Continuing the Journey: The official magazine for the College of Alberta School Superintendents the Fall 2023 Volume 19, Issue 2 Canada Post Publications Agreement Number: 40609661 Opening Doors and Expanding Opportunities:5 6 7 11 15 17 19 20 21 Messages: Message from the Alberta Minister of Education Message from the CASS President Message from the CASS Chief Executive Officer FOCUS ON… CONTINUING THE JOURNEY: OPENING DOORS AND EXPANDING OPPORTUNITIES Features: Building Leadership & Connecting Students with Indigenous Cultures & Ideas Aligned in Professional Practice A Catalyst for Educational Innovation and Collaboration Dodgeball, Anyone? Hop on the Wellness Bus: Inspiring Healthy Schools Through Quality Leadership Healthy People, Healthy Workplace: 55 Years of Dedication to Alberta’s Education Sector ARCHITECT Workun Garrick Partnership .........................................4 ATTORNEYS Brownlee LLP ..............................................................4 McLennan Ross LLP .....................................................4 BENEFIT PLANS Alberta Retired Teachers’ Association ........................IBC Alberta School Employee Benefit Plan ...........................................................IFC DINOSAUR MUSEUM Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum ................................8 EDUCATION AND OUTREACH Alberta Champions Society ........................................22 HOTEL Deerfoot Inn and Casino............................................14 MOUNTAIN SKI RESORT Castle Mountain Resort ................................................9 MUSEUM AND ARCHIVES Galt Museum & Archives............................................10 OFFICE TECHNOOGY AND SUPPLIES Ribbon Revival Inc. .......................................................7 OUTDOOR ADVENTURE CENTRE HeLa Ventures ...........................................................10 RECREATION AND LEARNING Dinos Centre Inc. ......................................................14 RECYCLING MANAGEMENT Alberta Recycling Management Authority ......................9 ROOFING ASSOCIATION Alberta Roofing Contractors Association .......................5 SECURITY Telsco Security Systems Inc. .........................................7 STEM CLASSROOM AND PL RESOURCES Let’s Talk Science ...................................................OBC STUDENT GROUP TRAVEL IN MANITOBA Tourism Winnipeg ................................................12-13 UNIVERSITY University of Alberta - Professional Learning ...............18 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS The CASS Connection The official magazine for the College of Alberta School Superintendents Fall 2023 Published for: The College of Alberta School Superintendents Suite 1300, First Edmonton Place 10665 Jasper Avenue Edmonton, AB T5J 3S9 Phone: (780) 451-7126 Fax: (780) 482-5659 admin@cass.ab.ca www.cass.ab.ca Published by: Matrix Group Publishing Inc. 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Account Executives Colleen Bell, Rob Gibson, Jim Hamilton, Scott Hendren, Touhid Khan, Frank Kenyeres, Sandra Kirby, Cheryl Klassen, Charlie Langsford, Andrew Lee, Brian MacIntyre, Shaun Minett, Caitlin Nakamura, Vlada Radchenko, Wilma Gray- Rose, Luke Stevens, Julie Welsh Advertising Design James Robinson Layout & Design Cody Chomiak ©2023 Matrix Group Publishing Inc. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Matrix Group Publishing Inc. Printed in Canada. Disclaimer: The College of Alberta School Superintendents does not necessarily endorse the products of services presented in paid advertisements. contents The College of Alberta School Superintendents 34 Fall 2023 • The CASS ConnectionI was honoured to be named the Minis- ter of Education last spring, and while the learning curve has been steep, it’s a journey I’ve embraced and enjoyed. I quickly came to realize just how cru- cial the College of Alberta School Superin- tendents and its members are to the success of education in Alberta. Your experience, combined with a strong commitment to collaboration has been invaluable to me over the past few months. I truly appreciate your input as we work together to open doors and expand opportunities for Alberta students. Ensuring every student is supported throughout their educational journey is a top priority for Alberta’s government, which is why Alberta Education is operating with the biggest budget in provincial history – $8.8 billion this school year. We’re also addressing affordability and accessibility concerns with initiatives designed to target the high fuel prices, insurance costs, and rising inflation fac- ing our education system partners. Total funding support to the system is increasing by nearly $2 billion over the next three years. This funding supports enrol- ment growth and the hiring of additional teachers and classroom support staff so school authorities can manage class sizes and the growing number of students. Last fall, Alberta’s government announced a new Supplemental Enrolment Growth Grant that provided school authorities with more than $21 million in additional fund- ing. This grant continues to be available in the 2023/24 school year to support school authorities experiencing significant enrolment growth. Over the next three years, we’ll pro- vide school authorities with more than $820 million in additional funding to support enrolment growth. Budget 2023 also provides targeted fund- ing of $126 million over three years, including $42 million in 2023/24, to help school author- ities hire more educational assistants or increase their hours; provide more training opportuni- ties for staff; and/or hire specialists such as counsellors, psychologists, and interpreters, and even more teachers. With more classroom support staff, school authorities will be better equipped to help students who have unique cognitive, social, and emotional needs, as well as those learning English as an additional language. We’re helping to avoid more paperwork for school authorities by basing this funding on student enrolment and automatically including the new grant in operational fund- ing amounts rather than requiring authori- ties to fill out applications. School transportation funding increases by $414 million over the next three years. Alberta’s government has also made regula- tory changes so approximately 80,000 addi- tional students will be eligible for provincial transportation funding. Along with support- ing newly eligible students, Budget 2023’s student transportation funding will con- tinue to address cost and inflationary pres- sures faced by school authorities and bus contractors. Alberta’s government is also continuing the Fuel Price Contingency Program for the 2023/24 school year. This program provides school authorities with additional funding to address high fuel costs and protect school bus services. To date, the program has saved school authorities more than $25 million and is projected to save a total of $23.5 mil- lion in the 2023/24 school year. Again, thank you so much for the work you