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Shelley Svidal
Aside from an intriguing reference to “health care high schools,” the Throne Speech contained little new news for education.
Delivered April 15 by Lieutenant Governor Norman Kwong, the speech sets out the Stelmach government’s legislative and fiscal priorities for 2008. Many of those priorities were first unveiled during the provincial election campaign.
Kwong indicated that, as part of its renewed commitment to improve the province’s health care system, the government would “ensure that Alberta has the health care professionals it needs to meet future demand, beginning with enhanced opportunities for students to pursue health care careers, with a long-term view to developing innovative approaches such as health care high schools.”
The high schools—one in Calgary and one in Edmonton—are an idea that former minister of education and now Minister of Health and Wellness Ron Liepert glommed on to during his September 2007 expedition to Oregon and Washington State. Stelmach first floated the idea during the election campaign.
“Modelled after a program in Portland, Oregon, the Health High School is a specialized initiative focused on provincial requirements for future health care workers. The high school will train young Albertans in a range of health disciplines from paramedics to personal care attendants. Some programs will offer certification to students, while others may require additional training at a postsecondary institution,” states Stelmach’s February 5 news release.
The Throne Speech promised that the government would continue to implement its 20-year capital plan, which includes the construction of 32 new schools in Calgary and Edmonton through the public–private partnership (P3) approach; improve services and facilities for Albertans affected by mental health concerns; and continue to implement the British Columbia–Alberta Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement, which gives certificated teachers from either province the opportunity to teach in the other province.
As always, the devil is in the details, which are usually reserved for the provincial budget and ministry business plans, expected April 22.
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