The Trillium Lakelands District School Board (TLDSB) announced on January 30, 2026, that it received Ministry of Education approval to build a new Outdoor Education and Indigenous Centre on a 90-acre site in Minden, Ontario. The board said the centre is intended to serve TLDSB students across the district, including students from Bracebridge.
The 3,000-square-foot, day-use facility is scheduled to open in spring 2027. TLDSB says the centre will offer hands-on, curriculum-linked learning for students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 and will be used for day trips and outdoor lessons by schools across the board, including Bracebridge and Muskoka Lakes Secondary School.
In the media release, Board Chair Colleen Wilcox said she believes the site will provide ‘significant physical, social, and emotional benefit to students across TLDSB.’ TLDSB said it will seek guidance from local Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and Elders and use its Indigenous education staff to inform land-based programming and ensure teachings reflect Indigenous ways of knowing and respect for the land.
The project represents a shift toward a board-owned model for outdoor education. TLDSB has previously used temporary or leased sites — such as Camp Muskoka after the Yearley Outdoor Education Centre was decommissioned — for overnight and day programs; owning this site is intended to provide a permanent home for those activities rather than relying on private or leased properties.
