Community
ATA hands out multiple awards to students in Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools
ATA Local #80 (Red Deer Catholic)
As we wrap up the first full week back to school, and look ahead to celebrating World Teacher Day on Friday October 5, the Alberta Teachers Association (ATA) Local #80 for Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools would like to congratulate and recognize a number of 2017-2018 student award winners from across our entire school division.
Across our school division, from Red Deer, to Innisfail, to Olds, to Rocky Mountain House, to Sylvan Lake, to Blackfalds, almost 200 of our students in received awards, prizes and scholarships sponsored by our teaching staff, valued at a total of $10,200. Awards and prizes were determined at the school level, while the 3 scholarships awarded annually to students entering post-secondary education were determined by a panel of teacher volunteers.
ATA Local #80 (Red Deer Catholic) Student Award Winners 2017-2018
ATA Local 80 Child of a Member Scholarship:
This award is given to a well-rounded child of a current ATA member who is entering a post-secondary program of studies in the Fall of the upcoming school year. WINNER: Adam Junck
Leo Richer Education Student Scholarship:
This award is given to a student graduating from Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools who is entering a Bachelor of Education post-secondary program in the Fall of the upcoming school year. The award is named for Leo Richer, a longtime French Immersion teacher with Red Deer Catholic, who also served his colleagues for a number of years as our ATA Local President, and as an elected table officer with the ATA as the District Representative for Central-South Alberta. WINNER: Julie Beally
Margaretrose Willms Mature Student Scholarship:
This award is given to a child of a current ATA member who is returning to school at the post-secondary level after taking some time away from their studies. The award is named after Margaretrose Willms, a longtime teacher and principal with Red Deer Catholic, who also served as an ATA school representative for many years, as well as being very involved with the practicum field experience programs for student teachers. WINNER: Sydnie Ratzlaff
Father Henri Voisin:
As a staff we have decided that we will honor a student from each classroom in the following four categories: Noreen Fischer Christian Leadership, Fine Arts, Sportsmanship, and Academic Achievement.
Noreen Fischer Christian Leadership Award
Noreen Fischer was a former teacher in our school division. She also loved the St. Francis Peace Prayer and so when she passed away her family set up an award to honor peacemakers in our elementary schools. We have continued this practice.
This award honors those students who are peacemakers. That is, those students who go out of their way to make their classmates feel welcomed and loved. They are the students who reach out when a classmate is hurt or sad and share joy with classmates who are happy. These students make a difference in the lives of those around them.
Fine Arts Award
The Fine Arts Award recognizes those students who demonstrate exceptional achievement in one or more of the performing and visual arts, including subjects pertaining to music, art, and drama.
Sportsmanship Award
Whether you’re into sports or not, you’ve seen it happen. You’ve probably even experienced it: Football players shaking hands after four quarters of knocking each other around. Tennis players leaping over the net to shake hands with their opponents after a hard-fought match. Soccer players exchanging jerseys after an intense 90 minutes. Even boxers touching gloves at the beginning of each round, then hugging after beating each other to a pulp for 12 rounds. Competitors in every event, from spelling bees to hockey games, can be seen behaving this way. What’s going on?
It’s all part of sportsmanship, a great tradition in sports and competition that means playing clean and handling both victory and defeat with grace, style, and dignity. Father Henri Voisin has many students who do just that every single day.
These students play fair, follow the rules of the game, respect the judgment of referees and
treat opponents with respect.
Academic Achievement
Our school and school division value academic excellence. At Father Voisin, we want all students to strive to be the best possible readers, writers, Mathematicians and scientists. The Academic Excellence award is given to the students who have been devoted to their personal academic achievement.
