Today, Minister Hancock and Minister of Infrastructure Ray Danyluk announced that construction will soon begin on ten new schools in Edmonton and the Calgary region. Three will be constructed in high growth areas in Edmonton, five in Calgary, and one each in Okotoks and Langdon. All of the schools will open to students in September 2012....

Dr. Swann: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. This government constantly boasts about how much better off Alberta is in weathering the recession while refusing to honour teacher contracts, repair aging schools, or adequately support special-needs education. To the Minister of Education: if this government isn't willing to carry out its educational obligations such as bargaining in good faith with our teachers, will you at least provide greater autonomy to locally elected schools boards...

Mr. Anderson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Rocky View school division and especially the city of Airdrie are at a crisis point with regard to school infrastructure. Airdrie students are holding math classes in the library, the gym, and in some instances in the hall­ways. Trustees are even considering busing kids into soon-to-be­closed inner-city Calgary schools. The division is now begging for $5 million for 20 new portables to make a secondary temporary portable...

Mr. Benito: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Education. There is a large backlog in deferred maintenance of schools, and with classroom space becoming critical in some areas of the province, what is the minister planning to do to address the student space issue and the maintenance backlog when there are no new projects in the 2010-11 budget?...

Mr. Benito: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are paying interest on top of the principal on the first ASAP project, which will provide 18 new schools in Edmonton and Calgary by September 2010. To the Minister of Education: is our government actually saving any money over the 30 years of this agreement?...

Mr. Bhardwaj: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I have heard many of my constituents tell me that if you close down a school, you damage the community. Well, there have been lots of rumours about school closures, not just in the teachers' lounges but right here in the Legislature. My question is to the Minister of Education. What are you doing to keep schools open and keep Alberta's communities from further damage?...

Ms Woo-Paw: Mr. Speaker, government is using different ways to fund its new school buildings, including P3s. I've heard concerns that they are taking a cookie-cutter approach to the design of schools. I'm especially concerned that the government's plan, which includes four new high schools for Calgary, Edmonton, Sherwood Park, and Spruce Grove, will not meet the diverse learning needs of students. My question is for the Minister of Education. Did school boards have...

Today, the Government of Alberta announced it has finalized contracts to design and construct four new high schools in Alberta, including a 750 student Grade 10-12 Catholic school in Terwillegar. Construction on the schools will break ground later this fall, and they will open for class in September 2013. "These new schools will serve to inspire student learning and provide exciting environments for learning," said Minister of Education Dave Hancock in a news release. "Schools...