Board Meeting Highlights - April 8, 2025
Additional information can be found in the April 8, 2025, Board Meeting Agenda package: https://www.myprps.com/news/april-8-2025-public-board-meeting-20250407174859
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Ralston School Presentation
Serving 60 students from JK–Grade 9, Ralston School continues to thrive through strong community ties with BATUS, Canadian Armed Forces Suffield and local families. With support from a financial BATUS contribution, the school offers diverse programming grounded in the six core PRPS educational core principles of Connect, Care, Create, Communicate, Contribute, and Challenge.
Highlights from the presentation included a celebration of school-wide events such as the Christmas Banquet, Remembrance Day Service, and the BFBS Big Salute where students collectively ran 282 miles. Creative engagement was evident through initiatives like the “Take One Picture” art project, BFBS student radio broadcasts, and a Remembrance Day shadow play. Academic enrichment is supported by targeted programs such as UFLI, Morpheme Magic, and the Peterson Handwriting method, along with math-focused collaboration with PRPS Learning Coach Cathy Hynes. These efforts have led to noticeable growth in early learning and math achievement. Additionally, students benefit from hands-on learning experiences through 3D boat races, gardening projects, and drone exploration.
Looking ahead, Ralston School aims to expand its early childhood program, launch VEX robotics, and explore a no-cost sports academy, while continuing to celebrate its strong military and local partnerships.
Financial Accountability Report
Prairie Rose Public Schools' financial position shows a positive adjustment midway through the fiscal year. Revenues are forecasted to come in $1.95 million higher than budgeted, largely due to increased Alberta Education funding, enrollment growth, and various grants including Dual Credit, Mental Health, and Digital Assessment. Additional revenue was also seen from increased academy participation and one-time donations. Investment income rose due to higher interest rates, while rental and service income remained steady.
On the expense side, total costs are forecasted to exceed budgeted projections by approximately $1.69 million. This is primarily due to increased staffing costs, both certificated and non-certified, as well as additional expenses linked to additional classroom support and transportation infrastructure. However, these increases are partially offset by savings in international programming and internal transportation efficiencies.
The overall projected deficit has significantly improved, decreasing from ($281,086) to ($25,785). School Generated Funds show a surplus of $177,851, contributing to a total available SGF balance of $1.49 million. Operating reserves are projected to remain stable at $2.46 million, below the maximum allowable threshold of $3.6 million.
Executive Report
- PRPS 2025 school exhibitions of learning are underway
- Kaleidoscope of the Arts for 2025 is scheduled for May 28
- The kickoff meeting for the new Parkside Jr High School has taken place. The planning stage is underway and the hope is to move to the design stage quickly due to the previous work that had been done around the modernization project.
- Funding has been received for PRPS to have a value scoping assessment done at the two schools in Oyen to determine if modernizations or a single K-12 school would be the best option moving forward in the Town of Oyen.
Irvine School Field Trip to Quebec
The board approved the May 2026 field trip request for Irvine School grade 8 and 9 students to tour the historical cities of Montreal, Quebec and Ottawa. During the seven day visit, students will be exposed to Canadian culture by touring the Battle of Plains of Abraham and the Parliament buildings.
Locally Developed Courses
The board approved the following locally developed courses for use by PRPS schools:
- Yoga 15
- Yoga 25
- Yoga 35
- Fire Rescue Services 15
2024-2025 Communications Report
Director of Communications Angela Baron delivered the 2024–2025 PRPS Communications Report, outlining key strategies for connecting with staff, students, families, and the broader community. Highlights included significant growth in school-based social media engagement—reaching nearly 3 million Facebook views since September—and the expanded use of digital tools like Canva for Education, now supporting more than 3,200 users across the division.
The addition of a dedicated Content Writer over the 2024-2025 year led to award-winning work and expanded duties such as grant writing and local media contributions. Prior to the start of the 2025-2026 school year, the division will transition online registration to PowerSchool Enrollment for improved parent accessibility and functionality, with new features like Safe Arrival absence reporting, all in one access to forms and grades, and in-portal classroom messaging.
Other communication-driven projects during the 2024-2025 year included the South Alberta Baseball Academy launch, billboard trailer promotions, new field trip and transportation request forms, and community promotional efforts such as the Redcliff and Oyen area booklets/videos.
An update was also provided on Alberta’s transition from the FOIP Act to the new Protection of Privacy Act (PPA) and Access to Information Act (AIA). These changes will require increased privacy planning, breach notifications, and extended response timelines. Consideration was given to the continued need for staffing and funding to meet communication and compliance demands.