<p>Prairie Rose students will be stepping up to the plate this spring as Prairie Rose Public Schools in collaboration with The Mavericks baseball organization (WCBL) is partnering to launch the Maverick School of Baseball. This innovative sports program is specifically designed for students in grades 4-9 and will be available at several schools in Prairie Rose Public Schools.</p><p>The Maverick School of Baseball integrates enhanced baseball training into the regular school curriculum outside of regular physical education instruction. Students will benefit from additional programming during their school day, focusing on developing and honing their baseball skills under the guidance of skilled professionals.</p><p>Key to the program's success is the direct involvement of experienced Mavericks coaches. Leading the Mavericks School of Baseball coaching team is head coach and program director Greg Morrison, a former professional player with a distinguished 12-season career which includes time with the LA Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays organizations. Morrison's career highlights include achieving over 1,000 hits and 100 home runs.</p><blockquote><p>“We know the importance of giving younger kids the skills to throw, catch, and hit a baseball,” says Greg Morrison. “Not only will you see those dividends in sport and athletic development for the students who choose to continue to play baseball in high school and college, but also in promoting a healthy lifestyle which carries with them for the rest of their lives.”&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Joining him is Chad Martin, a seasoned professional with a rich background in baseball. Martin has a history of playing US College baseball, has served as a high school baseball head coach at Eagle Butte High School and Crescent Heights High School for 25 years, and is currently the assistant coach with the Mavericks since 2009 and a teacher at Senator Gershaw School.</p><p>The Maverick School of Baseball will launch this spring (2024) and will be available to Prairie Rose students at Irvine School, Schuler School, and Senator Gershaw School.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>“The addition of the Mavericks School of Baseball to the PRPS program offerings represents a unique opportunity for young athletes to grow under the guidance of accomplished professionals,” says South Alberta High School principal Darren MacMillan. “In Prairie Rose we are always trying to find engaging learning experiences for students based on their passions. We heard from many students and parents that would like to see a program based around building baseball skills. Thanks to our partners at the Mavericks, we have been able to make that happen.”</p></blockquote><p>Details about the program are still being finalized and will be shared as soon as they are available. An information night will be held on January 16, 2024, at the Prairie Rose Public Schools Division Office at 6:00 p.m. All interested families are invited to attend.</p><p>Watch the story on CHAT TV: <a href="https://chatnewstoday.ca/2024/01/09/school-of-baseball-partnership-between-prairie-rose-school-division-and-medicine-hat-mavericks-announced/?utm_source=dlvr.it&amp;utm_medium=twitter">https://chatnewstoday.ca/2024/01/09/school-of-baseball-partnership-between-prairie-rose-school-division-and-medicine-hat-mavericks-announced/?utm_source=dlvr.it&amp;utm_medium=twitter</a></p><p>Medicine Hat News story 1: <a href="https://medicinehatnews.com/news/local-news/2024/01/10/prairie-rose-sd-partnering-with-mavericks-for-baseball-school/">https://medicinehatnews.com/news/local-news/2024/01/10/prairie-rose-sd-partnering-with-mavericks-for-baseball-school/</a></p><p>Medicine Hat News story 2: <a href="https://medicinehatnews.com/sports/local-sports/2024/01/10/morrison-mavs-open-baseball-school/">https://medicinehatnews.com/sports/local-sports/2024/01/10/morrison-mavs-open-baseball-school/</a></p><p>Learn more about the Mavericks School of Baseball ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️</p><p><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZB6c-aOqcSH5aduCRrQaQ6MKQQSqJSe8/view?usp=drive_link"><img src="/images/8c60f5bc-3ee4-46c6-a315-69832877d0b8?fingerprint=ppb20251217023850" alt="MSB News Graphic"></a></p><p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The January 9, 2024, PRPS Public Board Meeting will take place at the Prairie Rose Public Schools Division Office starting at 12:45 p.m. The meeting is only available in-person.</p><p>The complete agenda package can be found here: <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xfSaApkqnkNaP3j0aLaCWSiHJuYC2mnE/view?usp=drive_link">January 9, 2024 Board Meeting Agenda</a></p>

We are thrilled to announce a generous donation from CF Industries that will help our students’ journey into the realms of science and technology. With your donation, we can continue to unlock new potentials, explore uncharted territories, and inspire the next generation of scientists and technologists. #abed #prrd8 #forgefutures #igniteminds #VEXRobotics

Buy your spring seeds and support our school!

