With a new government coming into power and an Alberta budget not yet released this spring, Rocky View Schools (RVS) will be continuing to press their need for new schools and more modulars to keep up a rapidly growing student population.

No new schools were included for RVS in the 2018 Alberta budget and just this spring they have only been granted seven of the 39 modular classrooms they requested last October to alleviate overcrowding. Even if new schools were to be announced later this spring the most immediate interim solution is to provide more modulars.

"We don't know whether there is going to be any capital announcements now that the election has happened," said Greg Luterbach, RVS superintendent of schools, in an Apr. 17 interview. "Once the government gets settle maybe they'll be doing some of those announcements later in the spring."

"As people can appreciate, though, the challenge is that even if that announcement came out later today it is really a 24 to 36 month period before that building is open for kids so we know we're going to have that immediate pressure in all of our major communities."

Now that the election is over, the RVS board will once again be seeking meetings with MLAs.

"I know that will be early on our advocacy agendas to meet with our local MLAs whether they are re-elected or new MLAs and demonstrate the significant need that's in Rocky View for new schools and/or new modular classrooms to support that growth."

In the meantime. how best to use the seven modulars is once again forcing the division to make some tough decisions. Public consultations are currently underway in Chestermere and follow on the steps of those undertaken in Airdrie. With 10 modulars requested to meet needs here in Cochrane, we're also being kept in mind.

Six modular classrooms were sought for Bow Valley High School. Doubling the size of the school is also RVS's number two priority in new school construction.

"We know we've got pressure in Cochrane," says Luterbach. "We had asked for four for RancheView School and six for Bow Valley High but clearly when you get seven of the 39 it's not likely all seven will be able to go to Cochrane."

First, the division wants to solve the Chestermere issue first before deciding where the seven modulars will be assigned. The city's East Lake School was developed as a public-private partnership (P3) and no modulars are allowed, thus adding to the puzzle. The division is currently looking at possible grade configurations and attendance areas to manage the student population there.

In the past, schools were considered to be the right size when they reached 85 per cent capacity, he says. Not so these days. 

"The reality that we're seeing now is until we get to 100 per cent, we're not likely getting any new modulars approved."

The student population of RVS has been growing by about 1,000 per year and they are constantly facing the challenges of schools overflowing.

"The reality, though, in Rocky View is that the approvals and the building of new schools has been challenging because with our growth being within first two highest in the province the growth has been never-ending and we're certainly feeling that in Cochrane, but we're also seeing it in Airdrie and Chestermere as well."

Modulars is not a bad word and their utilization is common to accommodate students until population requires the construction of a new school to redistribute students in the community. The modulars can then be moved elsewhere in the community or to other communities demonstrating a need. RancheView School, for example, had modular classrooms from day one.

Yet when there's not a steady stream of new schools or an inadequate number of modulars are provided, the division is forced to temporarily place classrooms in music rooms and common learning spaces. 

"It's not anything either administration or the board wants to do, but at the end of the day we have students coming in our doors and we need to be able to make sure that we are providing them with a great education. Thanks to the quality of our staff and hard work they do that (quality education) does happen but sometimes it actually happens in what's meant to be a music room or a learning common space."

In some cases, though not in recent years in RVS, gymnasiums are also converted.

The division will squeeze by for now but the storm remains on the horizon until Alberta Education addresses the dilemma being faced here for years now.

"With these seven we're probably going to be able to get our schools just at or just below 100 per cent and we'll be going back and continuing to demonstrate our need for more modular classrooms and more new schools."

Doubling the size of Bow Valley High School is their number one priority for Cochrane and is number two on the list for the division behind the crisis being faced in Chestermere. A new K-5 school in Heartland is now six on the list and a new K-9 for Cochrane is number eight.