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Catholic school board ‘working diligently' to clean up playground fire debris
Catholic school board ‘working diligently' to clean up playground fire debris

CTV News

time4 days ago

  • CTV News

Catholic school board ‘working diligently' to clean up playground fire debris

After a northwest Edmonton playground was set ablaze last weekend, Edmonton Catholic Schools says it is 'working diligently' to expedite cleanup efforts before the school year begins. 'We know how much this playground means to the students, families and the surrounding community,' said a statement from the school board's chief superintendent Lynette Anderson Friday afternoon. 'We're working hard behind the scenes to move things forward quickly and are looking ahead to rebuilding a new space for children to play, grow and connect.' Edmonton police responded to the blaze at St. Pius X Catholic Elementary School in the Sherbrooke neighbourhood around 8 a.m. on July 12. While the playground was destroyed, officers said it was fortunate the school didn't catch on fire. Police are still investigating the matter and are searching for an arsonist responsible for setting the playground on fire. The playground cost more than $600,000 and it took more than a decade to raise funds. The Sherbrooke Community League launched a fundraiser to replace the playground, already raising $10,000. Final estimates on damage have yet to be determined. Edmonton Catholic Schools says it is working with their insurance provided to assess the damage and begin next steps. Anyone with information about the fire is asked to contact Edmonton police at 780-423-4567. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Karyn Mulcahy.

Edmonton's largest school boards welcome provincial action team to tackle aggression and complexity
Edmonton's largest school boards welcome provincial action team to tackle aggression and complexity

Yahoo

time04-07-2025

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Edmonton's largest school boards welcome provincial action team to tackle aggression and complexity

Edmonton's two largest school boards say they're looking forward to the province's new task force which will tackle aggression and complexity in schools as demand for crucial services increases. The chairwomen for the board of trustees at Edmonton Public Schools and Edmonton Catholic Schools District said in interviews with Postmedia they have been advocating for more resources and support as reports of aggression and complexity increase in classrooms. Edmonton public chairwoman Julie Kusiek said the board has raised several issues to the ministry around classroom sizes with large enrolment growth and classroom complexity. She pointed to the need for schools to be built to offset the high enrolment and more specialized resources, including mental health supports and targeted support for refugee and displaced students. Kusiek added the rising complexity could be addressed with more funding, saying the division has seen 'several years of cuts' to its budget due to the weighted moving average. 'This is the first year we've seen the status quo budget in the last several years and so the cumulative impact of that is real,' Kusiek said. 'We need to see base funding for education in the province move up so that we can support students in the ways that they need to be. There's also workforce pressures around recruitment and retaining specialized professionals and these folks are in high demand when it comes to psychologists and therapists.' On Monday, Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said the Aggression and Complexity in Schools Action Team will be comprised of 20 members of the education sector who will deliver a report along with short and long-term recommendations to the province by the fall. The province said recommendations could be implemented as soon as the 2025-2026 school year. Edmonton Catholic chairwoman Sandra Palazzo said the creation of the action team will be a step towards understanding what schools are experiencing on a daily basis. She pointed to the need to have all school boards at the table — not only large ones. 'Classroom complexity is a significant concern for educators as it impacts their ability, oftentimes, to provide those adequate supports,' Palazzo said. 'Despite these challenges, our teachers and educators are the strength of our division.' In a statement to Postmedia, Nicolaides said major Calgary and Edmonton school boards will be asked to choose one board member and one senior administration representative. He added nomination information will be shared soon with the final list of the action team members to be published online once finalized. 'We are investing a historic $9.9 billion into Alberta's education system for the coming school year, which includes over a billion dollars for grants and supports to address complexity in classrooms,' Nicolaides said. 'To address school space issues, we are investing $8.6 billion to build and renovate more than 130 schools across the province, adding 200,000 student spaces.' ctran@ X: @kccindytran Alberta launches new task force to tackle aggression in schools 'This is not OK': ATA reports higher incidents of aggression in schools Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters. You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post, and 13 other Canadian news sites. The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun

Alberta government promises 14 new school projects in Edmonton area
Alberta government promises 14 new school projects in Edmonton area