do in supporting Alberta’s students, families, and communities. I’m grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to meet many of you in person over the last few weeks, and I look forward to meeting more of you as the school year progresses. Demetrios Nicolaides | Alberta Minister of Education Message from the Minister of Education Supporting Students Throughout Their School Journey The College of Alberta School Superintendents 5A s we enter another fall together, it is critical to reflect on the importance of system leaders and their role in supporting opti- mal student learning. This issue’s theme of Opening Doors and Expanding Opportunities accurately captures the creativity that system leaders must apply to address the increasing complexity within our schools. Moving sys- tems forward requires the application of all competencies within our practice standards to encourage collective mindsets shifts and actions toward improvement. This issue of The CASS Connection allows system leaders across the province to learn from those who have experienced challenges, successes, and opportunities for change in response to the needs of their students. These stories deeply examine best practices for student learning and support. Sharing these experiences provides inspira- tion and modeling for colleagues who are similarly grappling with complexity within their own contexts. On behalf of the College of Alberta School Superintendents (CASS), I would like to express appreciation for our authors who have taken the time to place their own learning on display. Our members continue to play such a pivotal role in supporting each other and communally elevating our practice as system leaders. As our membership continues to grow and our organization further evolves, I look forward to our ongoing collaboration and learning together. Dr. Andrea Holowka | College of Alberta School Superintendents Message from the President President Dr. Andrea Holowka Superintendent Christ the Redeemer Catholic Schools Past President Dr. Wilco Tymensen Superintendent Horizon School Division 1 st Vice-President Dr. Clint Moroziuk Superintendent Greater St. Albert Catholic Schools 2 nd Vice-President & Zone 1 Director Michael McMann Superintendent Fort Vermilion School Division Zone 2/3 Director Krimsen Sumners Superintendent St. Albert Public Schools Zone 4 Director Greg Wedman Deputy Superintendent Wild Rose School Division Zone 5 Director Vincent Behm Deputy Superintendent Christ the Redeemer Catholic Schools Zone 6 Director Dr. Dwayne Zarichny Superintendent Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education Director – Metro School Authority Lynnette Anderson Chief Superintendent Edmonton Catholic Schools Director – First Nations School Authority (Treaty 8) Dr. Daphne Mai’Stoina Superintendent Kee Tas Kee Now Tribal Council Education Director – Francophone School Authority Brigitte Kropielnicki Superintendent Conseil scolaire centre-nord Chief Executive Officer David Keohane CASS Board of Directors This issue of The CASS Connection allows system leaders across the province to learn from those who have experienced challenges, successes, and opportunities for change in response to the needs of their students. Reflecting on the Importance of School Leaders 6 Fall 2023 • The CASS ConnectionK nowing which door to enter next to expand one’s profes- sional growth can be a quan- dary for any system leader. Those who take increasingly higher responsibility for organizational out- comes can at times feel like the rock star Bob Seger did when he commented on his rise to prominence through the song “Against the Wind” – “I’ve got so much more to think about / deadlines and commitments / what to leave in, what to leave out.” When pursuing professional growth, what do great leaders do over time to increase effec- tiveness in making choices? In a recent article in the Harvard Business Review, scholars Noel Tichy and Warren Bennis provide the answer through their explanation of what “good judg- ment” means. As Tichy and Bennis explain, some experts define this attribute as being dependent upon a “gut feeling” that combines experience with analytic capacities that over- time becomes unconscious work. Thankfully, through interviewing a multitude of CEOs in many employment sectors overtime, these researchers have revealed that there lies a sim- pler explanation of good judgement, one that can be consciously leveraged by anyone and points to what our readership would be quite David Keohane | College of Alberta School Superintendents Message from the Chief Executive Officer comfortable demonstrating. Research shows that leaders with good judgement are first and foremost good listeners and good readers. We are therefore thankful that the sub- missions in this issue of The CASS Connec- tion provide a diverse offering of how col- leagues within the work of system education leadership undertake a range of professional responsibilities ranging from responsiveness to practice standards and strategic lead- ership, to meaningful collaboration, and addressing student mental health. The articles provided in this edition enable readers to assess their own experiences and relationships at work and discover parallels, analogies, validations, and new discoveries of opportunities that are all part of furthering growing through one’s career path. In fact, through reading the enclosed stories of practice they can help inoculate us from the tyranny of growth that “experience” may bring to the equation. Experience is an irreplaceable teacher, but it reveals its dark side when it compels people to believe that they have already learned all that they need to know. The research behind “good judge- ment” cautions that when experienced leaders do not keep in touch with current practice, they may become professionally stuck by making judgments out of habit, compla- cency, or overconfidence. Therefore, I wish to start this school year by praising the more than 450 members and affiliates to our college who will come together this year through zone meetings, conferences, and reading about our stories of professional practice to enrich their own growth and that of their colleagues. Our professional organization is deemed to be a “college” in legislation for a very impor- tant reason. Our membership is now requested through the CASS Act, to organize around the specific aims, duties, and privileges that advance the leadership and superintendent leadership quality standards. Our members achieve this goal on an ongoing basis by learn- ing what is foundational to this work and applying practice through self initiative and being attentive to the work of their colleagues. Thanks to our contributors in this edi- tion for bringing such learning to life. Thank you to all of our members for making good judgement an ongoing component of your professional practice. The Merits of Good Judgement SPECIALTY SECTION: EDUCATION MARKETPLACE The College of Alberta School Superintendents 7The College of Alberta School Superintendents 9Next >