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Sports
Lots of basketball action in area schools Story on P13
Community
Superfluity marks 35th anniversary Story on P2
Joel van der Veen/Independent reporter
Students cheer on their teachers and other volunteers — tasked with eating a piece of fried chicken without the use of their hands — during Medieval Days at Stettler Elementary School on Wednesday, Jan. 28. (Competing in the game from left are Denyse Boyd, Marilyn Potter, Leah Watts and Alex Buttars.) Please see our story on page 4.
Trustees approve new configuration for Stettler schools New plan will see middle school eliminated, grades split between other schools Joel van der Veen INDEPENDENT REPORTER
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Trustees have approved a motion that is expected to result in major changes for the distribution of grades in Stettler’s public schools for September 2015. The Clearview Public Schools board based its motion on a recommendation from superintendent Peter Barron, contained in a 48-page report presented at the board’s regular meeting on Thursday, Jan. 29. The plan, which is expected to take effect for the 2015-16 school year, would see Stettler Middle School eliminated, with
its grades split between the other schools in the Stettler complex. Stettler Elementary School would expand to include Kindergarten through Grade 6, while William E. Hay Composite High School would then cover grades 7 through 12. Each of the two schools would have one assigned principal. Stettler Outreach School would continue to operate, either with a designated site principal — as is currently the case — or under the direction of the high school principal. Botha School, which currently provides Kindergarten through Grade 5, would expand
to include Grade 6, bringing the school in line with the new configuration in Stettler. Barron’s recommendation gave the board the option of continuing with the “status quo” configuration or adopting the new one. The board voted unanimously to adopt the new configuration, which was noted by chair Cheri Neitz. “That’s good to see unity, moving forward,” she told the Independent this week. “We want this to be a positive move.” Barron’s report took into consideration the history of the schools in Stettler, as well as consultations, surveys and dis-
cussions that have taken place over the last couple of years. These included a facility analysis conducted at the end of 2012, a major survey taken in the fall of 2013, and a research summary completed in February 2014 by the University of Calgary’s Joanne Steinmann. The superintendent was tasked in October with reviewing “the issues pertaining to schools in the Town of Stettler through staff, student and parent engagement, and to provide the Board with recommendations for their resolution in January 2015.” continued on page 4
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