Happy New Year! Back to School tomorrow

Exciting week ahead ...

The Academy of Fine Arts students have had the pleasure of learning from a visiting artist for the last month. Tuesday was our last day with the artist before Christmas so we designed and painted Christmas ornaments! It was a wonderful way for students to put together all of the painting skills that were introduced so far this year. #Kindlehearts #igniteminds #forgefutures #PRPSDBingo

The grade ones and twos are doing 12 days of kindness. Day 3 was to recognize some of their “special teachers.”

The week ahead ...

<p><i>Medicine Hat News - BY SAMANTHA JOHNSON LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER ON DECEMBER 6, 2023.</i></p><p>Prairie Rose Public Schools has received a clean financial audit, with statements presented to the board on Nov. 28.</p><p>Board chair Lois Bedwell was on the audit committee and stated she learned a lot during pre- and post-audit meetings. Accounting firm MNP LLP gave PRPS a clean audit and was impressed with the work done by the financial team. Controller Candice Hintz touched on three of the main schedules in her presentation.</p><p>Last year, PRPS received new and initial funding, but only for a few months, and this year it is available for the full 10 months of operations. Badlands Baseball Academy has been incorporated into PRPS operations this year and the division was approved for collegiate funding for the South Alberta Flight Academy.</p><p>New this year is the assets retirement obligation (ARO), estimated at a $4.6 million cost to deal with any asset retirement obligation, such as asbestos and septic tanks, at the end of useful life. Most assets are in the schools, which Alberta Education will likely fund when the time comes, but since it’s not confirmed, PRPS must record this cost as a liability. With the ARO, it makes the total liabilities higher than total assets, resulting in a net debt amount due to that change in accounting policies.</p><p>Actual revenue was $1,549,994 higher than budget due to increased funding from Alberta Education, increase in fees, increase in interest income, additional donations and ASBIE (Alberta School Boards’ Insurance Exchange) equity return.</p><p>Actual expenses were $1,360,545 over budget, which was due to increased support for programming, additional professional development, increased utility costs and expenses incurred due to increased funding.</p><p>CFO Ryan Boser asked the board to approve a motion, which was carried, prior to approving the audited financial statements.</p><p>“In order to fund the deficit this year and get our reserves down below the maximum, which we successfully did, it does require a reserve transfer to move $1,003,458 from restricted operating reserves to unrestricted operating reserves. Essentially what that means is we are moving just over $1 million from our restricted reserves into operations to fund that deficit, and that was part of our plan all along.”</p>

<p><i>Medicine Hat News - BY SAMANTHA JOHNSON LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER ON DECEMBER 5, 2023.</i></p><p>For K-3 students at I.F. Cox School in Redcliff, there is a new Prairie Rose Possibilities project available called TNT, or Try New Things.</p><p>Parents wanted to see broader programs in the school and this project offers opportunities for students to take part in different areas of interest. Another benefit is children engage with different teachers as well as students from other grades while participating in their chosen courses.</p><p>The project aligns with kindling hearts by bringing a sense of well-being to both students and staff. It allows staff to offer courses in subjects they are passionate about and gives students a choice of what topics they want to engage in. It also provides an opportunity to bring parents and stakeholders back into the school post-pandemic. It ignites minds by providing high yield strategies, co-operative learning, executive functioning skills and non-linguistic representation.</p><p>Additionally, by cultivating wonder, strengthening partnerships with stakeholders and offering prospects for deeper learning, the program is forging futures.</p><p>The program started with teaching staff offering courses and has grown to include support staff and a divisional lead. First-year education students from Medicine Hat College, a retired teacher who is a watercolour artist, the Mavericks baseball team, along with men’s and women’s sports teams from the college have all come into the school.</p><p>There were 92 parent responses from a survey and 100% were positive, with comments focused on how much they were looking forward to sessions restarting again this year.</p><p>Trustee Patty Rooks stated the program was a great way to create a sense of community, and while she is aware it creates extra work for the teachers, it is appreciated.</p><p>The school is having a Christmas fair and fun night and many groups have been working on products to sell, such as baked items, ornaments and watercolour paintings. The fair will take place Dec. 6 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. and the school is in the process of choosing a charity to donate all proceeds to.</p>

