Clearview School Division, for the second successive year, has been given a report card with straight A’s with several awards by Alberta Education.
One of seven school divisions in central Alberta, Clearview received a Minister’s Education Leadership Recognition Award for very high achievement in seven categories in a special ceremony on Nov. 30 in Westaskiwin, presented by Education Minister Dave Hancock.
Clearview attained top marks for categories of:
• Safe and caring atmosphere.
• Education quality.
• Drop-out rate.
• Transition rate over six years.
• Citizenship.
• Parental involvement.
• School improvement.
“We are very pleased with this recognition of the hard work done by everyone involved with Clearview School Division including students, staff, parents and communities,” said Ken Checkel, who chairs the board.
“The MELRA awards are yet another indicator of the excellent work and learning opportunities provided to students across our division.”
“Success is the result of having clear, measurable objectives and great leadership,” said Hancock.
“Nowhere is that more apparent than with Alberta’s school board trustees and superintendents.”
The Minister’s Leadership Awards recognize the hard work and commitment of board trustees and superintendents who help improve and achieve high standards in student learning at the jurisdiction level.
School divisions are eligible to receive Minister’s Education Leadership Recognition Awards (MELRA) if their annual results demonstrate significant improvement and/or very high achievement in any of the prescribed categories.
Red Deer Catholic Regional Division was the only division to receive more awards, with seven very high achievement and five significant improvement.
The success of the Clearview division was also apparent in a separate assessment report.
The provincial annual education results report (AERR) confirmed that students in Clearview School Division have been posting top marks.
“The AERR is like a big “report card” for the school division, and we have great grades,” board chair Ken Checkel said after the report was presented to the Clearview division board by Superintendent John Bailey at its regular meeting Nov. 19.
“The board salutes the excellent work of our staff and students and the great support of our parents and communities,” said Checkel.
“With everyone working hard and pulling together, we are able to consistently perform at a high level.”
Some highlights in the AERR:
• Exam results from provincial achievement tests (in grades 3, 6 and 9) and diploma exams (Grade 12) – Clearview is above the provincial averages in most subjects at the acceptable standard level.
• Results from opinion surveys conducted by the province on questions regarding school safety, program quality, availability of services, etc. – Clearview is consistently above the provincial averages.
• High school completion rates – Clearview is significantly above the provincial average.
• Drop-out rate – Clearview has a significantly lower rate than the provincial average.
The AERR can be found on the Clearview website at www.clearview.ab.ca/documents or by phoning the Clearview office at 403-742-3331.
Audited Financial Statement (AFS)
Passing grades were also given to the audited financial statement for the year ending Aug. 31, 2009, presented by Peggy Weinzierl of Gitzel Krejci Dand Peterson and Clearview secretary-treasurer Peggy Keith.
“Again the board credits the great work of our staff,” said Checkel.
“Our staff continue to be very responsible in managing financial resources across Clearview.
Clearview recorded total revenues of $29.1 million, total expenses of $28.6 million, and a net surplus of $540,265 with total reserves of $5.44 million.
The AFS can be found on the Clearview website at www.clearview.ab.ca/documents or by phoning the Clearview office.