Alberta’s government is kickstarting accelerated funding to build new schools in Calgary, Edmonton and surrounding areas.
Alberta’s population has seen unprecedented growth, and because of this growth student enrolment in kindergarten to Grade 12 schools has increased at historic rates. To keep pace with fast-rising enrolment, the province announced $8.6 billion to accelerate school construction and introduced a new approach to funding school projects, so they can advance to the next stage of construction as soon as they are ready.
As a result of this new funding approach, Alberta’s government has sped up
11 previously announced school projects in the Calgary Metropolitan Region and Edmonton from the design stage to full construction funding. This means that these projects are now closer to having shovels in the ground building new schools for Alberta’s students. These projects will create more than 12,000 new student spaces between Airdrie, Calgary, Chestermere, Edmonton, and Okotoks.“There is no two ways about it, Alberta is growing and growing fast, so we need to build schools now. That’s why we are making a generational investment of $8.6 billion, and fast-tracking school construction process. Our commitment to building schools will help us build and open 200,000 spaces for students in communities that need them the most all within the next seven years.”

It is anticipated that these 11 school projects will be delivered through two public-private partnership bundles, with next steps being contractor selection and project design. Additional details such as total project costs and timelines will be available once contractors have been selected.
“Regardless of what stage of construction we are in, our priority is to get students into desks as quickly as possible, while ensuring their classrooms are well-built for years of learning. As Alberta communities continue to grow, this announcement allows us to meet demands for spaces faster and more efficiently. I’m excited to continue working with my ministry and industry partners on school builds, modernizations and renovations, supporting tens of thousands of jobs across the province and boosting our local and provincial economies.”
“We are grateful to the provincial government for this new high school in Cornerstone and new elementary school in Redstone. These urgently needed new schools will benefit students in the northeast corner of Calgary, which is experiencing strong growth. Across Calgary, the CBE has over 11,000 CBE students who are waiting for new schools to be announced this year, so they can attend school closer to home, and these two school announcements today are great news for over 3,000 of our students and their families.”
“Rocky View Schools looks forward to opening a new high school in Airdrie and a new K-9 school in Chestermere to help relieve space pressures in some of our most over-utilized schools. These projects are critical for two of our fastest-growing communities; we are very grateful for the government’s support in moving them forward from the design phase to full construction funding.”
Funded as part of a $2.1 billion school capital investment by Alberta’s government last year, these 11 school projects are part of the government’s overall commitment to build and modernize more than 200,000 student spaces within the next seven years. The province will invest an additional $8.6 billion over the next three budget cycles to kick-start up to 90 new schools and as many as 24 renovations or replacements and roll out more modular classrooms.
Quick facts
- Since the introduction of the accelerated school construction process, a total of 22 previously announced school projects have been approved to move forward to the next stage of the construction process.
- The 11 projects advancing to construction funding were initially approved for design funding in March 2024. The projects are as follows:
Community | School division | Project type/Name |
Airdrie | Rocky View Schools | new 9-12 school |
Calgary | Calgary Board of Education | new 10-12 school in Cornerstone |
Calgary | Calgary Board of Education | new K-4 school in Redstone |
Calgary | Calgary Catholic School District | new K-6 school in Redstone |
Chestermere | Rocky View Schools | new K-9 school |
Edmonton | Edmonton Catholic Schools | new K-9 school in Laurel |
Edmonton | Edmonton Catholic Schools | new K-9 school in River's Edge |
Edmonton | Edmonton Public Schools | new K-6 school in Glenridding Heights |
Edmonton | Edmonton Public Schools | new K-6 school in Rosenthal |
Edmonton | Edmonton Public Schools | new 7-9 school in McConachie |
Okotoks | Foothills School Division | new 10-12 school |
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