Middle School Campaign!

Currently, Royal Oak School Council is continuing a lobbying campaign to secure funds for a Middle School in our area. We are currently ranked 2nd on the CBE Capital Plan for new construction. This ranking can change, though, due to the changing needs of the city. It is essential that we campaign strongly now for funds from the provincial government. 

We are now starting a phone campaign and asking you to call our Minister of Infrastructure and our Minister of Education.  When contacting these Ministers, respectfully and honestly share your concerns and experiences about our community’s specific need for a middle school. “One phone call to my office, however, from a real person (not associated with a lobby) counted for 20 real people concerned about the issue  (“13 Ways To Kill Your Community,” by Doug Griffiths and Kelly Clemmer).  

When making your phone call: 

•    Remember that telephone calls are usually taken by a staff member or picked up by voice mail, not the MLA.  

•     Prepare an outline of your speaking points. 

•     After identifying yourself, leave a brief message with the assistant or on voicemail –          include your contact information and request that your call be returned by the Minister. 

•     Be respectful.  

Here are some speaking points to get you started: 

•    Our children are traveling across approximately 5 communities to get to school. 

•    Time spent on travel causes them to be at a disadvantage for extracurricular programming

•      A neighbourhood school helps to promote a strong and vibrant community. 

•    School construction is part of “Building Tomorrow”, one of Alberta’s top five priorities. 

   

Please phone: 

1. Honourable Jeff Johnson, Minister of Infrastructure 

Phone: (780) 422-0057 

athabasca.redwater@assembly.ab.ca

2. Honourable Thomas Lukaszuk, Minister of Education 

Phone: (780) 427-5010 

edmonton.castledowns@assembly.ab.ca

3. Honourable Lindsay Blackett, MLA for Calgary-North West

Phone: (403) 216-5444

Fax: (403) 216-5442
calgary.northwest@assembly.ab.ca

School Council Meeting - Tuesday October 11th @ 7pm!

All parents are invited and encouraged to come to School Council meetings.  At our upcoming meeting we will be discussing a Fun Lunch Program to be implemented this fall, our campaign to get a Middle School for RR & R0 as well as a report from Mr. MacNeill!

We look forward to seeing everyone there!

High School Designation Feedback Needed ASAP

URGENT REQUEST FOR YOUR IMMEDIATE SUPPORT

Families in Royal Oak and Rocky Ridge,

For those who may not have been able to attend the Area 1 High School Programming meeting hosted by the CBE at Tom Baines School June 1st, there was some important news presented regarding designation of our community’s high school students in 2013.

The current CBE plan identifies Sir Winston Churchill as the designated public high school for our students starting in 2013. This plan, identified by CBE as "Scenario 1", will force our students to travel past 4 communities to get to school (including passing right by the new Area 1 High School in Arbour Lake, currently named, North West High School). However, last evening the CBE presented a "Scenario 2", which would see RRRO students attend the new Area 1 NW High School.  To accommodate RRRO students at the new Area 1 School , students from Tuscany would not go to the new NW High School, but would continue to go to Bowness High School (their currently designated school).

YOUR HELP IS URGENTLY REQUIRED:   All parents and students in support of SCENARIO 2 are asked to provide their immediate feedback to the CBE by submitting a feedback form located at: http://www.cbe.ab.ca/Schools/ceop/feedback.asp. Please provide a reasonable, respectful explanation for why you support Scenario 2. You may also want to identify your concerns with Scenario 1.  Some points you may wish to consider are listed below. 

Please Help!  If our community does not provide enough feedback, the CBE will have no reason to opt for Scenario 2.  A final decision is likely to be made soon on this issue.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Karen Beagle

RRRO Community Association, Director of Schools

Scenario 1 RRRO students go to Sir Winston Churchill

Scenario 2 RRRO Students go to New Area 1 High School

·   RRRO would be the only bordering community to Arbour Lake, not designated to the school there. ·   RRRO is closer to Arbour Lake than Tuscany is. If immediate proximity to the new school is the argument for Hawkwood and Ranchlands to go there, then the same rational should dictate RRRO getting priority over Tuscany. ·   Commuting distance is excessive for RRRO to Sir Winston Churchill: up to 20 km one way ·   Travel time for RRRO students to Churchill school may be in excess of 45 minutes one way ·   Poor road conditions during winter months increases risk for RRRO students due to extensive commuting distance ·   RRRO students may need to take 3-4 bus transfers to get to Churchill school. ·   RRRO students attending Churchill will be at a disadvantage to participate in extracurricular activities and sports (due to extensive commuting challenges). ·   Bowness High School will be underutilized and may as a result, become at risk for closure. ·   Having their school friends in disconnected communities will increase social challenges for RRRO students. ·   The $17M pedestrian overpass crossing Stoney Trail was developed with the expectation RRRO students would be going to the school in Arbour Lake. ·   RRRO students may feel like the “odd man out” for being a random island of students bussed into Churchill school without a neighboring community cohort.

