We Value Persons. We Value Community. We Value Responsibility. We Value Learning. Our Core Values truly are at the centre of what we do in the Fort McMurray Catholic Schools family.
Recently the Accountability Pillar summary was released by Alberta Education. We are very proud at Fort McMurray Catholic Schools of the achievements of our students.
Fort McMurray Catholic Board of Education Chair Cathie Langmead says the results are exemplary, “We are most proud of the 3 Year High School Completion rate (89%) and the Drop Out rate (0%) for 2018/19. As Trustees our greatest responsibility is student outcomes, and our ultimate goal is to have each student successfully graduate. As a Division, this shows the commitment of our students, families, staff and administration to ensure that each and every student is successful in moving forward.”
Superintendent of Fort McMurray Catholic Schools George McGuigan says there is plenty to be proud of when it comes to student achievement, “I am most proud about the commitment of staff in ensuring student success. The exceptional drop out rate combined with superior high school completion means we are fulfilling our role of preparing students to move to a career path of their choice and into becoming responsible adult members of society. The vehicle for this shows up in ‘Continuous Improvement’ where we work towards being just a little bit better than we were the year before and being a little bit better each and every day.”
Chair Langmead states this is not about resting on our laurels, there is always room to move up, “Fort McMurray Catholic Schools continuously strives to improve, and this involves every aspect of our school community from faith development, to health and wellness, to providing exceptional education opportunities for our students and staff. As a Board, we continue to develop our spiritual awareness and professional practices, always with a goal of improving student outcomes.”
With a 3 year High School Completion Rate over 30% higher than the provincial average we are very proud of our Indigenous students says McGuigan, “Our Indigenous students do so well because there is a conscious understanding and focus on their well being from the time they enter our system until they leave. As Superintendent, this is a focus area of mine which is monitored by me on a regular basis with Principals. It is a standing agenda item at our administration meetings. We have great Indigenous Liaisons who provide that essential link with home in order to build strong positive relationships. We can’t change the past but we can change the future.”
With a recently released Alberta Budget, Langmead says it is, as always, a time of making sure our financial house is in order, “We are pleased to report that our senior leadership team continues to work hard to look at innovation and improvements to ensure that our funding directly benefits students wherever possible. Given the current government’s mandate to reduce the province’s debt by way of a reduction in spending, we cannot expect increases to the education budget for the 2020/21 school year.”
“Fort McMurray Catholic has a history of adjusting to the ebb and flow of provincial budgets,” adds McGuigan, “This recent budget is no different. We are a nimble system who have always worked hard to put dollars directly in the classroom, as much as possible. We will continue to provide a high quality education for our students and families.”