Division Office ~
Pembina Hills Schools Score High in Annual Satisfaction Survey
Pembina Hills School Division has released the results of its 2025–2026 annual satisfaction survey, completed in early February by students, staff, and parents across the division. Overall results are strong, with several measures reaching multi-year highs.
More than 1,700 students, 239 staff members, and 546 parents participated. Highlights include:
- 92.3% of students said their school is safe and caring — the highest student result in at least five years.
- 97.4% of staff agreed that teachers challenge students to do their best.
- 97.6% of students said their teachers have taught them about Indigenous points of view, up from 94.5% in 2021-2022.
- The composite Safe and Welcoming Learning Environment score reached 89.33%, the highest recorded since tracking began in 2018-2019.
Parent participation increased this year to 30.8%, up from 26.7% in 2024-2025. School-level results are shared by principals at each school’s April or May School Council meeting, and are posted on each school’s website under “Assurance Reporting.”
Pembina Hills Celebrates Growth in Indigenous Education Programming
At its April 29, 2026, meeting, the Pembina Hills School Division Board of Trustees received an update on Indigenous Education in the division, highlighting strong momentum in programming, community partnerships, and student outcomes across the division.
Pembina Hills serves more than 650 self-identified Indigenous students across First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities. Supporting student success and building understanding for all learners remains grounded in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action and Alberta’s Teaching Quality Standard.
Highlights from this year’s report:
- Indigenous Liaisons supporting students and families, strengthening relationships with Elders and Knowledge Holders, and connecting communities to resources.
- “Where’s Wâposh?” — developed by Early Learning Principal, developed a hands-on Métis cultural learning program that brings a Trapper’s Tent experience, Michif language lessons, and traditional activities to Early Learners (Pre-K to Grade 4) across the division.
- 97.6% of students this year reported that their teachers have taught them about Indigenous points of view — up from 94.5% in 2021–22.
- A Land-Based Learning experience for high school credit is planned for May 27–29, 2026, at Lessard Lake (near Cherhill), with 31 students from five schools planning to attend.
- The 2026 Indigenous Graduation Celebration will be held on June 12, 2026, at École Barrhead Elementary School, in partnership with Rupertsland Institute.
Board Approves Budget Framework — $3.6 Million More for Students
The Pembina Hills School Division Board of Trustees approved the framework for distributing the division’s financial resources for the 2026/27 school year at its April 29, 2026, meeting.
PHSD’s projected operational funding for 2026-2027 is $60,857,649 — an increase of approximately $3.6 million, or 6.3%, compared to estimated actuals in 2025-2026. The largest driver of this increase is additional grant funding to support a negotiated teacher salary increase of slightly over 9%.
The division projects nearly 3,700 students in 2026-2027, including 325 full-time students through Vista Virtual School. Overall enrolment is relatively stable, with slight declines in some community schools offset by continued growth at Vista Virtual School.
A notable change for 2026-2027: PHSD is moving toward a site-based decision-making model for school budgets. Principals and school leadership teams will build their own school budgets within their overall funding envelope, rather than receiving a prescribed staffing allocation and needing central approval to move funds between categories. This change responds directly to feedback from school leaders and is grounded in Administrative Procedure 20-50 School-Based Decision Making.
Individual school budgets will be submitted to the Division office for consolidation. The Board will consider the final divisional budget for approval at its May 27, 2026, regular meeting.