AERR: Division infrastructure

Results: Facility Services

Throughout the 2023-24 school year, EIPS’ Facility Services department oversaw a range of projects, from new construction to general maintenance to finding operational efficiencies. One of the most significant projects undertaken was the new Sherwood Park replacement school. Throughout the year, EIPS worked closely with Alberta Education and Alberta Infrastructure, finalizing the replacement school’s design and all required documents to move the project to the construction phase, which officially began in June 2024. Once complete, the new school will replace École Campbelltown and Sherwood Heights Junior High—all in one building—to accommodate more than 1,000 students, kindergarten to Grade 9.

Another substantial project focused on balancing enrolment within the Division’s schools. There are several reasons why it’s important for schools to have balanced enrolment. One is the ability to offer equitable opportunities for all students. The other is the Division’s ability to maximize its infrastructure through healthy utilization rates, which protects the Division if there is a shift in provincial funding or any infrastructure needs arise.

So, to accommodate this, Facility Services worked with the Division to execute its Three-Year Engagement Plan, which focused on projects to improve operations. Through the engagement, the Division made several operational decisions to enhance enrolment, capacity and programming for students—such as relocating its senior high French Immersion program, balancing enrolment at the elementary and secondary levels and managing student capacity in Fort Saskatchewan. Facility Services also oversaw the closure of Andrew School, demolishing three modular classroom units at Uncas Elementary and decommissioning a modular classroom unit at Westboro Elementary. Through these efforts, EIPS’ school utilization rate rose to 78%, up from 76% the previous year. The increase bodes well for the Division.

A new provincial requirement also falls under the purview of Facility Services: establishing joint-use planning agreements with each municipality EIPS serves—Andrew, Bruderheim, Chipman, Fort Saskatchewan, Lamont County, the Town of Lamont, the County of Minburn, Mundare, Strathcona County and Vegreville. The agreements are intended to lay out a process for the municipality and school boards to discuss matters related to the planning, development and use of school sites; transfers or disposal of land allocated for schools; and servicing school sites on reserve land. They also establish a framework for the reciprocal uses of school and municipal facilities. EIPS’ first agreement was with Bruderheim and was officially implemented in January 2023. The second one was with the Village of Chipman. It was executed in December 2023. Facility Services will work to finalize the remaining six over the coming year.

Other major projects completed included managing the positioning and infrastructure hook-ups for two new modular classroom units at Ardrossan Elementary; 349 maintenance, operations and custodial projects; 12 lease agreements, 26,503 after-hours rental bookings and 91% of the 10,431 general EIPS work orders received. In terms of large maintenance projects, the department completed 74 Infrastructure Maintenance and Renewal (IMR) projects and five Capital Maintenance Renewal projects—ranging from interior and exterior upgrades to replacing school electrical and mechanical systems. As well, it completed three capital reserve projects—the Salisbury Composite High’s stormwater project, landscaping at SouthPointe School and a new entranceway at Next Step Sherwood Park.

The Division aims to focus more on preventative and maintenance projects; however, it is constrained by the funding it receives from the province. In 2023-24, EIPS received just under $20 million for building maintenance. In contrast, the annual cost for deferred maintenance alone exceeded $30 million, and the projected maintenance costs over the next five years total nearly $197 million. A shortfall that significant limits what the Division can do each year.

EFFICIENCIES

Facility Services continued its work to improve operational efficiency. In terms of building operations, the department maintains an asset-management system, which assists the Division in managing and investing in its infrastructure. Through the system, EIPS can easily incorporate Alberta Infrastructure requirements and allocate resources. Facility Services also uses a building automation system (BAS) for energy management, which allows it to access, control and monitor all its building systems using one centralized control. In 2023-24, the department piloted a new reprogrammed BAS at James Mowat Elementary, which improved the school’s energy efficiency by 5%. Given its success, more are planned for 2024-25.

