As students return to the vocation of learning, officials from Chinook's Edge School Division No. 73 are anticipating a small decrease in this year's enrolment compared to last year's numbers.ìWe had a slight decline anticipated, but I think as kids show up, we should be OK,î said superintendent Kurt Sacher.Estimation of a slight decline is common across the division ñ even at the larger centres like Olds, Sylvan Lake, and Red Deer, said Sacher.ìAs a general rule, though, we anticipate enrolment to be fairly close to what it was last year, with no significant change either way,î said Sacher.ìThey're typically pretty conservative with their estimates, because it's a lot easier to add staff than it is to let people go,î he adds.This is especially true for small, rural schools in the division like Reed Ranch School, a K-6 elementary school located about 17 kilometres east of Olds on Hwy. 27.Currently, the school is staffed with two full-time and two part-time teachers.ìAs a smaller school, the numbers are always in jeopardy,î said Rudy Durieux, the principal of Reed Ranch School.ìBut at this point, it looks pretty good. We're hoping that we're going to be around the mark of 55 students, which is a pretty good number for us.îDespite the school's best efforts to keep tabs on which students are returning and which have moved out of the area, Durieux said very little information has come back.Last year, Reed Ranch had about 55 students as well, he said.ìOur number could increase, but that is probably a number that allows us to be fairly stable, so that with some help from our division, we can continue to function.ìPart of the problem is, we're funded on a per-student basis,î said Durieux. ìWe get approximately $5,500 per student.îThis means the very specific budgeting when it comes to how many teachers ñ both full and part time ñ the school can afford, said Durieux.ìClass sizes increase, and the more kids you have in a class, the harder it is for a teacher to deal with all of the kids.îAs enrolment dwindles, budgets are cut, meaning a smaller teacher-to-student ratio.Class sizes then increase, and the already burgeoning amount of time a teacher must invest into their students is spread even thinner, decreasing one-on-one time with each student.ìYou have to have a really strong relationship between the teacher and the student for there to be a quality learning environment. It's very important,î said Sacher.Durieux said Reed Ranch staff is dedicated to students' educational success regardless of staffing and enrolment challenges, ìbecause we love the kids and we want to see them succeed.îFinal enrolment numbers across the division will be made available at the end of September, once ìnew families move in, and the dust settles,î said Sandy Bexon, the division's communication officer.Chinook's Edge is the largest rural school division in the province, serving a total of 41 schools in Mountain View and Red Deer counties, with about 11,000 students, 600 teachers, 200 substitute teachers and 650 support staff.
