Enrolment across Rocky View Schools (RVS) has risen by nearly 800 students from the same period last year Rocky View Schools trustees learned, Nov. 4.
A report, delivered by Director of Facility Planning John Wheatley, detailed numbers from every school in the division.
“It was pretty much what we expected,” said Helen Clease, Ward 4 trustee. “The fact that we’re a growing board enforces the fact that we’re in desperate need of infrastructure.”
The school division increased its student population to 17,363 from 16,702, a four per cent increase.
The addition of the Edge School in Springbank brought 499 new students and accounted for three per cent of the growth.
Wheatley said enrolment has increased for 25 consecutive years in RVS.
“This growth continues our … tradition of constant growth,” he said. “I’ve been able to go back to 1985 (records) easily, and we’ve never declined enrolments year by year since that time. Our communities are still showing a lot of growth.”
Ward 3 Trusteee Sylvia Eggerer said the Province must provide more school space.
“We have to recognize that they have forgotten us,” she said. “Our growth in the last while has been huge. We can’t afford to wait any longer, we seriously can’t.”
Airdrie schools had a sizeable increase including 113 new students at Nose Creek Elementary and 104 at George McDougall High School. Overall, 389 students have been added in Airdrie for a total of 6,379.
Colleen Munro, Ward 5 trustee, said the boards’ pleas to provide classroom space have been ignored by the provincial government.
“Quite frankly, we’ve made very little tangible headway in the last three years,” she said.
“I’m not going to believe that we get new infrastructure until we get a letter from the minister saying we’ve got it.”
