Nine school boards vying for $3000 prize

Nine school boards are in the running for the $3000 ASBA Premier's Award for School Board Innovation and Excellence. The award celebrates the unique role school boards play in launching projects which improve student learning. This is the 10th year that the award, sponsored by Xerox Canada, will be presented at the association's annual fall meeting.

In-School Settlement Program (ISSP)

Calgary Board of Education
The Calgary Board of Education’s In-School Settlement Program (ISSP) helps thousands of students whose families have recently immigrated to Canada integrate into the Canadian school system. ISSP works with immigrant families to address basic needs and answer questions and provide information about settlement issues.  In-school settlement workers, located in two reception centers (in CBE and the Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District) and in individual schools, connect families with services and provide guidance about child care, housing, health care, immigration and legal issues, finances, transportation, recreational and cultural programs, employment and job preparation for adults and adult English as a Second Language. ISSP is a partnership between CBE and Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District, operating under the umbrella of the Calgary Bridge Foundation for Youth, and is funded by Canada Citizenship and Immigration with a grant of $506,000 in 2007-2008 and $1.7 million in 2009-2010.

Bishop McNally High School – Centre of Excellence in Culinary Arts

Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1
Bishop McNally High School’s Centre of Excellence in Culinary Arts gives students opportunities to explore a career, earn credits and complete their First Year Apprenticeship Technical training while in high school as well as providing a seamless link to SAIT’s Culinary Arts Programs. Calgary Catholic also wanted to promote and provide healthy food choices to students and staff.  It cost $190,000 to build the facility which features commercial grade kitchen equipment.  Planning started in June 2008 and March 2009 saw the grand opening of the “Wolves Den”.  Students prepare the menu under the supervision of professional chefs. Recently Alberta Education awarded a catering contract to Bishop McNalley High School for the WorldSkills Competition in Calgary, giving students the opportunity to prepare meals for Canadian Ministers of Education and other dignitaries. In its first year, the program welcomed 250 students. This year’s enrolment exceeds 300 participants – about one third of the school population.

Community Learning Campus

Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73
Discussions that resulted in the creation of the Community Learning Campus (CLC), began after the province announced a $6.7 million modernization for Olds Junior Senior High School. The community felt the site, along a major highway, was no longer acceptable in terms of safety and program functionality.  Knowing funding was limited, and that Alberta Education did not support the purchase of land, Chinook’s Edge School Division started talks with Olds College. Together they created a joint venture to build the facilities that now make up the CLC on the college campus. Facilities include a Core High School, Health and Wellness Centre, Fine Arts & Multi-Media Centre and the Bell-e Learning Centre (Bell has named the CLC as one of its national innovation centres, and provides high-end technologies to support student learning). Chinook’s Edge also built a bus maintenance facility on the CLC grounds. The CLC’s goal is to have students transition to post-secondary studies in their senior years of high school.  It also uses high-end technologies to reach small and distant communities. Five years in planning and construction, it cost $68 million to build. Provincial ministries provided $55 million and the rest of the money came from partnerships with Alberta’s Rural Development Fund, the Olds College Students’ Association, corporate contributions, Olds College fund development and the sale of Chinook’s Edge land.

The Palisades Stewardship Education Centre in Jasper National Park

Grande Yellowhead Public School Division No. 77
In 2006, Parks Canada established its first partnership with a school division -- Grande Yellowhead Public School Division to create the Palisades Stewardship Education Centre in Jasper National Park. Housed in a facility formerly used by park wardens for research and training, the Palisades offers week-long residencies to Grande Yellowhead students and students from across the nation. Students participate in classroom sessions, public safety training, career preparation, applied science courses, activities, service learning, games and mountain recreation. The program also focuses on the values, traditions and attitudes of aboriginal peoples. Three annual student conferences are held at the Palisades. University students serve internships there as part of their undergraduate programs in education or recreation. This enriches their learning and that of the students attending.  Palisades staff include Parks Canada employees, environmental educators, eco-tourism operators, accredited outdoor guides, aboriginal leaders, cultural resources experts, leaders in science research and development, university student interns and researchers. Grande Yellowhead provides funding for the program, two teachers, expertise in curriculum alignment, CTS course development, aboriginal awareness, video conferencing, and educational technology supports.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Initiative

Greater St. Albert Catholic Regional Division No.29
Greater St. Albert Catholic Regional Division No.29 is entering the third year of its Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Initiative, which emphasizes an inclusive learning culture in all classrooms. The division believes that each student should have multiple ways to access information, show what they have learned, and be engaged in learning. Establishing technology supports to make learning accessible to all students regardless of learning style or ability is a division planning priority.  The division installed wireless networks in all schools and put SmartBoards in all classrooms. In the last three years the use of student-owned laptops in the classroom has doubled. The division assigned a half time Diversity Educational Assistant to support families using their own laptops.   

