Empire Public School
In 2024-25, Empire had 490 students for 441 permanent places (111% full). Last addition on record: five kindergarten rooms and a double gym, 2013. 1,129 homes were permitted in its area between January 2019 and August 2026, and at least 1,494 more are proposed.
Coming up
Temporary area for part of Elizabeth Ziegler's neighbourhood[5]
- September 2027Elizabeth Ziegler is due to reopen, and the area returns to it
How full is it?
Ward median 97%
One of 14 ward schools over 100% in 2024-25. #14 of 29 by how full it is.
Enrolment is the Ministry’s October 31 headcount; permanent places are the board’s on-the-ground capacity. Portables aren’t counted as permanent places.
Students and educators
Ward median 23 (elementary schools)
All 21 classes, including split grades, counted by the Ministry in September 2025. Kindergarten classes: 27.8 on average. Grade 1 to 3 classes with no older students: 20.4 on average.
About 21 students for each teacher named on the school’s website: 490 students (October 2024)[1] ÷ 23 teachers listed on November 2, 2026, counting any special-education and ESL teachers listed[4].derived The list also names 1 educational assistant, 3 early childhood educators and 1 child and youth worker.
A staff page is a directory of names, not full-time equivalents: part-time teachers count as one each, and staff based at other schools aren’t listed. Not every school lists its support staff. The board doesn’t publish staffing by school.
Last rebuild or addition
Ward median: built 1974
Last addition on record: five kindergarten rooms and a double gym, 2013.
- 1953Original building (opened 1954)
- 2013Five kindergarten rooms and a double gym
- 2013Done
An addition with full-day kindergarten rooms and a new gym. The City's permit lists “5 new classrooms and a new gym”; the school says that as of summer 2013 it has “a new double gym, five new kindergarten rooms”.[6][10][7] - 2018Raised, then dropped
Another classroom addition was suggested in 2018 (“may be warranted”). It was on the board's November 2020 list of unfunded projects open to partners, and has been off that list since October 2021.[6][8][9]
New homes in its attendance area
Ward median 232 (elementary school areas in Waterloo)
Another 1,494+ homes are proposed in 6 active applications; 2 of them give no unit count[11].
Apart from Elizabeth Ziegler’s temporary area, new homes in this boundary are assigned to Empire[13].
397 of these homes are in Elizabeth Ziegler's temporary area, which goes back to Elizabeth Ziegler when it reopens.[13][10]
About 27% of the addresses in Empire's regular area are in Kitchener, where we haven't counted permits yet.[12]
By the board’s own pupil rates, the homes permitted could be home to about 84 elementary-age children (JK to Grade 8)[14].derived
City of Waterloo permits only. Gross counts: demolitions aren’t subtracted.
Building condition
Ward median 27%
Under the board's 65% “poor” line.[15] The index is five years of needed repairs divided by what it would cost to replace the building. Higher is worse. The red mark is the board’s 65% “poor” line.
Accessibility
Ward median 97%
- Elevator
- Not Required
- Barrier-free washroom
- Available
Lead in drinking water
Highest reading 25.8 µg/L.
We show these for each school so families can see them, but we don’t rank schools on test scores or family income, and they’re left off share images.
Who attends
Special education and first language: preliminary 2024-25. Low-income households: 2021 Census. The Ministry randomly rounds these percentages[20].
Provincial test results
Share of fully participating students at or above the provincial standard, 2024-25[21]. EQAO posted 2025-26 results in October 2026; this page will be updated.
Against the board’s forecast
- 2024-25 enrolment vs the board's 2020 forecast for 2024-25
- 13% below[2]
The 2020 Long-Term Accommodation Plan forecast each school’s enrolment to 2030. The board uses these forecasts to decide where to ask for new space.
Safety events posted
- Hold-and-secure, lockdown or police presence
- 0[19]
- Unplanned closures or evacuations
- 0
What the school chose to post on its website, counted once per event, September 2017 to September 3, 2026.
Tell us what you see at Empire
Portables, class sizes, repairs, or something this page gets wrong. Reports go to Brian and are checked before anything is published, and anything added from them is marked unverified.
Sources
- Ontario Ministry of Education, enrolment by school, 2024-25
October 31 headcount. The Ministry rounds to the nearest five from 2018-19 on; earlier years in the same series (back to 2011-12) are exact counts.
- WRDSB 2020-2030 Long-Term Accommodation Plan
Review Area E13 (Kitchener Central (Victoria Hills-Westmount)). PDF page 64: permanent capacity (on-the-ground), year built and Facility Condition Index; enrolment forecast on page 65. Adopted June 21, 2021.
- Ontario Ministry of Education, elementary class size, 2025-26
One row per class, counted in September 2025. A grade group of 1 to 4 pupils is shown as “<5”, so some averages are a range.
- Empire Public School website, staff list
Read November 2, 2026. A directory of names, not full-time equivalents; part-time teachers count as one each.
- Elizabeth Ziegler PS website: Update on repair and restoration (June 2, 2026)
“The school remains closed and is on track to open in September 2027.”
- Draft 2017-2027 Long-Term Accommodation Plan, Committee of the Whole, January 22, 2018
Review Area E13 history: 2013 addition for Full-Day Kindergarten classrooms and a new gymnasium. PDF page 100.
- Empire Public School website, About page
“The school opened in 1954.” “As of the summer of 2013, there is a new double gym, five new kindergarten rooms”. Read November 2, 2026.
- Potential partnership opportunities, Committee of the Whole, November 9, 2020
Medium- to long-term major additions: Empire Public School. PDF page 16.
- Potential partnership opportunities, Committee of the Whole, October 18, 2021
Major additions list; Empire is not on it. PDF page 34.
- City of Waterloo, building permits open data
New residential units permitted January 2019 to August 21, 2026, placed in the school's 2026-27 boundary. Gross: demolitions aren't subtracted. City of Waterloo only.
- EngageWR, City of Waterloo development planning projects
Active development applications, read August 23, 2026.
- Region of Waterloo address register
Every civic address in Waterloo and Wilmot, read November 2, 2026.
- WRDSB school boundary and location maps, 2026-27
The board's ArcGIS boundary layers, read September 30, 2026.
- WRDSB and WCDSB 2021 Education Development Charges Background Study
Pupil yields per new home by type, PDF page 62: elementary rates for the Waterloo review areas (JK to Grade 8), secondary rates for North Central.
- WRDSB 2020-2030 Long-Term Accommodation Plan, Figure 12
The plan's condition bands: over 65% poor, 40 to 64% fair, under 39% excellent. PDF page 30.
- WRDSB, Accessibility Status by School
Board web page, read October 25, 2026.
- Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, drinking water quality and enforcement data
Lead samples taken at the school under O. Reg. 243/07, 2016-17 to 2024-25.
- WRDSB ventilation report
Per-school ventilation type and standalone HEPA units; the board's chart was last updated November 28, 2024.
- Empire Public School website, news posts since 2017-18
Closures, evacuations and hold-and-secure notices the school chose to post, read to September 3, 2026; counted once per event.
- Ontario Ministry of Education, school information and student demographics, preliminary 2024-25
Special education and first language not English: 2024-25, school data as of July 2026. Low-income households: from the 2021 Census. The Ministry randomly rounds these percentages.
- EQAO, school results, 2024-25
Share of fully participating students at or above the provincial standard; for the literacy test, fully participating first-time-eligible students who passed. EQAO posted 2025-26 results in October 2026.