CTR Schools welcome students back for academic year
By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Classes have officially resumed for the academic year at Christ the Redeemer Catholic Schools (CTR), as students were welcomed back as of Aug. 28 in the majority of division schools.
Christ the Redeemer announced that this is the final academic year of their currently operating Four-Year Educational Plan, which aims to enhance the educational experience for their students.
The plan was explained to maintain a focus on academic excellence, healthy schools, and on the Catholic faith.
“We really are focusing on student success – obviously, that is our mandate, but within Christ the Redeemer schools, we have such a strong academic focus and results. We are above provincial in all of our assurance areas that are required by the government, and we really do put all of our resources to the greatest extent back into classrooms,” said Andrea Holowka, superintendent of schools for Christ the Redeemer.
As their mandate states, the “faith” aspect of the plan is entering the second of three planned years in the theme of “Faith Seeking Understanding,” and schools are aligning their faith plans with a focus on strengthening family-school-parish connections.
Maintaining their priorities towards academic excellence, Christ the Redeemer schools will be conducting their annual data reviews in November, during which school administrations will dive into school results. Teachers also continue to be observed and supported through Teacher Growth Supervision and Evaluation.
“Healthy Schools” refers to what is being described as serving the holistic needs of students and staff. The division plans to implement recommendations from recent reviews in career and technology counselling.
“When we think about our school communities, we really have continued to focus on the needs of our students both academically, socially and spiritually, and then making sure that our teachers are well equipped to support that,” said Holowka. “Some of what that looks like in our Strathmore schools is a real focus on early literacy and numeracy at the elementary level.”
In Strathmore, Sacred Heart Academy Scheduled a Meet your Teacher day, Aug. 30, and an opening mass to be held on Sept. 6 at the newly completed Sacred Heart Parish.
Holy Cross Collegiate scheduled an opening mass on Sept. 12 with both parents of students and the public being welcome to attend.
Parents and students within the Christ the Redeemer division are invited to stay connected through the division’s website and social media channels.
Registration has not yet closed for any families who may still be interested in having their child attend a Christ the Redeemer school. More information is available online via the school division’s website.