The Clearview Public Schools board of trustees has approved a modular classroom for Gus Wetter School in Castor during their Feb. 2 meeting.
The classroom, which is to be attached to the school, will cost in between $375,000 and $400,000.
Clearview Public Schools is anticipating that as much as half of the cost will be covered by the province, with the remainder of the funding to come from contingency dollars and reserves to make up the rest.
Clearview administration will begin working with a consultant to determine next steps and a timeline for installation.
RCMP meeting
The Clearview board of trustees met with S/Sgt. Bruce Holliday, the recently installed new detachment commander of the Stettler RCMP.
According to a Clearview highlights release, Holliday spoke with trustees about building positive relationships with students in the Stettler area schools as a means to preventing future crime.
Additionally, Holliday informed the Trustees that a School Resource Officer will be arriving to fill the position in Stettler, ensuring Clearview and police can work together in response to emergency situations.
Provincial resources
Clearview trustees have significant concerns surrounding the effectiveness of the province’s recently rolled out e-tutoring hub.
While the resource was rolled out with the intent of supporting schools and student learning while the schools were closed to in-person classes, trustees have voiced their concerns regarding the age appropriateness of some of the content.
Another concern trustees had with the resources were with them being strictly online in nature.
Due to the rural setting of the school district, access to the resources could prove problematic to the more remote areas and the trustees believe that the funds devoted to the resources could better be used to “have staff that can best meet the needs of students.”
The board will be sending a letter to the Minister of Education to outline their concerns and beliefs.
Curriculum implementation
With the possibility that the province’s new Kindergarten to Grade 6 curriculum could be implemented as soon as the fall of 2022, plans are underway within the division for the transition.
The transition implementation plan is being prepared by senior division leaders in consultation with division principals and other, similar, school boards.
Currently, the province is allowing individuals to provide feedback on the draft curriculum, and the Clearview trustees are encouraging all members of the public to do so.
The public engagement can be found at www.alberta.ca/curriculum-have-your-say.aspx.