Bob Fowler, head of school review study, chides N.S. government over closures

A man who was once the province's highest-ranking civil servant says the Nova Scotia government isn't showing the leadership needed to help communities facing school closures.

Bob Fowler told CBC News those communities can't do it alone. It's highly unusual for former deputy ministers to speak out, even after retirement, but Fowler said he was frustrated by the recent decision by the Chignecto Central Regional School Board to order three school closed.

Schools in River John, Maitland and Wentworth will all close when classes end next week. All three school put together proposals to turn their schools into community hubs.

Maitland District Elementary School's proposal included a plan to lease classrooms to local businesses. River John Consolidated proposed that a team of volunteers would create an educational centre on the main floor of the school, along with an art gallery and café.

Depending on the school's annual operating costs, their proposed hub model would have to generate between $100,000 and $250,000 in annual revenue to meet criteria set out by school board staff.

It's a model Fowler championed in a report he prepared for the governing Liberals in February 2014. But he said community groups alone can't go it alone.

"Where are those partnerships and synergies that can say to some communities that have schools ... 'What can we do to help? Is it intellectual help? Is it emotional help? And in some cases financial help,'" Fowler said.

But Education Minister Karen Casey expressed surprise at Fowler's criticism and his suggestion the province needed to intervene.

She said that in his report he explicitly said any decision on closure should come at the community level.

"That's what he heard when he went around and did his consultation," she said. "He included it in his report. This has been a decision of the board and that's where the responsibility lies and that cannot be reversed."