Dear Students and Parents/Guardians,

We would like to inform you that due to continued growth in Calgary, there is a need to balance enrolment at Calgary Board of Education (CBE) schools. For this reason, middle school and high school regular program students residing in Scenic Acres will be re-designated to Twelve Mile Coulee School and Bowness High School.

Effective for the 2024-25 school year and beyond, the following changes will be implemented:

• Grade 6 to 9 regular program students residing in the community of Scenic Acres will be re-designated from Arbour Lake School to Twelve Mile Coulee School (Map 1).
  
  • Current Grade 6 to 8 students attending Arbour Lake School who will be in Grade 7 to 9 for the 2024-25 school year can remain at Arbour Lake School to graduate or transfer to Twelve Mile Coulee School
    • Students from the Scenic Acres community should inform their school principal of their choice on either to remain at Arbour Lake School or transfer to Twelve Mile Coulee School by Feb. 15, 2024
    • Transportation from the Scenic Acres community to Arbour Lake School will end on June 30, 2025. Please note modes of transportation for middle and junior high school students can include yellow school bus service or Calgary Transit. Service levels and fees for the 2024-25 school year will be confirmed by May 2024. Families choosing to remain at Arbour Lake School will be responsible for providing their own transportation after June 30, 2025.
  • Twelve Mile Coulee School will change from a Grade 5 to 9 configuration to a Grade 6 to 9 configuration starting in the 2024-25 school year.
• All new Grade 6 to 9 regular program registrations for the 2024-25 school year will be designated to Twelve Mile Coulee School. Siblings attending Arbour Lake School may transfer to Twelve Mile Coulee School to be with their siblings.
• Grades 10 to 12 regular program students residing in the community of Scenic Acres will be re-designated from Robert Thirsk High School to Bowness High School (Map 2)
  • Current Grade 10 and 11 students attending Robert Thirsk High School who will be in Grade 11 or 12 for the 2024-25 school year can choose to remain at Robert Thirsk High School to graduate or transfer to Bowness High School 
    • Scenic Acres students should inform their school principal of their choice to either remain at Robert Thirsk High School to transfer to Bowness High School by Feb. 15, 2024
  • All new Grade 10 to 12 regular program registrations from students residing in Scenic Acres for the 2024-25 school year and beyond will be designated to Bowness High School. Siblings attending Robert Thirsk High School may transfer to Bowness High School to be with their siblings.

Why is this change happening?

The CBE is experiencing record enrolment growth. To address this, changes are being made to balance enrolment across our schools. These changes will help alleviate current and anticipated enrolment pressures in Northwest Calgary while keeping students together with their community cohorts from kindergarten to Grade 12.   

How do I register for school next year?

Registration for the 2024-25 school year starts in January 2024. For more information on how to register, please visit cbe.ab.ca.

How will students get to school?

High school students are assigned to Calgary Transit as their mode of transportation. Routes can be accessed at www.calgarytransit.com through the “Plan a Trip” tool. 

Calgary Transit determines the number of buses and routes based on actual ridership and available resources. Some residential districts have school express routes to the designated school. These routes are public transportation and can be accessed by the public. Many residential districts do not have direct routes. Students in these residential districts must use regular services. While CBE works collaboratively with Calgary Transit, decisions on service levels are made by Calgary Transit based on available space and resources.

What if I have more questions?

Please contact your principal if you have questions regarding these changes.

If you still have questions or require additional information, please contact the Area 1 office at Area1@cbe.ab.ca or 403-777-8710 (extension 0).