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Grand Opening of St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School: A State-of-the-Art Learning Haven in Red Deer

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Atticus and Amelia Graham, the first two students registered with St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School, cut the ceremonial ribbon at the St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School grand opening on October 26 as dignitaries look on. From left to right: RDCRS Board Vice-Chair Dorraine Lonsdale, RDCRS Board Chair Murray Hollman, Alberta Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides, and Red Deer Mayor Ken Johnston.

News release from Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools

Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools is delighted to announce the successful grand opening of St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School.

This momentous event took place on October 26, 2023, in Red Deer’s Kentwood neighbourhood. The school, with its innovative design and cutting-edge facilities, represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to providing exceptional educational experiences for students in grades 6 to 9.

St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School was delivered using Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) methodology utilizing the expertise of the design and construction team from conceptualization through construction.

The IPD team consisted of Group2 Architecture, WSP Mechanical Engineering, WSP Electrical Engineering, Read Jones Christofferson Engineering, Clark Builders, World Class Contracting, AltaPro Electric, Collins Steel, Kerr Interiors and KTJ Consulting.

Clark Builders, the project’s contracted construction company, along with the remainder of the IPD team played a pivotal role in turning the architectural vision into reality. The successful completion of this ambitious project underscores the commitment and professionalism of the  entire construction team.

Construction of the two-storey school commenced in early 2022, and the successful opening marks the realization of a collaborative effort between educators, community members, and the build team.

Murray Hollman, Chair of the Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools Board of Trustees, expressed his delight, saying, “The opening of St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School is a testament to our commitment to providing students with an exceptional learning environment. This school represents not only bricks and mortar but also dreams and opportunities for the future. We are proud to offer a space that encourages students to explore their passions and reach their full potential.”

Superintendent Kathleen Finnigan shared her excitement for the new school, stating, “St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School reflects our dedication to preparing students for a rapidly evolving world. With its innovative design and modern amenities, the school empowers students to engage with learning in meaningful and exciting ways.”

Principal Rob Coumont was thrilled to be part of such an incredible event. “Our staff and I are thrilled to welcome students, and parents to our incredible new learning facility. Our focus is not only on providing high-quality catholic education with a focus on academic success and Authentic Learning but also on creating a nurturing and inclusive community where every student feels valued and inspired.”

The inauguration of St. Lorenzo Ruiz Middle School marks a significant milestone in the journey of education in Red Deer. As students step into the halls of this modern institution, they embark on a path towards academic achievement, personal growth, and a future brimming with possibilities.

Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools serves over 10,085 students in 21 schools in Red Deer, Sylvan Lake, Rocky Mountain House, Innisfail, and Olds. It also supports the learning of over 600 students in a Home Education Program. The Division is committed to serving children and parents with a complete offering of learning opportunities delivered within the context of Catholic teachings and within the means of the Division.

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Education

Toronto-area Catholic school hid ‘trans’ identity of 10-year-old girl from her parents

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From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

A school in the York Catholic District School Board kept ten-year-old Julie’s ‘transition’ a secret from her parents and called the Children’s Aid Society when her parents questioned what was happening with their daughter. The girl has since detransitioned.

A Toronto-area Catholic school has been exposed for hiding a young girl’s “gender transition” from her parents, and calling the Children’s Aid Society on the family when the parents expressed concern over the decision. 

In a September 3 article, the National Post revealed that an unnamed school in the York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB), located in the suburbs of Toronto, kept a ten-year-old girl’s “transition” a secret from her parents and called the Children’s Aid Society (CAS) when her parents questioned what was happening. The National Post article uses the alias “Julie” for the girl for privacy reasons, it also uses aliases for the names of the parents.

“Transgender activists were actively posting videos about ‘safe’ breast binding and how euphoric testosterone makes you feel and how it makes all your problems suddenly disappear. The more I was brainwashed by these videos, the more I started to resonate with them,” Julie, who is now thirteen and no longer thinks she is “transgender,” told the outlet.  

The article retells Julie’s experience, relaying that her gender dysphoria began in 2021 when she installed social media app TikTok and spent hours on it during COVID lockdowns. While online, Julie fell down rabbit holes and “discovered the LGBTQ+ community.” 

In 2021, at the start of her grade five year, after watching a video asking viewers whether they were “anxious and uncomfortable” in their own bodies, Julie became convinced she was “non-binary.”

In 2022, she came out to her class and began using “they/them” pronouns and a male name with the help of a teacher from the YCDSB. This development was kept from her parents who only discovered it in June 2022 when Julie began cutting her hair short and revealed that she did not feel “like a girl anymore.” 

“It was a horrible time for me as a parent because so much was happening behind my back. I didn’t know for a long while about many things that were happening. I suspected that something was really wrong,” Julie’s mother, Christina, recalled to the National Post.  

Many Ontario school boards have policies requiring teachers and staff withhold students’ private information from their parents, including the York Region District School Board, Thames Valley District School Board, and the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board.    