Father Henry Voison | Noreen Fischer | Fine Arts | Sportsmanship | Academic | Sacraments | Poetry |
Pre-K AM | Michael Skinner | Caelyn Wazny | Mia Arcand | Raymond Lam | ||
Pre-K PM | Paige Poffenroth | Stacey Manabat | Colby Waldner | Paige Clark | ||
K-R | Bella Visscher | Allison Sun | Tessa Ofstie | Aaron Howorko | ||
K- PTTh | Brooklyn Music | Ava Carle | Chase Pochylko | Iyla Davies | ||
K- PWF | Oliver Hale | Pierce Lynch | Tyler Barrow | Mila Kloberdanz | ||
1C | Jaxon Rehman | Kyleigh Amas | Finn Lynch | Paisley Adams | ||
1DC | Annyka Gonzalez | Austin LaFrance | Joshua Garreffa | Isla Marsh | Aaron Santiago | |
1H | Sean Skinner | Mya Coupland | Grayson Pearson | Rachel Reschny | Annabel | |
2B | Rianne Watson | Olivia McFadden | Jaxen Ross | Caelan Pimentel | Grade 2: Sebastian Celso Vanya Ferguson, John Carl Jacob, Rohann Lacostales, Morgan Pikkert, Allie Larouche, Mackenzie Music, Caelan Pimentel, Riley Rabena, Reese Rehman, Clarissa Roderson, Riley Rosario, Pierre Ylagan, Emma Fillier, Nairn Patterson, Sarah Towers, Paul Gonzalez | John Carl |
2R | Kinley Luca | Cena Moore | Carter Wescott | Mackenzie Music | Kinley | |
2S | Taya Stehr | Rohann Lacostales | Alexander Howorko | Dakota Carroll | Dakota Carroll | |
3C | Serin Girard | Katie Johnson | Arthur Becegato | Emmet McGuigan | ||
3H | Michelle Owolagba | DaErika Bahadur | Matthew Morrow | Autumn Carroll | Branek Ferguson | |
3S | Kabir Raj | Tanya Adolfo | Tayten Dube | Seth Haase | ||
4A | Ella Dorigatti | Emma VanHyfte | Arnold James Del Mundo | Jillian Marquart | Denix Alvarez & Megan Stehr | |
4M | Taylor Funnell | Samantha Barrow | Grady Pasman | Cohen Gulak | ||
5AJ | Addi McMahon | Katrina Wong | Julian Galenza | Andrea Abat | ||
5B | Louise Ante | Alexa Ross | Jaxon Winchester | Lola Pui |
Holy Family School
5M: Raizelyn Perez/ Jayden Paynor-Limbona
5WQ: Kaitlyn Louks/ Jacob Campbell
5S: Ashley Korenchuk/Nathan Ignacio
Noreen Fischer Award: Bryce Hanusich
CAMILLE J LEROUGE:
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Grade 5 Ryan Henrion, Richard Malcolm, Natalie Julien
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Grade 6 Amy Bui
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Grade 7 Grace Webster
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Grade 8 HAnnah Ly
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Grade 9 Hailey Anderson
St Patrick’s Community School:
Highest academic average:
Grade 6 | Erin de Leon |
Grade 7 | Nicole Parafina |
Grade 8 | Elisse Canaynay |
Grade 9 | Lucia Baldanado |
St. Teresa de Avila:
Highest Academic: Iris Kang & Maya Edzerza
Sportsmanship: Presley Zinger, Lean Sevilla, Ashlyn Makarenko, David Friesen
Citizenship: Somonta Num, Kane Delaney, Kacey Sacolles, Colton Bowes
Dedication: Javier Hernandez & Neveah Zillinsky
St Gabriel Online Schoool: Alternative Education Award
– Enrolled in an alternative route
– Enrolled only with St. Gabriel’s (Grade 8 – 12)
– Is registered in our online or outreach school
– Demonstrates:
– Responsibility
– Self motivation
– Academic growth
– Work ethic
– Successfully passing all courses
Gabriel Royko
Levi Castle
St Francis of Assisi:
A common fund is established that is put towards the purchase of plaques honouring top students in core subjects for each grade as well as Christian Spirit and Physical Education.
Maryview:
Ryan Clark
Olivia Jacobs
Archer Jenkins
Haley LaGrange
Sarah Properzi
Alexandria Ragasa
Holy Trinity (Olds):
KA | Braxton Gordash |
KB | Walter Giugovaz |
1A | Bryson Bieber |
1B | Kensi Miller |
2A | Zaijan Eclavea |
2B | Palin Lentz |
3A | Jon Sproule |
3B | Max Huhn |
4A | Braden Scott |
4B | Austin Fletcher |
5A | Hannah Zurkan |
6A | Zoe Ginter |
7A | Nicole Zumbuehl |
8A | Kimberley Canilang |
Ecole Our Lady of the Rosary (Sylvan Lake):
Our students are picked to receive the Christian Leadership Award.?
Criteria for the award:
A student who earns the Christian Leadership award demonstrates many or all of the following Christ-like qualities:
¨ Helping others
¨ Including others
¨ Showing kindness/empathy to others
¨ Showing compassion and respect
¨ Modeling the golden rule “Treating others as you would like to be treated”
This year’s winners are:
Chloe Lima |
Leightan Olson |
Kayn Bowman |
Dominic Chubala |
Molly Tiner |
Tyler Gajardo |
Roen Martel |
Gabriel Rovero |
Bryn Golden |
Jillian Brode |
Benjamin Veldman |
Izabella Olsen |
Paislee Zimmer |
Archer Becker |
Jackson Corkum |
Jace Lapp |
Alexis Scheffelmaier |
Nikita Birkbeck |
Annika Lewis |
Annika Hoffos |
Ecole Mother Teresa School (Sylvan Lake):
Highest academic average:
Grade 5: William Norris
Grade 6: Kennedy Moffatt
Grade 7: Lauren Olson / Alyssa Olson
Grade 8: Kalli Matthew
Grade 9: Denaisha Kraft / Jessica Kraft
Community
SPARC Red Deer – Caring Adult Nominations open now!
