1. Elk Island Public Schools 2014-2015
Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Review
New K-9 School
Elk Island Public Schools

2. What is a boundary review?
A boundary review is a process by which the division reviews school boundaries to determine the best possible use of facilities and programming.
This review has been identified as a priority by the Board of Trustees in preparation for the new K-9 school being built in Fort Saskatchewan.

3. Purpose of the boundary review
To create a school boundary for the new K-9 school opening in Fort Saskatchewan.
To determine the best possible use of facilities and programming.
To ensure facilities and resources are used efficiently for the maximum benefit of students.
To create transportation efficiencies (number of buses, bus capacity, and ride times) where possible.
Introductions:

4. Schools Potentially Impacted
Fort Saskatchewan Elementary (K-6)
James Mowat Elementary (K-6)
Win Ferguson Elementary (K-6)
Rudolph Hennig Junior High (7-9)

5. Schools Not Impacted in the Boundary Review
École Parc Élémentaire (K-6)
Fort Saskatchewan Christian (K-9)
Fort Saskatchewan High (10-12)
Next Step Senior High – Fort Saskatchewan (10-12)
Surrounding schools in Strathcona County or Lamont County
French Immersion boundaries are not part of this review. Alternative Christian and Outreach programs (FSC and FSO) do not have boundaries.
The boundary lines of Bruderheim School, École Élémentaire Ardrossan Elementary, and Ardrossan Junior Senior High will NOT change as a result of this review.

6. Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Map – Current Elementary Schools (urban area)
Red dotted line circle indicates location of the new K-9 school

7. Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Map – Current Elementary Schools (rural area)
Red star indicates location of the new K-9 school
A portion of the rural area around Ft Sask is also designated to attend a Ft Sask school (currently FSE and RHJ). These boundary areas may also change; however the following elementary boundary lines will not change. The line between:
FSE/BRU
FSE/AEL

8. Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Map – Current Junior High Schools (urban area)
Red dotted line circle indicates location of the new K-9 school
Currently, all junior high students in Fort Saskatchewan area designated to the same school – Rudolph Hennig

9. Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Map – Current Junior High Schools (rural area)
Red star indicates location of the new K-9 school
Again, a portion of the rural area around Ft Sask is also designated to attend a Ft Sask school (currently FSE and RHJ). These boundary areas may also change; however the following junior high boundary lines will not change. The lines between:
RHJ/LHS
RHJ/AJS

10. Fort Saskatchewan Boundary Map – Current Senior High Schools
Red dotted line circle indicates location of the new K-9 school
Currently, all senior high students in Fort Saskatchewan area designated to the same school – Fort High. This boundary line will NOT change as the new school is only K-9

11. Working Assumptions
Recommendations that are brought to the Board will not increase the division’s operating costs.
Board approved recommendations resulting from this project will be implemented once the new school opens – scheduled for September 2016.
EIPS encourages families to enroll their children at their designated school as all schools in the division provide quality educational programming.
Through the boundary exemption process, the division recognizes some individual student needs may be best addressed at a non-designated school.

12. Working Assumptions (con’t)
Any boundary changes will:
Not cause schools to exceed their optimal enrolment limits (OEL) nor be impacted by significant declines in enrolment.
Where possible, direct busing of students will be favoured.

13. In Scope What will change: Attendance boundaries What might change:
Busing routes
School start and finish times
Location of EIPS System Special Education Programs
We know elementary and junior high boundaries WILL change as we need to draw a new boundary for the new K-9 school.
Other things that MIGHT change could be:
Bus routes
School start and finish times
The locations of EIPS System Special Education Programs
WFG currently offers: PALS, LINKS,
RHJ currently offers: LINKS
Notes about Special Ed programs
We do not want to change our System Special Education programs any more than we have to. Depending on where it is feasible and realistic to redraw boundary lines and where students of various ages/grades live in and around Fort Saskatchewan, it may make sense to move the location of one or more of these programs to even out the utilization of all Fort Saskatchewan schools as much as possible.
If one or more new boundary map options brought forward for consideration involves moving a System Special Education program, these families will be a key stakeholder group involved in the consultation.

14. Out of Scope What will not change:
Location of the EIPS French Immersion program (École Parc Élémentaire).
Location of Alternative Christian and Next Step Outreach programs.
No Fort Saskatchewan schools will be closed as a result of this boundary review.

15. How are we going to do this important work?
Sharing information and gathering feedback through school council meetings and an online survey (Phase 1 of public consultation).
Presenting boundary map options at Open Houses to gather public feedback through a paper and online survey (Phase 2 of public consultation).
Bringing forward a recommendation to the Board for their consideration.

16. Who will be making the decisions?
The Board of Trustees is responsible for making the final decision on the recommendations.
The Board will be observing the consultation process and will be updated frequently.
The Board will be using a sustainable decision- making model.

