Prince Rupert residents are being asked to suggest names for the new middle school being built to replace the aging Prince Rupert Middle School. School District 52 launched a community survey on June 2, 2026, giving locals a direct say in what the modern facility will be called.
The new school, currently under construction next to the existing building at 417 9th Ave West, is a $126.8 million seismic replacement project funded by the Province in September 2023. It will include modern purpose-built classrooms, a neighbourhood community centre, a new gym, and accessible areas for both students and residents. The 5,500 square metre, two-storey building is designed for about 600 students and is expected to open by September 2027.
“School District 52 invites community members to submit names for the Prince Rupert Middle School Seismic Replacement,” the district said in its announcement. The naming survey is open now through a SurveyMonkey link on the district website. Suggestions will help shape the identity of a school that has been over a decade in the making, with planning dating back to the 2017/2018 Five-Year Capital Plan.
The original Prince Rupert Middle School was built in 1958 as a secondary school and later converted to a middle school. It is now considered functionally obsolete and does not meet seismic safety standards. The replacement project includes a 400 square metre Neighbourhood Learning Centre focused on out-of-school childcare, and the school will aim for LEED Gold certification with a more than 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and will incorporate mass-timber construction into portions of the building.
Enrolment at the current middle school was 436 students in 2022/23, with projections showing over 47 percent growth by 2037. School District 52 serves Prince Rupert, Port Edward, Metlakatla, and Hartley Bay within the territory of the Ts’msyen Nation. The new school will sit on traditional land of the Gits’iis clan, and Indigenous education has been a key part of planning, including a First Nations blessing at the April 2025 groundbreaking.