CBC

time19-03-2025

  • Business
  • CBC

Alberta government promises 14 new school projects in Edmonton area

The provincial government wants to kick-start 14 new school construction projects in the Edmonton area, including planning funding for six new high school buildings. The announcement comes as the city's two largest school divisions predict that without new buildings, public schools will be out of space by 2027, and Catholic schools could be crammed by 2029. "Whether it's parents, teachers, school boards or anybody in the Edmonton area generally, we've heard there's a significant need for more school space, primarily high school space," Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said in an interview with CBC. Edmonton's public and Catholic school boards have warned for years they would not have the buildings to accommodate a demographic bulge of students rolling toward high school. Population growth in the city and surrounding areas intensified the pressure in all grades. Three new anglophone high schools have opened within city limits during the last four years, and two more are under construction. Ohpaho Secondary School opened in Leduc last fall, and in October, the province approved construction funding for a replacement high school in Spruce Grove. However, Edmonton Catholic high schools are already out of space, and Edmonton public schools will have more senior students than spaces by next fall, projections suggest. To be approved for design funding is an addition to Dr. Anne Anderson High School, which opened in September 2021. The $19-million addition would accommodate 600 more students when complete. Should the provincial budget pass as drafted, school divisions will receive planning funding for new Catholic and public high schools in the fast-growing bedroom community of Beaumont. Edmonton Public Schools could begin planning new schools, including a 2,400-pupil high school in north Edmonton's Castle Downs area and a high school for about 1,500 students in The Grange, in west Edmonton. Edmonton Catholic Schools could plan a west Edmonton high school in Lewis Farms and a southeast Edmonton high school in the Meadows. The board plans to open both buildings for 1,800 students with the ability to tack on additions that would expand capacity to 2,400. Here's a complete list of proposed projects: Addition to Dr. Anne Anderson High School for 600 more students, Edmonton Public Schools, design funding. A new K-to-6 school in Hawks Ridge, Edmonton Public Schools, design funding. A new Catholic high school in Beaumont, St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Schools, planning funding. A new public high school in Beaumont, Black Gold School division, planning funding. A new high school in Castle Downs, Edmonton Public Schools, planning funding. A new high school in The Grange, Edmonton Public Schools, planning funding. A new elementary school in Silver Berry, Edmonton Public Schools, planning funding. A new high school in Lewis Farms, Edmonton Catholic Schools, planning funding. A new high school in The Meadows, Edmonton Catholic Schools, planning funding. A new francophone K-6 school in Haddow/Henderson, Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord, planning funding. A new K-9 school in St. Albert's Chérot neighbourhood, St. Albert Public Schools, planning funding. A replacement school for École Morinville Public School, pre-K-4, Sturgeon Public Schools, design funding. A replacement school for St. Lucy Elementary and Katherine Therrien schools in northwest Edmonton. The replacement K-9 school would be to the west in The Palisades/Oxford area. Edmonton Catholic Schools, planning funding. Acquisition and modernization of property leased by the charter school Edmonton Classical Academy for K-12 students, design funding. As in previous announcements of new projects destined for Calgary and other Alberta communities, this year's proposed budget only includes money for design and planning of newly announced projects, which is substantially cheaper than construction. The province has changed the timing of project approvals, and will green-light construction of an already-planned project when it's ready for the next stage, rather than waiting for the next budget year. The 41 new projects included in the 2025 budget are part of the $8.6-billion school construction accelerator program, which Premier Danielle Smith announced in September 2024. She promised to start construction of 90 new schools, modernize or replace up to 24 schools and double the amount of charter school space within four to seven years. Nicolaides said the timeline for shovels hitting dirt in each project differs. High school projects may need more planning work, but some projects announced Wednesday should be ready to begin construction within about a year, he said. Typically, construction of Alberta elementary-junior high schools takes about two years, and construction of a high school takes about three years. Nicolaides acknowledged the province's finances are at the whim of global forces, but said the school needs are a priority. "I'm hopeful that we can move these projects forward irrespective of what happens with global macroeconomic conditions and tariffs and other situations," he said. A remodelling of Edmonton Classical Academy was chosen for funding because it's an economical way of creating more student spaces in a charter school that's in high demand, Nicolaides said. "It also comes back to the importance of creating a model that supports parental choice," he said. "This is the responsibility of government — to make sure that there are a variety of educational options and opportunities out there."

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