The Prentice government is planning to build 55 new schools and modernize an additional existing 20 schools as the final part of its three phase consolidated advancement of education capital projects.

“We are a province that has grown from roughly 3.7 million people in 2010, headed to somewhere in the neighbourhood of 4.7 million people by 2020,” said Premier Jim Prentice. “Essentially, a population growth of close to a million people in this province over the course of ten years. The consequential increases in student population are immense.”

Prentice says current projections for Edmonton and Calgary predict each city will need to accommodate an additional 5,000 students each year over the next seven years.

The 55 new schools will be built in the following areas:

  • Edmonton – 15 schools
  • Calgary – 12 schools
  • Grande Prairie – 3 schools
  • Okotoks – 2 schools
  • Airdrie – 2 schools
  • Medicine Hat – 2 schools
  • St. Albert – 2 schools
  • Beaumont – 2 schools
  • Fort McMurray – 2 schools

The communities of Cochrane, Canmore, Strathmore, Lethbridge, Brooks, Red Deer, Blackfalds, Spruce Grove, Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Morinville, Cleardale, and Peace River will receive one new school each.

Calgary's new schools consist of:

  • Skyview Ranch - K-9 (Separate)
  • Saddle Ridge - Elementary (Public)
  • Martindale - Elementary (Public)
  • Sherwood - K-9 (Separate)
  • Mahogany - Elementary (Separate)
  • Southeast Calgary High School (Public)
  • Cranston - Middle school (Public)
  • Silverado - Elementary (Public)
  • West Springs/Cougar Ridge - Middle school (Public)
  • Aspen Woods - Elementary (Public)
  • Springbank Hill/Discovery Ridge - Elementary/Middle school (Public)

“We are moving quickly to provide school boards that have high-growth enrolment with the predictability they need for longer-term infrastructure planning," said Gordon Dirks, Minister of Education. "I am pleased to equip them with the extra resources they need to meet this challenging situation now and in years to come.”

Phase 3 includes $43.2 million in funding to school boards throughout the province to facilitate the funding of the 55 new schools and 20 modernization projects.

The second phase of the project, announced in 2013, consisted of 50 new schools and 70 modernizations. The majority of Phase 2 schools are expected to accept students in 2016. Five Phase 2 schools are not expected to open as initially scheduled.

31 of the 35 schools announced in 2011's Phase 1 are complete.