·   This is the most logical and fair scenario for students in both Tuscany and RRRO because all students would get the benefit of going to a school within reasonably close proximity to their community. ·   Tuscany is just as close to Bowness School as it is to the new area 1 school. ·   RRRO is a bordering community to Arbour Lake, whereas Tuscany is not.  ·   Tuscany has a larger population than RRRO, so there is greater risk of overcrowding the new school, whereas Bowness school has far more room for the expanding Tuscany population. ·   Tuscany students already go to Bowness School, so this would keep their cohorts and siblings together without disruption and additional administrative costs. ·   Bowness high school will be better utilized. ·   This scenario is significantly less distance to travel for RRRO students which puts them at less risk than scenario 1. ·   Scenario 2 supports a more natural dividing line (Crowchild Trail is a major dividing artery), and more closely aligns with sports/association boundaries in the NW. ·   In communities where students go to school close to home, there are less incidences of vandalism and students develop a stronger sense of community. ·   The $17M pedestrian overpass crossing Stoney Trail would be better utilized by RRRO students being able to ride bikes or walk to high school.

Help Support A Middle School for Rocky Ridge/ Royal Oak!!

Currently, Royal Oak School Council is beginning a lobbying campaign to secure funds for a Middle School in our area. We are currently ranked 2nd on the CBE Capital Plan for new construction. This ranking can change, though, due to the changing needs of the city. It is essential that we campaign strongly now for funds from the provincial government. 

We are now starting a phone campaign and asking you to call our Minister of Infrastructure, Honourable Ray Danyluk and our Minister of Education, Honourable Dave Hancock.  When contacting these Ministers, respectfully and honestly share your concerns and experiences about our community’s specific need for a middle school. “One phone call to my office, however, from a real person (not associated with a lobby) counted for 20 real people concerned about the issue  (“13 Ways To Kill Your Community,” by Doug Griffiths and Kelly Clemmer).  

When making your phone call: 

•    Remember that telephone calls are usually taken by a staff member or picked up by voice mail, not the MLA.  

•     Prepare an outline of your speaking points. 

•     After identifying yourself, leave a brief message with the assistant or on voicemail – include your contact information and request that your call be returned by the Minister. 

•     Be respectful.  

Here are some speaking points to get you started: 

•    Our children are traveling across approximately 5 communities to get to school. 

•    Time spent on travel causes them to be at a disadvantage for extracurricular programming

•    A neighborhood school helps to promote a strong and vibrant community. 

•    School construction is part of “Building Tomorrow”, one of Alberta’s top five priorities. 

•    Province has not allocated any new public funding since 2007 for new school construction.   

Please phone: 

1. Honourable Ray Danyluk, Minister of Infrastructure 

Phone: (780) 427-5041 

laclabiche.stpaul@assembly.ab.ca  

2. Honourable Dave Hancock, Minister of Education 

Phone: (780) 427-5010 

edmonton.whitemud@assembly.ab.ca

3.Honourable Lindsay Blackett, MLA for Calgary-North West

Phone: (403) 216-5444
Fax: (403) 216-5442
calgary.northwest@assembly.ab.ca

Would you like a Middle School in Royal Oak?

Currently, Royal Oak School Council is beginning a lobbying campaign to secure funds for a Middle School in our area. We are currently ranked 2nd on the CBE Capital Plan for new construction. This ranking can change, though, due to the changing needs of the city. It is essential that we campaign strong now for funds from the provincial government.

In the next month we will be organizing a formal campaign and welcome any suggestions you may have.

In the meantime, please contact the Minister of Infrastructure and Minister of Education stating the importance of putting money into the building of new schools for the city of Calgary.

Honourable Ray Danyluk, Minister of Infrastructure        

#424 Legislature Building                                                        

10800-97 Avenue                                                       

Edmonton, AB                                                           

Canada T5K 2B6                                                        

Phone: (780) 427-5041                                                                 

Fax: (780) 422-2002                                                    

laclabiche.stpaul@assembly.ab.ca                               

Honourable Dave Hancock, Minister of Education

#224 Legislature Building  

10800-97 Avenue

Edmonton, AB

Canada T5K 2B6    

Phone: (780) 427-5010

Fax: (780) 427-5018

edmonton.whitemud@assembly.ab.ca

Ongoing Fundraisers

We currently are working with two Canadian companies to provide an online shopping opportunity that will benefit our school. Both companies have agreed to give our school a percentage of the sales generated on an ongoing basis. Easy Daysies has agreed to 30% of all sales and Olivers Labels has agreed to 20% of all sales. If you have any friends or family that are interested in these products please pass on our school information so that we may benefit from their purchases as well.

Easy Daysies 

Get your kids organized and into routine with Easy Dasies Magnetic Schedules for kids!

Visit www.easydaysies.com to place you order and click on Add Special Instructions to Merchant and type in Royal Oak School 30.

Olivers Labels

"It all began with a small idea to keep Oliver, my nephew, from losing his stuff. After seeing the overwhelming positive reaction from his teachers and other parents, I realized there was a huge demand for high quality labels.

Simply visit www.oliverslabels.com/RoyalOakSchool and place your order.