Our Girls Basketball team spent Sunday learning some new skills from Mr. Rob Grisonich. Thank you Mr. Grisonich for taking the time to come out and work with our girls! Also a big thank you to Coach Ashleigh for organizing this opportunity 😄 #myprps #forgefutures

This week at Seven Persons School ...

<p>The November 28, 2023, Board Meeting Agenda Package can be found here: <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IXInzuN7EFDeKlyOezLkvCr58mlAWksf/view?usp=drive_link">November 28, 2023 Board Meeting Agenda</a></p><p><strong>PAT and Diploma Results</strong></p><p>Assistant Superintendent Boyd Craven presented the 2023-2024 Prairie Rose results from the PAT (provincial assessment testing grades 6 and 9) and Diploma (grade 12) exams for information. It was noted that Prairie Rose students did very well in most areas compared to the provincial results.&nbsp;</p><p>Some highlights of the report include:</p><ul><li>The divisional PAT results were higher at the acceptable level than the province in every subject.</li><li>Overall, the diploma acceptable standard increased from 71% to 77%.</li><li>There was an overall increase in the diploma standard of excellence from 10.9% to 11.8%.</li></ul><p>The full report can be found in the November 28, 2023, Board Meeting Agenda package.</p><p><strong>IF Cox Presentation</strong></p><p>IF Cox School Vice-Principal Tracy Frank provided an overview of the school’s Prairie Rose Possibility program called TNT or Try New Things. The program runs in six-week cycles, with each student getting to choose two options during that time frame. Some options available to students have included sign language, coding, pickleball, virtual reality, running, pinata making, magic tricks, field trips and more. The options are chosen based on staff interest and their passion for sharing with the students. Outside community members are also brought in to offer additional subject options. The program was developed to offer opportunities for younger students to engage in areas of passion and interest, much like they do at the junior high level. It was also shared that TNT classes are not grade-specific, but students from K-3 all participate together in their chosen subject areas. This has helped transition students between grades and the Redcliff schools as they get to know students outside their direct peer groups. The full presentation can be found in the Board Meeting Agenda package for November 28, 2023.</p><p><strong>Cypress County Ag Conference</strong></p><p>Trustee Graeme Dennis commended Cypress County on successfully hosting the Ag Connections Conference on November 22, 2023. Community partner Nichole Neubauer and the Irvine School ADC students were also congratulated for their presentation at the conference. It was noted that a lot of great work is happening in agriculture, which has been intertwined with learning in PRPS.&nbsp;</p><p><strong>PRPS Executive Report</strong></p><p>Superintendent Reagan Weeks shared the executive report with the board, highlighting several exciting and upcoming initiatives across Prairie Rose Public Schools.&nbsp;</p><p>Some of the highlights include:</p><ul><li>Recent Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence winner and Ralston School teacher Jocelyn Encinas will spearhead a new Prairie Rose Possibility program focused on robotics at Ralston School.</li><li>PRPS Instructional Coach Cammie Kannekens was invited to attend the Google for Educators conference in Ireland to represent PRPS at Google headquarters</li><li>PRPS will launch an expanded drone program with new partnerships for training specific to the agriculture industry. The training will take place at the airfield in Foremost.</li><li>The DR South Alberta Flight Academy is touring CFB Cold Lake to learn more about the Canadian military aviation program.</li></ul><p><strong>Audited Financial Statement</strong></p><p>Board Chair Lois Bedwell provided highlights from the MNP audit report. Overall, PRPS was given a clean audit from MNP. The full report can be found in the November 28, 2023, Board Meeting Agenda package.</p><p>Total revenues for the 2022-2023 school year amounted to $55,697,369.</p><figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>K-12 Instruction</td><td>$39,151,322</td></tr><tr><td>Plant Operations and Maintenance</td><td>$6,035,008</td></tr><tr><td>Transportation</td><td>$6,234,628</td></tr><tr><td>System Administration</td><td>$2,220,085</td></tr><tr><td>External Services</td><td>$28,084&nbsp;</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><p>Total expenses for the year totalled $56,416,818.</p><figure class="table"><table><tbody><tr><td>K-12 Instruction</td><td>$39,039,516</td></tr><tr><td>Plant Operations and Maintenance</td><td>$7,294,079</td></tr><tr><td>Transportation</td><td>$5,905,299</td></tr><tr><td>System Administration</td><td>$2,106,651</td></tr><tr><td>External Services</td><td>$33,926</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><p>The total operating deficit for the 2022-2023 year came in at $719,449, a planned deficit amount to get division reserves under the allowable 4.42% of August 31, 2022 expenses ($2,374,703). Operating reserves now sit at $2,228,252. Trustees approved a motion to move 1,358,000 from restricted to unrestricted to cover the deficit. The 2022-2023 financial statements were approved as presented.</p>

