Richard Froese
Spotlight
A move to relocate E.W. Pratt High School in High Prairie has become a top priority for High Prairie School Division in its three-year capital plan.
At its regular meeting April 19 in High Prairie, trustees approved the capital plan with changes to the top priority upgrading from modernization of the school to relocating, states an HPSD news release dated May 8.
“With the announcement of the new Northern Lake College campus in High Prairie, the change is to request a new high school attached to the newly-announced NLC campus,” says Tammy Henkel, who chairs the board.
“The vision is to have the new college campus and high school located where High Prairie Elementary School is currently situated.”
The elementary school would move into the current Prairie River Junior High School for kindergarten to Grade 3 and the grades 4- 9 students would move into the existing Pratt school.
“This would better utilize the educational spaces of those facilities,” Henkel says.
Under the plan, the elementary school would be demolished and the remaining portables would be returned to the Government of Alberta for re-purposing, she adds.
Funding of $21.6 million for a new consolidated college campus in High Prairie was announced March 27 in High Prairie by Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt.
Planning for the project would take the next two years with plans to construct the campus from 2019-2021.
College leaders are considering three sites, including land at the old High Prairie Health Complex.
Also on the agenda, the board voted to sponsor the Peace Regional Science Fair in the amount of $3,600 to support two High Prairie students who qualified for the Canada-Wide Science Fair set for May 15-20 in Regina.
Rae-Ann Gill and Eve Keay of Prairie River Junior High School advanced when they won best overall project in the regional science fair March 16-17 and Excellence Award for first in the health and life sciences category.
Trustees voted to support the third annual High Prairie Traditional Powwow on May 6 with sponsorship funding of $1,000.
Activities also included student and school participation.
The board discussed the Public School Boards Association of Alberta spring general assembly June 2-4 in Red Deer.
Career coaches of the division will make a presentation on the work they are doing with students.
The PSBA executive committee goal was reviewed with a discussion on public dollars funding private and charter school divisions.