Red Deer Advocate, March 11, 2015

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FIVE WAYS TO IMPROVE THE JUNO AWARDS

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POLEI PUSHING TO GET BACK ON THE ICE

Red Deer Advocate WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2015

www.reddeeradvocate.com

Your trusted local news authority HANGING ONTO WINTER

GAY-STRAIGHT ALLIANCES

New legislation will open up discussions BY MURRAY CRAWFORD ADVOCATE STAFF

Photo by JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff

Things are looking decidedly like spring on the prairies but deep in the Rockies winter is hanging on. Despite, above freezing temperatures in the Canmore area ice climbers are enjoying their sport. Freezing temperatures over night help to build the waterfall ice each night and warm daytime temperatures make an otherwise cold weather sport more enjoyable. This vertical ice found in Grotto Canyon is a popular climbing area east of Canmore.

New legislation allowing all students access to gay-straight alliances could open up discussions for the Red Deer Catholic Regional School District and other districts throughout the province. Amendments to the Alberta government gay-straight alliance related legislation, Bill 10, proposed on Tuesday would enable all students to form a gay-straight alliance club. The amendment includes children in all Alberta schools — public, Catholic, private and charter. Guy Pelletier, chair of the Red Deer Catholic Regional School District board, said on Tuesday that the school board has always strived facilitate inclusiveness and would abide by the legislation, should it be approved. “We’ve had a commitment to safe and caring schools and inclusive environments, have always had and will continue to have,” said Pelletier. “I’m not sure the amendments change that approach, but it’s probably a good conversation to have to help us formalize our thinking on not

only GSAs, in terms of forming those, but any type of student group. “If there are student groups feeling marginalized or bullied, if there’s ways we can do more to help them, then we’re happy to do that.” Specifically, the board will formalize its thinking on how GSAs are created and how the board can facilitate inclusiveness. “It’s a good chance to talk about the issues and make sure our students are supported,” said Pelletier. The Red Deer Public School District is in the process of writing a formal policy that includes GSAs. The board directed administration to create comprehensive policy addressing the needs to sexual orientation and gender minorities. On Tuesday, Alberta Education Minister Gordon Dirks announced an amendment to the bill that would allow students to establish GSAs in any Alberta school and members would be allowed to meet on school property. The amendment replaces one proposed last fall that would have allowed GSAs off school grounds.

Please see GSA on Page A2

Centennial Street becoming a one-way road BY PAUL COWLEY ADVOCATE STAFF Sylvan Lake’s main street is getting a makeover. Town council mulled over several redevelopment proposals on Monday before settling on a plan that will see Centennial Street (50th Street) turned into a one-way road with wider sidewalks, street lights, landscaping and public art. Improving laneways behind businesses will also be part of the plan to showcase the heart of the downtown and make it more pedestrian-friendly as part of a $5-million project.

SYLVAN LAKE Under changes expected to be made next year, a stretch of Centennial Street from Lakeshore Drive to 50A Avenue will be turned into oneway northbound. Angle parking will be available on the west side and parallel parking on the other side of the street. The changes will add another 15 parking spaces, a key issue for many downtown merchants. In 2017, road and sidewalk upgrades are also planned in what is known locally as the West Village, a residential and commercial area just west of Cen-

tennial Street. Mayor Sean McIntyre said the facelift is part of a long-running project to overhaul the lakeshore area to provide park space, a promenade and other improvements. That work continues this year with more upgrading of sidewalks out to the Hwy 20 roundabout on the east edge of town and to 52nd Street to the west. McIntyre said the option chosen follows extensive public consultation. “The option we selected last night meets the greatest number of their re-

quests,” he said. “We’re constantly working on ways we can improve that downtown area. “Really the vision is to attract our residents down into that area as well. When we start to turn all of our 14,000 residents into customers down there, then really everybody wins.” The town will now seek a company to undertake a detailed design plan. Before council commits to a design, the public will have opportunities to provide their input. Other road improvements are also planned in the 43rd Street, 47th Avenue and the Hewlett Park Avenue areas. pcowley@reddeeradvocate.com

RDC, Olds College earn Entrepreneurship Awards BY HARLEY RICHARDS ADVOCATE BUSINESS EDITOR

CICAN

A downtown satellite campus and an instructional iPad app have helped Red Deer College and Olds College push the entrepreneurial boundaries of post-secondary institutions. And they’ve earned the two Central Alberta college kudos from a national association. Red Deer College and Olds College were among nine Canadian colleges to receive Entrepreneurship Awards from Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) on Monday. The awards, which recognize the promotion of entrepreneurial values that foster innovation

and support local economies, were presented in five categories during a CICan symposium in Quebec City. Red Deer College was honoured in the College and Institute Entrepreneurial Ventures category for its development of the Donald School of Business and the Welikoklad Event Centre in downtown Red Deer. A release issued by CICan said both are supporting the community and encouraging entrepreneurial activities, including performances, conferences and specialized training. “Both the Donald School of Business and the Welikoklad Event Cen-

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INDEX Four sections Alberta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A3,A5 Business. . . . . . . . . . . . . B1-B3 Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6,A7 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . D1-D4 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C4 Entertainment . . . . . . . . C5,C6 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4-B8

mindset by encouraging students to understand and apply those skills. The other award categories were Entrepreneurship in the Community, Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Enabling Student Entrepreneurship. In addition to Red Deer College and Olds College, the recipients were Centennial College of Toronto (two awards); Okanagan College of Kelowna, B.C.; Bow Valley College of Calgary; The Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning of Toronto; Medicine Hat College; Dawson College of Westmount, Que.; and New Brunswick’s Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick.

Please see AWARDS on Page A2

Couple who witnessed RCMP shooting have PTSD An Albertan couple who witnessed the fatal shooting of a Mountie say they haven’t received enough support. Story on PAGE A5

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tre demonstrate what can be achieved with an entrepreneurial vision,” said Joel Ward, RDC’s president and CEO. He added that the Donald School of Business, which opened downtown in the Millennium Centre in 2011; and the Welikoklad Event Centre, which the college acquired two years later, have created opportunities for RDC students and the broader community. Olds College received a CICan Entrepreneurship Award for Innovative Instructional Approaches. It “gamified” a portion of its curriculum by creating an iPad app that students use to complete an entrepreneurship course. CICan said in its release that Olds College’s The Spirit of Entrepreneurship app is fostering an entrepreneurial


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