Education
Kentwood and area residents invited to hear details about new 700 student Catholic Middle School
From Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools
RDCRS connects with residents in the Kentwood neighbourhood about St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School
Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools has been provided funding for the construction of a new middle school in The City of Red Deer. St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School will be located in the neighbourhood of Kentwood. The location of the new school was selected to support current and future student populations in the community.
“The Division’s middle schools in Red Deer are currently operating at over 120 per cent capacity and we expect continued enrolment growth,” said Board Chair, Kim Pasula at Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools.
“Families and young people in our region continue to choose Catholic education. Over the last 10 years, enrolment in our Division has increased by 50 per cent and today well over 10,000 children are attending our schools.”
Work has begun on the design of the school, with preliminary geotechnical testing completed in early 2021 to understand site conditions.
“The new St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School will bring a $25 million infrastructure project to our community. The new school will help to alleviate the overcrowding in our existing schools and create new educational and amenity opportunities for the young people and families that live in the surrounding neighborhoods. We look forward to sharing more about the project and hearing from community members at the upcoming online meeting, the first in a series of planned engagement sessions,” says Pasula.
To keep residents informed on the progress, the Division is holding a community engagement session on Tuesday, April 6 at 5:00 p.m. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this meeting will be held virtually via Zoom. The intent of this engagement session is to provide a forum for community feedback and an opportunity to voice concerns with the overall design of the school. This first engagement session will focus primarily on the site layout.
Dear Kentwood residents,
As you may be aware, Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools has been provided funding for the construction of a new middle school in the City of Red Deer. The school site in your community has been chosen for the location of the new school, St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School. The location of the new school was selected to support current and future student populations in the community
Interested attendees can join the Zoom meeting link (Meeting ID: 950 5484 1129 and Passcode: i2RDy0).
St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School features:
● The school will be a two-storey design to accommodate 700 middle school students.
● The school is planned to follow a traditional school year and will operate as a closed
campus.
● The school site will provide parking lots to staff and visitors, with a potential student
drop-off lane within the visitor parking lot.
● The current playground and skating rink will be retained on-site, and the retention pond
will not be altered.
● Additional playground space is intended to be installed, including a proposed basketball
pad.
● Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools will provide an opportunity for user groups to rent the
facility after-hours and on weekends.
● Construction is expected to start late fall of 2021, with the school opening September
2023.
For more information, please visit https://www.stlorenzoschool.ca/.
Red Deer
St. Joseph High School Celebrates Brody Andrie’s National Boxing Championship Victory
News release from Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools
St. Joseph High School (SJHS) is thrilled to announce that Grade 12 student Brody Andrie has been crowned the National Champion in the 57 KG youth division at the prestigious Canada Cup & Junior Youth Canadian Championships. The championships were held at the Genesis Centre in Calgary from March 20 to March 24, 2024.
Brody, a dedicated member of Team Alberta and a fierce competitor from the Shadow Box Boxing Club in Lacombe, has achieved a remarkable milestone by winning gold in his division. This victory not only highlights his outstanding skills and dedication to the sport of boxing but also marks him as the first central Alberta boxer to be crowned a national champion in decades.
Reflecting on his victory, Brody shared, “This win is not just for me but for everyone who has supported me along the way. I’m proud to bring this championship back to Lacombe and hope to inspire other young athletes in our community.”
SJHS Principal, Gary Gylander, expressed his admiration for Brody’s achievement, stating, “Brody’s success is a testament to his hard work, perseverance, and the support of his coaches and community. We are incredibly proud of him and look forward to seeing what the future holds for this outstanding young athlete.”
This is a historic moment for both Brody and central Alberta, shining a spotlight on the talent and potential within our community.
Education
Higher spending on K-12 education does not result in better student outcomes
From the Fraser Institute
By Derek J. Allison
Higher levels of per-student spending do not achieve higher student scores on standardized tests, either internationally or among the provinces, finds a new report published today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Just spending more on K-12 education does not lead to better student outcomes,” said Derek J. Allison, Fraser Institute senior fellow and author of School Spending and Performance in Canada and Other High-Income Countries.
The study compares provincial per-student spending on K-12 education in 2018 (the last year of comparable data) to other high-income countries in the OECD and to performance on the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).
It finds that higher per-student spending levels are not associated with stronger academic achievement. In fact, in 2018, 10 countries—or one third—of the high income OECD countries included in the analysis spent more per student than Canada but achieved significantly lower PISA scores.
Similarly, among the provinces, Saskatchewan was the highest per-student spender among the provinces but ranked 8th out of 10 on PISA scores. Manitoba was the second-highest per-student spender and recorded the lowest PISA scores nationwide. Conversely, British Columbia was the lowest spender per student in Canada and achieved the fourth-highest PISA scores.
“The evidence is clear—simply spending more on established K-12 schools without finding new and better ways to help kids learn will not improve student outcomes,” Allison said.
Provincial per-student spending (2018) compared to core PISA score
Province Spending Core PISA score
Saskatchewan Highest spender 8th
Manitoba 2nd Lowest PISA score
Alberta 3rd Highest PISA score
Nova Scotia 4th 5th
Ontario 5th 3rd
New Brunswick 6th 9th
Quebec 7th 2nd
P.E.I. 8th 7th
Newfoundland and Labrador 9th 6th
British Columbia Lowest spender 4th
-
Economy2 days ago
Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland irks Canadian senators with request to pass budget bill sight unseen
-
Banks2 days ago
Canada is preparing to launch ‘open banking.’ Here’s what that means
-
Taxpayers2 days ago
Police admit Canadian bribery scandal was nixed without talking to Trudeau, reviewing records
-
Business1 day ago
Balanced budget within reach—if Ottawa restrains spending
-
Canadian Energy Centre1 day ago
B.C. First Nation buying ‘ready-to-go’ natural gas pipeline to supply LNG project
-
Also Interesting1 day ago
Online Betting Trends of 2024
-
Alberta1 day ago
Calgary judge rules against father opposing euthanasia of autistic non-terminally ill daughter
-
COVID-191 day ago
WHO urges countries to sign globalist pandemic treaty by May: ‘A new threat will emerge’