Air quality was another focus area. All EIPS air filters were upgraded to the Merv 9A filter, and a new three-year cleaning cycle was implemented for all building air ducts and heating coils. Now in place, EIPS anticipates receiving the National Air Filtration Association’s Clean Air Award—an annual accreditation given to organizations that maintain clean and healthy workplaces while, at the same time, implementing strategies to reduce overall operating costs.

Other efficiencies included overseeing Year 2 of a five-year custodial services contract to maintain and improve the overall building cleanliness rate—EIPS’ cleanliness average is rated at 94%, which is up by 2% from 2022-23. The Division also signed a five-year contract for electricity supply to ensure budgeting consistency and stabilize Division costs. Finally, Facility Services oversaw several lighting fixture upgrades to LEDs—replacing 250 light fixtures divisionwide, resulting in estimated energy cost savings of $4,000 annually.

COMMUNICATION

Building relationships within and outside EIPS’ Facility Services is an ongoing priority for the department. Doing so enhances communication, creates clarity around project timelines and allows for regular status updates. So, in 2023-24, to further improve in this area, the department updated its Workflow and Funding Guide: For schools. The guide details funding responsibilities between Facility Services and schools and helps ensure Division infrastructure is protected in a consistent, measurable and sustainable manner. The department also started a playground guide for administrators and fundraising groups. Once complete, schools will use the step-by-step guide when planning a new or upgrading an existing playground. Collectively, these efforts are paying off, as demonstrated in EIPS’ most recent Annual Feedback Survey, an online survey that EIPS uses to gauge its progress toward meeting the goals and priorities outlined in its Four-Year Education Plan. In 2023-24, 92% of EIPS stakeholders— families, staff and Grade 12 students—reported they are confident EIPS supports student learning through effective planning, managing and investing in Division infrastructure. That result, which is up by more than 3% from the previous year, is significant and illustrates nicely the quality of infrastructure throughout EIPS.

Results: Information Technology

Throughout 2023-24, the Division’s Information Technologies (IT) department worked diligently to ensure strong IT infrastructure divisionwide, with a specific focus on three key areas: infrastructure management, data operations, and security and compliance. These efforts were all aimed at supporting learning, resource management and the overall education experience. That’s because strong information technology infrastructure is crucial for providing students with the best possible learning environments and supporting them in reaching their full potential.

Early in the year, the IT team developed a strategy to replace existing networking equipment, such as wireless access points, with new TP-Link devices—offering enterprise-level architecture, without ongoing licensing costs for long-term savings. In May, the new equipment arrived, which was then tested, configured and deployed at 11 school sites—Bruderheim School, Davidson Creek Elementary, Fort Saskatchewan Christian, Fort Saskatchewan Elementary, Fort Saskatchewan Next Step, Fultonvale Elementary Junior High, Lamont Elementary, Mills Haven Elementary, Mundare School, SouthPointe School and Salisbury Composite High. The goal: To reduce financial burdens while maintaining reliable, high-performance wireless access across all schools and administrative offices—to the benefit of approximately 1,550 staff and 17,950 students.

EIPS is still waiting on the final results. Initial findings indicate substantial cost savings. In fact, it projects savings of more than $1 million, in hardware and licensing, over a 10-year period. That, in turn, will allow for more future infrastructure reinvestment and upgrades. Given the success of the initial roll-out, EIPS plans to expand it across all locations—ensuring a more sustainable and scalable infrastructure for long-term technology growth.

The Division also improved Fort Saskatchewan’s network infrastructure. IT and Facility Services worked collaboratively to upgrade the cabling and bandwidth at Fort Saskatchewan High to the Division’s Category 6 standard. As a result, the upgrade improved and enhanced connectivity across the school for wired and wireless connections. Now complete, the work ensures wiring standards are met for future device and networking considerations. The IT department also reviewed and adjusted bandwidth allocations at several other schools, which were based on internal system reports and wide-area network reports to ensure optimal performance.