Red Deer community let’s give a round of applause to the incredible adults shaping the future of our kids. Whether they’re a coach, neighbour, teacher, mentor, instructor, or someone special, we want to know about them!
Tell us the inspiring story of how your nominee is helping kids grow up great. We will honour the first 100 local nominees for their outstanding contributions to youth development. It’s time to highlight those who consistently go above and beyond!
To nominate, visit Events (sparcreddeer.ca)
Addictions
‘Harm Reduction’ is killing B.C.’s addicts. There’s got to be a better way
From the Frontier Centre for Public Policy
B.C. recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. The resulting explosion of addicts using drugs in public spaces, including parks and playgrounds, recently led the province’s NDP government to attempt to backtrack on this policy
Fuelled by the deadly manufactured opioid fentanyl, Canada’s national drug overdose rate stood at 19.3 people per 100,000 in 2022, a shockingly high number when compared to the European Union’s rate of just 1.8. But national statistics hide considerable geographic variation. British Columbia and Alberta together account for only a quarter of Canada’s population yet nearly half of all opioid deaths. B.C.’s 2022 death rate of 45.2/100,000 is more than double the national average, with Alberta close behind at 33.3/100,00.
In response to the drug crisis, Canada’s two western-most provinces have taken markedly divergent approaches, and in doing so have created a natural experiment with national implications.
B.C. has emphasized harm reduction, which seeks to eliminate the damaging effects of illicit drugs without actually removing them from the equation. The strategy focuses on creating access to clean drugs and includes such measures as “safe” injection sites, needle exchange programs, crack-pipe giveaways and even drug-dispensing vending machines. The approach goes so far as to distribute drugs like heroin and cocaine free of charge in the hope addicts will no longer be tempted by potentially tainted street drugs and may eventually seek help.
But safe-supply policies create many unexpected consequences. A National Post investigation found, for example, that government-supplied hydromorphone pills handed out to addicts in Vancouver are often re-sold on the street to other addicts. The sellers then use the money to purchase a street drug that provides a better high — namely, fentanyl.
Doubling down on safe supply, B.C. recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. The resulting explosion of addicts using drugs in public spaces, including parks and playgrounds, recently led the province’s NDP government to attempt to backtrack on this policy — though for now that effort has been stymied by the courts.
According to Vancouver city councillor Brian Montague, “The stats tell us that harm reduction isn’t working.” In an interview, he calls decriminalization “a disaster” and proposes a policy shift that recognizes the connection between mental illness and addiction. The province, he says, needs “massive numbers of beds in treatment facilities that deal with both addictions and long-term mental health problems (plus) access to free counselling and housing.”
In fact, Montague’s wish is coming true — one province east, in Alberta. Since the United Conservative Party was elected in 2019, Alberta has been transforming its drug addiction policy away from harm reduction and towards publicly-funded treatment and recovery efforts.
Instead of offering safe-injection sites and free drugs, Alberta is building a network of 10 therapeutic communities across the province where patients can stay for up to a year, receiving therapy and medical treatment and developing skills that will enable them to build a life outside the drug culture. All for free. The province’s first two new recovery centres opened last year in Lethbridge and Red Deer. There are currently over 29,000 addiction treatment spaces in the province.
This treatment-based strategy is in large part the work of Marshall Smith, current chief of staff to Alberta’s premier and a former addict himself, whose life story is a testament to the importance of treatment and recovery.
The sharply contrasting policies of B.C. and Alberta allow a comparison of what works and what doesn’t. A first, tentative report card on this natural experiment was produced last year in a study from Stanford University’s network on addiction policy (SNAP). Noting “a lack of policy innovation in B.C.,” where harm reduction has become the dominant policy approach, the report argues that in fact “Alberta is currently experiencing a reduction in key addiction-related harms.” But it concludes that “Canada overall, and B.C. in particular, is not yet showing the progress that the public and those impacted by drug addiction deserve.”
The report is admittedly an early analysis of these two contrasting approaches. Most of Alberta’s recovery homes are still under construction, and B.C.’s decriminalization policy is only a year old. And since the report was published, opioid death rates have inched higher in both provinces.
Still, the early returns do seem to favour Alberta’s approach. That should be regarded as good news. Society certainly has an obligation to try to help drug users. But that duty must involve more than offering addicts free drugs. Addicted people need treatment so they can kick their potentially deadly habit and go on to live healthy, meaningful lives. Dignity comes from a life of purpose and self-control, not a government-funded fix.
Susan Martinuk is a senior fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and author of the 2021 book Patients at Risk: Exposing Canada’s Health Care Crisis. A longer version of this article recently appeared at C2CJournal.ca.
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