The single message Trustees with the Edmonton Public School Board have been delivering to government since I have been elected a Trustee in 2017 has been: “We need a new high school.” Please.
The reality of the situation is clear when you consider Edmonton Public will be out of high school space by 2022. Currently, the two high schools in the district that have capacity are both located in Ward D; McNally and Eastglen.
Sure, we’ve had a number of new schools open in the district. Since being elected as a Trustee for Ward D I have witnessed 11 new school openings in all corners of our city. The need was great in those neighbourhoods too. The reality is our city and our district continues to grow.
For the past eight years Edmonton Public has grown by about 3,000 students each year or put another way that’s enough to fill 100 classrooms full of students. On one hand this is great news; parents, students and families are continuing to put their trust in Edmonton Public on the flip side this has put enormous pressure on our district’s infrastructure team, our teachers and our students. Classroom sizes will continue to grow, ridership times on our buses will increase and families will have to make difficult choices about where to send their children to school unless our space crunch within our high schools is resolved.
I am proud to be part of a board of Trustees that’s advocating strongly for a new high school for students in Edmonton Public. I’m also proud that our three-year capital plan, passed on March 19, 2019, reflects both the growing needs of our city but also, if funded, invests in our mature communities.
Trisha Estabrooks 