memorial to sacrifices and contributions of Canadian soldiers. Mr Webb spent years relentlessly raising money for the centre, ultimately securing money from the Government of France, the Government of Canada, provincial governments, schools, businesses and from Wal-Mart Canada. The Juno Beach Centre and Museum opened on June 6, 2003 at Courseulles-sur-Mer, France with more than one thousand Canadian Veterans in attendance.   Since its opening, more than 660 school groups and hundreds of teachers and educators have visited the Juno Beach Centre.

The name chosen for the new Milton high school is Craig Kielburger Secondary School.  The school, which will replace E.C. Drury High School, is currently under construction at 1151 Ferguson Drive in Milton. 

At the age of twelve, Craig Kielburger started a school-based club to raise funds and awareness about child labour.  Today, that club is “ Free the Children” – an international non-profit organization that empowers North American students to become global and active citizens. 

Since its founding, the organization has built more than 750 schools in developing countries, provided education to more than 55,000 children every day, established 23,000 alternative income programs and provided clean water and medical programs to hundreds of thousands of families.  Free the Children runs events and youth leadership training conferences that encourage and inspire young people to get out into their local communities and ‘be the change’. Kielburger  is also co-founder of “Me to We”, an innovative social enterprise, which challenges the notions of consumption and redefines the relationship between business and charity.   Today, Free the Children is the world’s largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million young people involved in programs in 45 countries.

“These names are excellent choices for our new high schools,” says Don Vrooman, Chair of the Halton District School Board.   “I believe our students will be inspired by the accomplishments of both Garth Webb and Craig Kielburger, and by the impact of their legacies worldwide.”