Good News Items
- Board Chair Karen Packard congratulated Trustee Ron Young on receiving a King Charles III's Coronation Medal. The medal was presented by MP Laila Goodridge and is presented to Canadians who have made a significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region or community of Canada.
- Board Chair Karen Packard congratulated Aimee Alger from Cold Lake Junior High on receiving a Cold Lake Women of Influence Award in the Arts and Culture category. Alger was recognized for her work in promoting arts education.
- Trustee Blair Norton and Trustee Debra Lozinski thanked J.A. Williams High School for the opportunity to supervise the school's Mardis Gras dance.
- Trustee Cheryl Edwards highlighted her attendance at school council meetings at Duclos School and H.E. Bourgoin School.
- Trustee Lois Phillips was pleased to recognize January's Staff Shining Star Jocelyne Langevin from Vera M. Welsh Elementary School and commended her on the high level of caring and compassion she brings to her work.
- Nicole Garner, Communications and Public Relations Manager, provided the Board with highlights from schools throughout the division. The full presentation is available on the division's website: Good News - March 12, 2025.
2025-2026 School Calendar
Directors of Learning Jeannine Ellis and Scott Woodward presented the Board with a final draft of the 2025-2026 School Calendar for approval. Ellis noted they had met with Lakeland Catholic to compare proposed calendars and the alignment of breaks. The two calendars align in the start date for staff, Thanksgiving and spring breaks, semester breaks, and year end dismissal.
The NLPS calendar reflects feedback collected from parents and staff in a School Calendar Survey that was completed earlier this year. That survey indicated a preference for starting classes after Labour Day, having a mix of individual no-school days and extended breaks throughout the year, and aligning with neighbouring school jurisdictions when possible.
The approved 2025-2026 calendar includes classes starting for students on September 2 following Labour Day, four-day long weekends in September (Truth and Reconciliation Day), October (Thanksgiving), November (Remembrance Day) and May (Victoria Day). Spring Break will take place March 30-April 6 to align with Easter.
The calendar is available on the NLPS website: 2025-2026 School Calendar
Future Years School Calendars
Directors of Learning Jeannine Ellis and Scott Woodward presented the Board with a draft school calendar for 2026-2027. Ellis noted the 2026-2027 is challenging because Labour Day falls on Sept. 7th. The Board approved the calendar in principle. Administration will be meeting with Lakeland Catholic to share the draft and discuss potential alignment between the divisions' calendars. The calendar will come back to the Board to review next year.
First Nations, Metis and Inuit Accountability Report
Deputy Superintendent Jimmi Lou Irvine reviewed the annual First Nations, Metis and Inuit Accountability Report with the Board. She noted that the number of First Nations, Metis and Inuit students enrolled in NLPS schools has grown significantly over the last five years, and they now make up 38% of the student population.
Irvine highlighted the work the division has been doing with Learning Bird to develop learning kits for staff to enhance their knowledge of local First Nations and Metis Settlements and meet the expectations in the Teaching Quality Standard and Leadership Quality Standard. The learning kits will feature videos of interviews with Elders and local individuals, as well as activities designed to assist staff with learning more.
The Board discussed how funding provided for First Nations, Metis and Inuit students is allocated to schools and some steps they may want to take moving forward to engage with First Nations, Metis and Inuit communities, develop Educational Services agreements, and address the challenges associated with not receiving any federal funding that the division was expecting for the 2024--2025 school year.
Transportation Report
Director of Transportation Matt Richter provided the Board with an update on Student Transportation in NLPS. While there are currently drivers to cover bus routes, there are few spares, creating challenges when bus drivers are not available to complete their routes.
Inflationary costs are expected to impact the cost of operation for the division and its contractors. In particular, Richter expressed concern about the increased cost of purchasing new buses. Cost have increased by 70% over the last couple of years and are expected to increase further dur to the tariffs imposed by the United States. Large buses are not manufactured in Canada and have to be purchased from U.S. companies. Richter noted that smaller buses are available for purchase from Canadian companies, but those have parts that originate in the U.S.
A small increase for transportation was announced as part of the provincial budget, but this will be offset by a decrease in funding due to changes to eligibility. Currently funding is provided to transport K to 6 student who live 1.0 kilometres or more from their designated school. In September that will change to 1.6 kilometres. Richter noted that even if those families pay a fee for busing next year, the division will experience a funding shortfall. Fees would need to be $800-$900 per student to cover the cost of offering the service.
Board Chair Karen Packard noted the Board recently sent a letter to Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides outlining the challenges the division is experiencing in providing transportation services to students, including the classification of Cold Lake as "urban" which changes the funding allocated for those routes.
The Board is also continuing its advocacy work to address flybys by requesting that the provincial government provide funding for stop arm cameras for school buses.
Board Advocacy
The Board's Advocacy Committee is continuing its work on the new advocacy priorities approved by the Board. The division's website has been updated with information related to the two priorities - advancing NLPS school infrastructure priorities, and access to equitable opportunities for rural students. Board Chair Karen Packard noted there has already been some progress made in addressing the Board's capital priorities, including a recent announcement the division would be receiving planning funding for the Cold Lake South Solution identified in its Capital Plan.
Edwin Parr Award
The Board approved the nomination of Stacy Sartain from H.E. Bourgoin School in Bonnyville as its nominee for the Alberta School Boards' Association's Edwin Parr Teacher Award. This award recognizes outstanding first year teachers who demonstrate excellence in the Teaching Quality Standard.
Draft Capital Plan
Secretary-Treasurer Paula Elock presented the Board with a draft update of the Capital Plan, which needs to be submitted to the provincial government at the end of March. The Board decided not to make any changes to the current priorities, as they have not received approval yet for the Vera M. Welsh Elementary School project to move to the construction stage.
A final draft of the Capital Plan will be presented to the Board for approval at its March 26th meeting.
Student Advisory Council
The Board discussed its upcoming meeting with the Student Advisory Council to the Board, which consists of students in grades 5 to 12 from schools throughout the division. Board Chair Karen Packard noted the students had been asked to submit questions that they would like to have included on the meeting agenda. The meeting will take place April 2.