St. Gabriel Cyber School in the Press
See Magazine:
St. Gabriel Cyber School was covered in the 29 May, 2003 issue of See Magazine.
St. Albert Gazette:
St. Gabriel Cyber School was covered in the 24 May, 2003 issue of the St. Albert Gazette. Here is the story:
By Ileiren Byles
Staff Writer
Online education is expanding from St. Albert schools.
Greater St. Albert Catholic School Division’s St. Gabriel Cyber School has
added a new campus in Medicine Hat and is planning information sessions to
promote the program in Edmonton, Lethbridge, Red Deer, Fort MacMurray and
Calgary.
“We do have a mandate to provide the program to any student anywhere in
the world,” said St. Gabe’s principal Ren Giesbrecht. “The whole
Catholic/Christian perspective — that’s where our niche area is. We’re
offering a Catholic alternative to distance learning.”
The new superintendent of the Medicine Hat Catholic school district had
previously worked with the St. Gabriel program while employed with the Red
Deer Catholic school district, said Giesbrecht.
“He was very keen to start a partnership in his new community,” he said.
The new partnership with Medicine Hat will add skill and expertise to St.
Gabriel’s resources, he said.
“They bring us an expertise in gifted programming, and a teacher with
expertise in elementary learning who will be available online,” he said.
“They also bring an expertise and enthusiasm to marketing the program
overseas.”
The online school already has students living in Poland, Korea, the U.S.
and even the United Arab Emirates. A recent trip to a technology and
learning conference in California by one of St. Gabe’s teachers made it
clear why there was a global demand for the program, said Giesbrecht.
Teacher Wilma Van Herk stood with the rest of the delegates when asked in
one of the presentations. The speaker then began to list ways to mesh
technology and the classroom and asked the visitors to sit down when they
heard something they did not, or could not, do yet.
“By the end, Wilma was the only one left standing,” said Giesbrecht. “I
think we are in the forefront of online education in the world.”
GSACRD board trustee Gordon Boddez agreed. Boddez, who has been a trustee
with the district since St. Gabriel was launched in 1997, said the program
is definitely ahead of the game and that the provincial ministry of
learning was watching.
“The government has strongly supported of this type of thing,” he said. “I
think they want to see a success story and build a policy around that.”
First created as an online solution to home-schooled students, or those
who couldn’t function in a traditional classroom setting, St. Gabriel has
evolved and expanded to a point where it benefits the whole division, said
board trustee Gordon Boddez.
“There was an initial investment in capital and technology, but the
program paid back all that money,” he said. Since then, the program has
taken tuition funds and put them back into expanding the technology and
staff at their disposal. “We [the board] certainly don’t take any money
from St. Gabe’s and put it into the district, but we do make use of their
expertise and experience. We can offer a broader range of programming for
GSACRD students in regular classrooms. That’s where we see a really strong
future role for St. Gabe’s. We see them exporting to us.”
The district sees the role of technology expanding as the provincial
Supernet project draws near, said Boddez. St. Gabriel cyber School is
ready to expand with it, said Giesbrecht. St. Gabriel staff have even
applied for a grant to have core curriculum translated, so it can be
offered to French Immersion students.
“Our courses are web-site driven and developed based on Alberta
curriculum,” he said. “But it all comes back to that look at a Christian
perspective. That comes through in our teachers and the way they interact
with students. That includes online conferences for daily prayer, online
celebration and each of our students is required to take religious
studies, including a community service component.”
Information sessions are being held in Edmonton on May 24 at Kingsway
garden Mall and Southgate Centre, at St. Gabriel School in St. Albert on
May 28 and at St. Albert Centre on May 29 to 31.
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