On December 17, 2019 the WRSD Board of Trustees passed a resolution to close Eldorado Elementary School in Drayton Valley, Alberta effective the opening of the new replacement school in January 2021. The new replacement school is being built to replace Evergreen Elementary School that was demolished in 2018 due to structural issues. For further background information regarding this decision please see Summary of Nov 4, 2019 Public Meeting Regarding the Possible Closure of Eldorado Elementary School. 

Upon closure, all of the students from Eldorado Elementary School will be transferred to either the new replacement school or Aurora Elementary School in Drayton Valley. This decision is consistent with our 2018 capital plan request to government for a new replacement school and our commitment to improve our school utilization rates in Drayton Valley once the new school opens.

On December 17, 2019 the Board of Trustees also passed a resolution to continue operating Drayton Christian School in the building they have been sharing with Eldorado Elementary School. They will use only the space required to have an appropriate utilization rate while the rest of the building will be closed until the Board has made a decision regarding the structural issues being experienced at H.W. Pickup Middle School in Drayton Valley. We may need this space once again in the event that we need to close all or a portion of H.W. Pickup School. This decision is still in process and will impact our April 2020 capital plan submission. In the meantime, the closure of Eldorado Elementary School will provide some efficiencies in terms of custodial, administration and utility costs.

We would like to thank Alberta Education and Alberta Infrastructure for investing in the Drayton Valley area and assisting our Board in its efforts to improve our school utilization rates while  at the same time providing safe school buildings that support 21st century learning.

We also want to thank the students, staff, parents and communities of Drayton Valley and Brazeau County for their engagement with the Board over the past several months in terms of making this decision. 

The Board of Trustees will continue to do everything within their power to provide our students and staff with safe, modern learning facilities while at the same time maintain sound fiscal management of division resources.