By the beginning of grade six, in September 2022, Julie believed she was a boy, using a male name and looking into testosterone injections and a double mastectomy. 

However, instead of addressing Julie’s underlying phycological issues, doctors assured her that chest binding was safe and even asked if she would like to learn about puberty blockers.  

“At that age, I can’t make a conscious decision about medical interventions with an extremely high risk of life-threatening side effects that could make me unable to ever conceive a child,” Julie declared. “All accepted that I’m a boy and never tried to dig up any underlying problems that might be causing these suicidal ideations.”  

After Julie ran away, the school called CAS, claiming that Christina’s opposition to Julie’s transition is a potential “culprit of conflict.” Over the next few months, the school called CAS several times, leading the agency to visit the family in their home at least five times. 

The school principal told CAS that “she knows that the family loves their child and want the best for the child but they are doing a lot of damage emotionally at this time.” 

Finally, in the early months of grade seven, now aged twelve, Julie’s father brought home Irreversible Damage by Abigail Shrier, which discussed the reasons behind gender dysphoria. While her father had bought the book for himself, Julie read it out of curiosity.  

“After reading about detransitioners and how they came to identify as transgender, I understood I was heading in the wrong direction and needed to turn around before I hurt my loved ones or myself,” she revealed.  

This began Julie’s detransition journey, which she discovered was not as celebrated as her initial decision to identify as a boy.  

“When we announced that she wants to go back to female pronouns, everyone kept asking: ‘Are you sure? Are you sure you want to transition?’” Christina said. 

Similarly, Julie revealed, “I did not really lose any friends, but my closest friends seem to be, pushing away from me. Like, they’re not talking to me as much, and they’re part of the LGBTQ” community.” 

Now, as she enters grade eight, Julie revealed that she “finally felt truly at peace with my identity.” 

Unfortunately, Julie’s story is not unique.

As LifeSiteNews previously reported, many Ontario parents revealed that public schools did not ask for parental consent before “gender transitioning” their children, resulting in child-parent relationships being destroyed.     

Despite the claims of LGBT activists, a significant body of evidence shows that “affirming” gender confusion carries serious harms, especially when done with impressionable children who lack the mental development, emotional maturity, and life experience to consider the long-term ramifications of the decisions being pushed on them, or full knowledge about the long-term effects of life-altering, physically transformative, and often irreversible surgical and chemical procedures.

Studies find that more than 80 percent of children suffering gender dysphoria outgrow it on their own by late adolescence  and that “transition” procedures, including “reassignment” surgery, fail to resolve gender-confused individuals’ heightened tendency to engage in self-harm and suicide – and even exacerbate it, including by reinforcing their confusion and neglecting the actual root causes of their mental strife.

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Alberta

Alberta to introduce bill to make sex-ed classes in schools optional

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From LifeSiteNews

By Anthony Murdoch

Students would no longer be automatically enrolled in sex-ed classes and parents would be able to have a hand in deciding whether they want a child enrolled in the classes

A bill from the United Conservative Party (UCP) provincial government of Alberta will make it so that parents will have to specifically opt their children into sexual education lessons rather than opt out, as is the case now, meaning by default those classes will not be included in a child’s education.

In a statement to the media this past Tuesday, Alberta Minister of Education Demetrios Nicolaides confirmed the coming legislation.

“We intend to propose legislation this fall and will continue to consult with stakeholders throughout the implementation of these policies,” he told The Canadian Press.

When the bill will be introduced remains unclear, but Nicolaides said that his ministry is consulting with school boards and educators. Alberta’s legislature will not return until October.

For some time now, grassroots parental rights groups have been calling for sex education classes to be opt in rather than opt out to prevent their kids from being exposed to extreme LGBT agendas being promoted in some schools.

News of the bill was slammed by the teaching union through Jason Schilling, the head of the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) who said he does not “necessarily understand what was broken that needs to be fixed.”

“When we pressed government, there was no real understanding of what this will look like,” he added.

Of note is that the ATA has supported teaching of radical LGBT ideas in schools in the past.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith earlier this year promised that she would introduce a bill that would uphold parental rights within the school system and change sex education classes to an opt-in model as opposed to the opt-out model it is today.

At the UCP AGM, party members passed a host of resolutions calling for parental rights to be protected, such as resolution 8 that calls for parental consent for children to “change” their pronouns at school.

UCP members also passed resolution 17, which calls for the party to support a comprehensive bill of “Parental Rights which ensures that all legislation will recognize and support parents’ rights to be informed of and in charge of all decisions to do with all services paid for by the province, including education and health care.”

Party members also passed resolution 20, which calls for the party to ban pornographic materials from being allowed to be used by teachers.

Earlier this year, Smith announced strong pro-family legislation that strengthens parental rights, protecting kids from life-altering, so-called “top and bottom” surgeries as well as other extreme forms of transgender ideology.

There have also been numerous protests against the LGBT agenda in schools, including the September 2023 “Million Person March” that drew thousands of Canadians from across the country.

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