Grade 8 Registration Process

Open Boundary Policy

School District No.42 has an open boundary policy that allows flexibility in choice regarding which secondary school students may attend “where space and facility is determined to be available” (School Act section 74.1 Section 6).

The district is charged with managing enrollment at all schools and ensuring that enrolment numbers align with capacity at each school.  This management assists in providing optimum learning environments for all students across the district.  In thinking forward and getting out in front of declining enrolment we will place caps on all grades at all schools.  This facilitates a more balanced enrolment and more equitable access of all programs across the district in future years.  

Recommended Grade 8 Capacity for 2013/14 at each school is as follows:

District Grade 8 registration procedures

1. You will be asked to complete a Grade 8 Student Registration Form that is used by all schools. This is distributed and collected through the elementary school your child presently attends. These will be distributed mid February. Please do not take it directly to the secondary school, they will not accept it.
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2. This year’s form will indicate your secondary catchment school. This is determined by your address (not your elementary school). You can check the School District website http://www.sd42.ca for your catchment school. Please note that new development areas may not reflect accurate results of your catchment school, please call and confirm with the school if necessary. Click on school locator and then insert your address or postal code into the finder to determine which high school is your catchment school. Please note that French Immersion catchment areas are different than English. (If you do not have access to internet, ask your elementary school for assistance.)
    
3. Out-of-catchment registrations may be restricted by the limits of the school facility size (as described above) and staffing. The district will accommodate catchment registrations first and then attempt to accommodate sibling out of catchment registrations; however, sibling placement cannot be guaranteed. Please refer to the acceptance criteria below.
    
4. If you select and are accepted to a school other than your catchment school, please note that District bussing services are limited to those students who are living within the catchment areas of their local high school AND are outside of the established walk limits. For students in grades 4-12, walk limits are 4.8 km. Parents of any student attending a school that is not in their catchment area are responsible for providing transportation for their children. Bussing is not available for programs of choice such as French Immersion or THSS, etc.
    
5. All Grade 8 registration forms must be completed and returned to the elementary school before February 22, 2013 for attendance in the next school year.

6. Parents will be notified by mid-April if their request to attend a school other than their catchment CANNOT be accommodated. Registration will then revert to the catchment school or your other school of choice if there is room.
    
7. Movement between schools (i.e. families changing their minds) after the February 22 deadline requires a transfer process, as staffing for schools is established based upon registrations as of this date. Forms for this are available at the secondary schools. Building space and available staffing limit this process. See student transfer guidelines below:

Grade 7 students and their parents wishing to transfer schools are entitled to complete a transfer form through the process outlined above. For grade 7s only, a review of transfer requests will be completed before the grade 7 orientation dates in May.
 

Acceptance Criteria for prioritizing placement

1. IN catchment
2. OUT of catchment with siblings
3. OUT of catchment without siblings
4. OUT of district with siblings
5. OUT of district without siblings

Please Note

The information system used to register all students does not accept students in more than one school. If students attempt to register in more than one school, the system will default back to their catchment school.