BGSD sets school boundary for new neighbourhood

LEDUC -- A school attendance boundary has been approved for Leduc's new Crystal Creek neighbourhood.

Planning and development of the new neighbourhood has been ongoing throughout the year as means to facilitate the City of Leduc's population growth. It's located south of Woodbend and to the west of West Haven Park, and so far, fifteen homes have been built in the area. To prepare for the future growth of Crystal Creek, the Black Gold School Division officially approved a new school boundary for the neighbourhood at their Board of Trustees meeting this week.

School attendance boundaries establish which schools students of a particular area will attend within the Black Gold School Division. BGSD Associate Superintendent Norm Dargis says that both English and French immersion students located in Crystal Creek will begin their education at Leduc Estates.

"All students within this new development -- Stage one of this new development -- will be assigned to Leduc Estates for K-to-Six, French immersion, and English," said Dargis. "The rationale is that Leduc Estates does have the capacity to take on this Stage one development."

Following their completion of Grade six, English students will then move on to West Haven Public School for Grade seven, then Ohpaho Secondary School for Grades eight through twelve. French immersion students will move from Leduc Estates to École Leduc Junior High School for Grades seven through nine, and then onto Leduc Composite High School for Grades ten through twelve. With the pending growth across the Black Gold School Division, Trustees Vice Chair Angie Charpentier says she expects more boundary discussions in the future.

"I don't foresee this being a three-year plan or a five-year plan," said Charpentier. "I do foresee that this will be an ongoing discussion."

Prior to the new school boundary designation, the Crystal Creek neighbourhood was included in the City of Leduc's rural attendance boundary. By creating a new attendance boundary for the area, it allows the Black Gold School Division to take pressure off schools nearing capacity and reallocate enrollment to schools with more room for growth.

At this week's BGSD Board of Trustees meeting it was also decided that Calmar Secondary School will now be named Calmar Secondary Collegiate School.