17. Sustainable Decision-Making Model
A sustainable “decision making” process will be centered upon 4 key elements for making the best decisions for student learning. Sustainable decisions are:
Economically viable
Technically feasible
Environmentally compatible, and
Publically acceptable
Sustainable decisions result when common ground is found.
Trustees are responsible for making decisions that align with the belief statements of Elk Island Public Schools.
*Adapted from © International Association of Public Participation

18. Project Timeline January-February 2015 February-March
Gathering input from school community members at school council meetings.
Interested staff, parents, and community members provide input through an online survey.
Gathering naming suggestions for the new school.
February-March
Reviewing the information collected at school council meetings and posting a summary on the division website.
Redrawing boundary lines, reviewing transportation implications, and developing options.
Jan-Feb: Phase 1 of public consultation – feedback on criteria, naming suggestions
The Board has requested to complete the consultation on naming of the new school at the same time as the boundary review process
Feb-Mar: internal work

19. Project Timeline (con’t)
March-April
Open Houses: presenting best options and key information for public feedback and receiving feedback on the strengths and challenges of each option.
Gathering community feedback on shortlisted school name suggestions.
May
Analysis of all information and feedback collected.
Refining of boundary options as required.
June 2015
Recommendation of new boundaries is presented to the Board of Trustees.
Mar-Apr: Phase 2 of public consultation – open houses, second step of naming process
May: internal analysis and final report prep
June: Recommendation comes to Board on the new school boundaries and the school name.

20. Enrolment and Optimal Enrolment Limits of Potentially Affected EIPS Schools (2013/2014 Numbers)
Alberta Infrastructure Capacity
(Feb 2014)
Optimal Enrolment Limit (OEL) (15-16)
Fort Saskatchewan Elementary (K-6)
401
400
380
James Mowat Elementary (K-6)
355
379
Win Ferguson Elementary (K-6)
471
416
Rudolph Hennig Junior High (7-9)
432
620
500
New School (K-9)
Opening capacity of 500
Notes about these numbers:
Enrolment numbers reflect September 30, 2014 student counts
The newest Alberta Infrastructure capacities we have are from February We will not receive updated numbers for the current year until February The numbers in this column may not necessarily reflect adjusted capacities for schools that recently received additional modulars.
Alberta Infrastructure & Alberta Education use a specific formula factoring in a number of components in order to calculate this capacity and a school’s utilization. They are looking at revising this formula, but right now it is largely based on square metres in a school (not necessarily teaching space)
Optimal enrolment limits are a pre-determined, maximum number of students that can be registered at a school, grade, or program to ensure high-quality learning conditions. This number is determined at the LOCAL LEVEL. In establishing a school’s optimal enrolment limit, consideration is given to the following factors:
Alberta Education’s average class size guidelines;
the number and physical dimensions of the instructional spaces;
the type of programming offered in the instructional space; and
the potential for residential growth within the attendance area.
In developing and analyzing boundary options, any projected changes to a school’s enrolment will also be analyzed in terms of the impact on utilization and how the projected enrolment compares to the optimal enrolment limit.

21. Phase 1 of public consultation
So…
we’re looking for your input
Phase 1 of public consultation

22. In Redrawing Boundary Lines
Criteria to be considered:
Keeping communities and sub-divisions together;
Length of bus rides times, number of buses, and associated costs;
Use major roads and highways as natural breaks, where possible;
Physical proximity to school;
Maintaining a feeder school framework, where possible.
So at this point, we are looking for your input:
Any time we have reviewed boundaries in the division, we have considered a specific list of criteria.
The majority of these criteria have come from multiple prior consultation processes we have conducted on school boundaries in various areas of EIPS. You may remember this list from the Fort Sask boundary review conducted in
These criteria are: (listed on slide)

23. Your Input
As we continue our work in redrawing Fort Saskatchewan boundary lines, what things would you like us not to lose sight of?
Do we need to add/remove any criteria we will use to draft new boundary map options?
Are there any other considerations?
Naming suggestions for the new school.
Starting the week of January 26, we will have an online survey posted on the division website through which we will be collecting your feedback on these criteria.
As we work through this boundary review, what should we not lose sight of?
Do we need to add/remove any criteria we will use to draft new boundary map options?
Are there any other considerations?
In this survey, we will also be collecting suggestions for a name for our new K-9 school.
This is the first phase of the public consultation component of this boundary review. The survey will remain open until February 28. This full presentation will also be posted on the website if you’d like to take another look through the information.
We encourage you to encourage other parents and community members to get involved and share their input.

24. Next Steps
EIPS will:
Analyze feedback gathered during this first phase of the process – online survey.
Shortlist new school name suggestions.
Begin to redraw boundary lines and explore options.
Circulate map options and naming suggestions for further feedback as part of the second phase of the consultation – open houses.
Recommendations will go to the Board at the June public meeting.

25. Thank you
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you!