The division uses Read-and Write Gold, text-to-speech software, Co:Writer to help students with writing challenges, Audacity to record assignments for downloading to an iPod and Boardmaker for students who need visual support. 

Family Connections – Mental Health Capacity Building Project

Horizon School Division No. 67
The Family Connections – Mental Health Capacity Building Project addressed the needs of Horizon School Division students and families at risk of developing mental health issues. Recognizing that some parents were unaware of available services; were afraid of reaching out or could not speak English, the division launched Family Connections to bridge that gap - improving students and family members’ mental and physical health and well-being, by connecting families with needed. A four-person team works in three division schools. Representatives of the local police, Alberta Health Services, the Barens-Eureka Warner Parent Link Center, Adult Learning, Alberta Education and the Horizon School Division serve on the board which guides the team’s work. Recent Family Connections projects include: “Cook up a story”; the Healthy Habits Challenge; the Home Alone program; Parenting NOW workshops; Girls Groups; Roots of Empathy; Bully-Free Me! and Be Kind to Yourself kits. The program also offers breakfast and healthy snacks at two schools. Referrals to the program jumped from 27 in year one, to 48 in year two.  By mid-September 2009, year three of the program, there had been 17 referrals to Family Connections.

Experiential Education Programs: REALS, C-School, Mobile CTS Lab

Northern Lights School Division
Northern Lights School Division is operating three programs, each with an emphasis on experiential learning which has a hands-on focus, getting students out of the classroom into the community and outdoors. The purpose is to motivate students, improve student achievement and attendance and help students make connections between learning and real-life jobs. 

Real8 – Experiential Education AISI project
The Real8 project began because some students were not motivated and struggling with attendance, and therefore academically underachieving. As an Alberta Initiative for School Improvement project, Real8 sees students participate in wall-climbing, snowshoeing, canoeing, ice-fishing, mountain bike riding and camping. In the future, the division wants to build a rope challenge course to open possibilities for team building.

C-School
C-School is based on the Open Minds school model developed in Calgary in 1993. Learning takes place in the Bonnyville and District Centennial Centre.  

Mobile CTS lab: students in transition, trades in motion
The Mobile CTS lab rotates through the division giving students hands-on training and promoting career awareness in the trades. Launched in the fall of 2009, the facility received $7 million in funding, over ten years, from the division, the Alberta government, business and industry. Rural students in grades seven, eight and nine have the opportunities to earn credits towards apprenticeship. The mobile lab reaches 400 students, in grades seven, eight and nine each school year.

A Comprehensive Approach to School Health and Wellness

Red Deer Public Schools
Active living for students is a core priority for the Red Deer Public Schools Board of Trustees.  Initiatives underway include:

Quality Daily Physical Activity
Initiated before daily physical activity was mandated in Alberta, Red Deer Public is recognized for having among the highest levels of participation in Canada. 

Nutrition Policy
The board established a nutrition policy, one of the first of its kind in the province, which ensures students have access to nutritious and healthy food while in school.

Substance Abuse Action Plan
The plan includes an intervention program with supports in place for students with substance abuse issues, along with proactive discipline and reduced expulsions. It utilizes a partnership formed with the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission.  

Healthy Active Living... Health Active Learning
The foundation for Red Deer Public Schools provides more than $40,000 in funding to a wide range of school projects that enhance and enrich student learning related to healthy, active initiatives in schools.

Character development
Red Deer Public is involved in a diverse range of programs including Roots of Empathy, Safe and Caring Schools Initiatives, Effective Behaviour Supports, Leadership Development and Community Service.

Comprehensive School Health
The district works closely with this Alberta Health Services initiative which provides resources and expertise to promote good health. 

Locally developed courses
Responding to student interest, high schools have developed courses that emphasize active living such as Sports Performance, Dance and Martial Arts.

Technology Mediated Learning – "Building I.T. Together"

St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Schools
St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Schools began the "Building Integrated Technology (I.T.) Together" program in 2008, with a goal of improving student engagement and high school completion rates. The division identified issues related to small schools located in rural Alberta, including the challenge of finding and keeping staff competent in CTS strands and having the equipment to give students hands-on practice. Through video conferencing students interact with outside experts. Using video cameras, laptop computers, web-based software and interactive white boards in high school classrooms, students and teachers connect with local experts on a real-time basis and enjoy more authentic learning experiences. Teachers emphasize inquiry based learning, effective communication, and creative thinking and engagement. The division also uses videoconferencing to connect with staff members in outlying areas eliminating the need for travel. By 2010, the division hopes 80 per cent of students will report their engagement has increased, because where there is increased engagement, the division believes high school completion rates will follow.