Tom Henihan
Express Staff
@SmokyRiverExprs
The Holy Family Catholic Regional Division (HFCRD) Board of Trustees has approved a bus service from McLennan to St. Andrew’s School in High Prairie beginning in September for the 2017/2018 school year.
In response to requests from approximately 8 families in the McLennan area who wish to provide their children with a Catholic education, the Trustees recognized the need to offer the service for Grades 7 to 12 students.
Ecole Providence Catholic School in McLennan provides education from ECS to Grade 6. St. Andrew’s in High Prairie is the nearest option for students to continue their education to Grade 12 in a Catholic school.
“The children of Catholic families in McLennan can now receive a Catholic education from Kindergarten to grade 12, and we feel that is important,” says Providence School Principal, Krista Veitch. “And in keeping with HFCRD mandate, there are no fees charged for taking the bus to St. Andrew’s.”
The direct school bus service will have 3 designated stops within McLennan after which it will make the 35 minute commute directly to St. Andrew’s School.
As it is necessary for all McLennan Grade 7 to 12 students to commute by bus the new direct school bus service makes St. Andrew’s a viable option.
Considering that the McLennan to St. Andrew’s bus is direct, the time a student will spend travelling is comparable to the time a student spends on the McLennan to Donnelly school bus, due to the number of detours and stops that bus makes between destinations.
The Trustees have been keen to offer this service for a number of years and are pleased to see that the necessary community support is now there to implement this initiative.
In a statement on the Division’s website, Board Chair, Kelly Whalen said, “The Board is very excited to provide this bussing service for the families of McLennan. Providing bussing will make Catholic education once again accessible to grades 7 to 12 students in the area.”
St. Andrew’s Catholic School has approximately 600 students and its sixty staff members are committed to promoting Christian values through the educational process.
The school offers the full spectrum of subjects; academics, fine arts, technology, CTS and physical education.
For more information or for families wishing to register their child call 1-800-285-8712.