End clap for a 50-year utopia of an open college near Rennes

On this damp morning at the end of January, at "recess" time, we see with astonishment hundreds of schoolchildren outside, passing inhabitants walking their dogs, in the middle of tree-lined banks. Le Rheu, which was only a village in the 1950s, grew with the establishment of a Citroën factory nearby, developing through the precepts of the famous town planner Gaston Bardet (1907-89), promoter of the "marriage of the city with the greenery".

Morgane, 14 years old and in 4th year, is "proud" and "adores" being in this single-storey college built in 1974, "where you have more freedom". "We can go into the grass and it's prettier without a fence!" And she recalls with a smile this anecdote specific to the Brassens college: on the first day, the principal goes around the establishment showing the "virtual limits" not to be exceeded.

His comrade Milan, hoodie, is opposed to the future securing of the site like all his friends and wonders whether the basketball and football field will be inside the fence or not. "We have fewer problems here than in colleges with fences. And if we put a wall of 1,50 m the terrorist who is going to commit an attack will go over it!"

But why is what was possible for almost 50 years no longer possible in 2021? "We had a meeting in the prefecture of the watch and security cell around the prefect, the prosecutor, intelligence and security services", explains Jean-Luc Chenut, socialist president of the departmental council, to which the management of the colleges is entrusted. .

"The atypical situation of the Rheu college was strongly pointed out with a high risk rating" while the country is placed "under the Vigipirate attack device, the highest level of vigilance", summarizes Mr. Chenut, who was mayor of Rheu. The new fence, which he wants "landscaped" at a cost between 200.000 and 250.000 euros, must be ready for the next school year in September.

Reversibility?

But for many parents of students, this decision distorts the architectural variation of the educational project. "Philosophically, it is the idea that young people can be trusted, that there is a progressive learning of autonomy", explains Matthieu Mahéo, academic secretary general Snes-FSU and representative of the parents of pupils.

"We regret that a socialist president of the departmental council does not have the political courage to defend the particularity of the town and yield to security sirens," launches Mr. Mahéo, acknowledging that the attack which cost Samuel Paty the life leads to a "new look" on educational establishments.

According to Sébastien Cordrie, librarian, "there has never been a flight of students. Here students are considered as future adults," he notes, noting that there is "no other open college "in France.

In the town center, the inhabitants of this municipality of 9.000 inhabitants express more nuanced opinions. "It doesn't shock me that they are closing it down, we must prioritize security. Does that distort the history of the city? Times have changed, it is no longer the small garden city that we discovered 40 years ago ... ", point, nostalgic, Colette, 67 years old.

Romain, a shopkeeper, explains bluntly that he "did everything" not to put his children in this college. "The 11-year-old kids coming out of primary are still babies, they will have time to take responsibility later! There, they are a little loose, we see them going to the supermarket, to the bakery ..."

Mayor Mickaël Bouloux (various left) hopes that the fence will have the "least visual impact possible" and that the structure can be "reversible" ... For one day, who knows, return to the initial ideal.