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Grade 9 and 10 were bussed to Montague High School in 1961. Whereas school beyond Grade 10 had previously been available only by spending a year in Charlottetown at Prince of Wales College or St. Dunstan's College, how education to Grade 12 was available in the High School in Montague. The consolidation of the elements ary grades occurred in 1967. At first. existing schools were

used. Orwell housed Grades lrand 2; other grades were bussed else-

where. In January of 1971, a new building was opened, the Vernon River Consolidated School. for Grades 1 to 8. Here a larger comm— unity was housed -- Orwell, Upper Newtcwn, Orwell Cove, Bellevue, Uigg, Grandview, Vernon, Vernon River, Millview, Somerville, Alberry Plains. Avondale, and Mount Albion. (More recently Mount Albion joined with the Charlottetown schools and Cherry Valley was added

to the Vernon River School). In 1981, Grade 9 was added to this

school, and in recent years "community school" has met during_°

winter evenings, providing a meeting place for many.

Many Women's Institute groups, as had Orwell, had been direc- ted to the care of the schools in their districts, and many now disbanded. Howeser. Orwell continued and found a broader commun- ity to work for. In 1985. the Orwell W.I. continues with a membership of 18. The W.I. in Orwell is one of the factors that

identifies it as a community.

In 1965. when the women of the community saw that Orwell School would soon be closing they organized a celebration in hon— our of the 70th Anniversary of the school. Around forty former teachers were present, along with the first teacher, Mrs. Martin,

nee Ella MacKenzie. a resident of Orwell. She was presented with