One of the most important ways you can make a meaningful difference in the lives of CBE students is by participating on school councils. By connecting students, schools and your community, school councils help nurture and inspire students to achieve their full potential.
The Role of School Council
Parents and community members are important partners in public education. Through school councils, our partners can make significant and meaningful contributions to the learning opportunities provided to CBE students.
Through the
Education Act Alberta Education defines school councils as a collective association of parents, secondary students, the principal, teachers, and community representative(s) whose purpose is to advise the principal and the Board of Trustees respecting matters related to the school. School councils have legislated advisory and decision-making authority defined within the Education Act and the
School Councils Regulation 94/2019.
Every CBE school community is required to establish a school council. Working in collaboration with the principal and school community, school councils can help foster a supportive learning environment and create valuable opportunities for students to meet the standards of education set by the minister.
Meetings | Community of School Councils (COSC)
The Community of School Councils (COSC) is comprised of school council chairs (or an appropriate designate), members of the Board of Trustees and other CBE leaders. Its purpose is for CBE leaders and parents to have an opportunity to work together, to share information, discuss concerns and plan for the future.
We value the contribution of parent leadership and have formalized a program to keep the lines of communication open between the CBE as a public education system and parent leadership in individual school communities.
View the meeting schedules and information in
Meetings.
ASCA Memberships for CBE School Councils
The Board of Trustees will pay the cost of Alberta School Councils' Association (ASCA) memberships for any CBE school councils who are interested in this opportunity. Memberships need to be renewed on an annual basis. Membership terms run from July 1 to June 30.
ASCA provides valuable support and services to school councils across the province. To learn more about ASCA, please visit
their website.
To obtain a membership for the current school year, just fill out
this form. Once the form has been filled out, you are able to take advantage of ASCA's resources and services for the rest of the school year.
News for School Councils
CBE Connections is a monthly newsletter that connects families more closely to what is happening across our system, and provides timely information and updates for school councils. It is generally sent out to all families in the first week of each month in the school year.
Social Media
One way school councils can stay up to date with the most current system news and information is to follow CBE's social media accounts:
School councils and parent fundraising societies are able to create their own social media accounts, in consultation with the school principal. It needs to be clear in the naming and content of the account that this is run by parents and not by the school. Content on these accounts should be limited to their activities and events, reminders of information already communicated by the school, and community information that is relevant to families in their community.
CBE Social Media Guidelines for School Councils
Beware of Phishing Attempts
Phishing scams are on the rise, becoming more sophisticated and can take many forms (email, phone calls, texts). School councils can be a target, and extra vigilance is required to spot them.