<p>The November 28, 2023, PRPS Public Board Meeting will take place at the Prairie Rose Public Schools Division Office starting at 10:00 a.m. The meeting is only available in-person.</p><p>The complete agenda package can be found here: <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IXInzuN7EFDeKlyOezLkvCr58mlAWksf/view?usp=drive_link">November 28, 2023 Board Meeting Agenda</a></p>

Reminders for this week at SPS ...

<p><i>Medicine Hat News - BY SAMANTHA JOHNSON LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER ON NOVEMBER 23, 2023.</i></p><p>The cosmetology 20/30 class at Eagle Butte High School will be holding a Cuts for Cancer fundraiser on Dec. 1. Teacher Ingrid Rose explained the fundraiser hasn’t been done at the school for a few years, but they are excited to bring it back.</p><p>The students are nervous yet excited about the prospect of working on people rather than mannequins.</p><p>“They just finished learning hair cutting and layering and they will wash and cut. I’ve already talked to the Canadian Cancer Society and all the proceeds will go there and there might be one person who pays $5 and another who pays $100. Last time I had it, we had our superintendent and he had no hair here (on top) but he put in a hundred bucks, it’s just a donation and it’s good for us to help the community,” said Rose.</p><p>Grade 12 student Ryeanna Jones said, “I like it because I have a lot of people I’ve lost to cancer in my family so I think this is a very good fundraiser. This brings light to the struggle with it (cancer) because it’s such a worldwide thing and a lot of people deal with it.”</p><p>Lana Giles, also in Grade 12, added, “I think cancer touches everyone … who knows at least one person close to them that has been affected by it, so I think it’s important to recognize it even at a high school level, it’s a conversation we need to have.”</p><p>Cuts for Cancer is on Dec. 1 from 10-11: 30 a.m., and those who wish to participate are asked to book in for their cut beforehand by calling the school at 403-528-1996.</p><p>“I’m really excited and nervous at the same time. I really like being in this class,” said Grade 11 student Hope Burkitt, who is in her second year of cosmetology.</p>

Is there a doctor in the house? Well … sort of. Check out our Grade 3 ‘contraction surgeons’ as they perform surgery on words to make them into contractions. With masks on, these surgeons cut out letters that didn’t belong and bandaged the word back up to create new and improved words! Brilliant junior doctors 🤣 Prairie Rose Public Schools #igniteminds

The week ahead...

New options for the second term have begun. The first batch of hamburger soup and chocolate cookies was a great success. #myprps, #forgefutures,