At Thursday's Rocky View Schools (RVS) Board of Trustees meeting, The Board of Trustees approved the request for 27 modular classrooms from the province.
Modular classrooms are essential to RVS planning for student spaces as a developing school division. Each fall, RVS and other school divisions in Alberta make a request to Alberta Education for these temporary classrooms.
“Approvals for new modular classrooms and funding to relocate existing modulars each year continues to be necessary for RVS to relieve rising student enrolment pressures while we wait for new schools to be built,” said Board Chair, Fiona Gilbert. “When we don’t receive all the modulars we need, it further compounds the space challenges our schools already face.”
This year, the RVS Board of Trustees has asked for the relocation of one restroom unit and 27 new modular classrooms to schools that most need the space: six in Chestermere (together with the relocation of a restroom unit), seven in Cochrane, eight in Airdrie, and six in Crossfield. RVS has received money from Alberta Education for 30 new modular units and 20 relocated modular units since 2023.
"The division’s ability to add new modular classrooms every year, including the 27 new and one relocation request, is critical to address utilization pressures. RVS eagerly awaits the design and construction of five projects approved in Budget 2024. None of those projects will be completed until at least 2027; in the meantime, modulars are needed for the plans RVS has developed to respond to rising enrolments, especially as we face continuing rapid population growth across the division," stated RVS.
Modular classrooms are an essential component in addressing space requirements, but they are not a complete solution to the problems associated with overcrowded schools. According to RVS, the added burden on the school's common areas, such as gymnasiums, playgrounds, and learning commons, is not addressed by modulars, which add classroom space to the main buildings. Additionally, the number of modulars that can be installed is limited, and at many RVS schools, that maximum has already been surpassed.
“We appreciate the government’s acknowledgment of our need for additional student spaces in our growing communities over the last year,” said Gilbert. “We remain optimistic the province will continue to recognize our space needs with future modular approvals.”
In the spring, RVS expects to receive a letter from Alberta Education confirming that the proposed modulars have been approved.
Back in July, the provincial government announced that they are investing $215 million to help alleviate enrolment growth pressures, within that announcement, it was shared that RVS will receive up to 12 new modular classrooms and have up to 12 relocated.
At a Board of Trustees meeting in September, it was shared that Airdrie will receive five of the new modular, two at Ralph McCall and one at Herons Crossing. Some of the relocations were also announced for Airdrie as well. A.E. Bowers Elementary will receive two, while Heloise Lorimer will receive four.
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