In terms of evergreening in 2023-24, work continued replacing and upgrading identified Division technology. For the most part, this included replacing ageing Microsoft Windows devices and Chromebooks. A total of 719 Windows devices were replaced—no longer compatible with Windows 11. Similarly, 849 Chromebooks were replaced—those replaced had expired auto-update expiration dates. That’s because, as of October 2025, Windows 10 will reach its end-of-support date. So, throughout 2024-25, IT will continue to decommission its non-compatible devices.

In an effort to make data interoperable and accessible, the Division also launched a new analytics dashboard for schools—using Microsoft’s Power BI software. The new dashboard consolidates Alberta Education Assurance Measure results, internal survey data and other performance measures for easy interpretation and use. The idea is that the dashboard will help schools better understand their assurance and achievement results, inform decision-making and improve their school education plans. Next year, IT plans to expand the dashboard to also include EIPS’ Central Services departments.

Finally, in terms of security and compliance, IT worked on various projects to bolster the Division’s cybersecurity posture. A cybersecurity analyst was hired, which allowed for a dedicated individual to manage alerts and improve systems and protocols related to cybersecurity and cybersecurity awareness. Critical infrastructure and tools were also added to the Division’s technology resources— particularly the full deployment of the Microsoft Defender suite and Microsoft Sentinel, a security information and event management system. Collectively, these tools have improved the Division’s security outcomes, visibility into security events, and user-and-device security compliance.

Results: Student Transportation

Transportation is the third component of quality infrastructure for EIPS. In 2023-24, the Division transported 10,272 students on 176 buses—up by 1,140 riders and three buses. With the added buses, the department was able to add six additional bus routes. The added buses also helped reduce the average ride time for students, dropping by one minute to 26.5 minutes. That, in part, is the result of Student Transportation’s continued efforts to evaluate rider growth and how to improve routes for students amid the continued bus operator shortage across the province.

A key focus area for Student Transportation was, again, student safety while transporting riders to and from school. In fact, EIPS Student Transportation is a leader in the province in this area—thanks to the IT infrastructure it uses, such as GPS, student scan cards, the Child Check-Mate system and video-surveillance monitoring. The department also uses software to manage and optimize routes and ride times. All buses are also equipped with the Tyler Drive tablets, offering added benefits to bus operators and families, including:

• turn-by-turn route directions;
• riders stop lists;
• real-time updates to bus route changes;
• rider registrations—manually registering riders on and off the bus, when necessary;
• access to pertinent student information;
• access to EIPS bus routes information; and
• pre- and post-inspection forms.

Another aspect of ensuring student safety is effective student management. As such, each EIPS bus operator is trained in strategies to prevent problem behaviour, ensure riders abide by the code of conduct, conduct ongoing safety drills with passengers and consistently reward positive behaviour. In fact, in 2023-24 alone, Student Transportation conducted 110 bus-evacuation drills, recorded just 35 bus incidents and awarded 127 positive behaviour cards—up by 48% from the previous year. The department also worked diligently with schools and bus contractors to ensure compliance with the National Safety Code by conducting regularly scheduled audits.

As in previous years, the department offered its always-popular Little Elk Island Adventure—a bus-safety program for first-time riders. The locally developed program educates children and families about school bus procedures and safety, positive rider behaviour and bus expectations. In 2023-24, 1,094 families participated in the program—up by close to 200 families, which is significant and speaks to the need of the program. Overall, the 2023-24 Little Elk Island Adventure was a huge success, with a 99% participant satisfaction rate of “very good” or “excellent”—many of whom reported feeling more comfortable about their child taking the bus post-event.

Lastly, throughout spring 2024, Student Transportation spent considerable time preparing for the upcoming school year. Several route optimizations were conducted. Specifically, Student Transportation began a five-year plan with its bus contractors. It also assessed the number of bus routes needed for the upcoming year, using student data from the returning student registration form. As well, the department conducted a complete divisionwide route optimization, including the addition of seven bus routes to account for increased student ridership. After completion, tentative bus schedules and bus fees were sent to families, in late April, with fees due June 30. Startup preparations continued into July and August as the department printed and mailed bus passes and information letters to all rider families.

building capacity: facilities