On behalf of the staff and students of City Park Collegiate, we'd like to introduce you to our school. City Park is a rather unique high school at Saskatoon Public Schools (SPS), serving about 200 students from Grades 8 through 12. Unlike other schools at SPS, where the school year is divided into semesters (halves) or quarters, at City Park our year is divided into trimesters (thirds). We've found this structure works particularly well since we often have students transferring to City Park from other high schools, allowing a wide range of entry points for students in need.
Our school's academic program is designed to meet the needs of students who have struggled in previous school settings. In Grades 8 and 9, the goal is to improve basic academic skills, particularly in the areas of mathematics and language arts. In each trimester, our students participate in 90 minutes of survey classes, providing a brief introduction to courses they may take in more senior grades. These courses offer experiences in Fine Arts -- including photography and sculpture - as well as in two types of Practical and Applied Arts courses, including cooking, sewing, woods, metals, horticulture, etc.
In our more senior grades, students take courses at either the modified or alternative level. The emphasis in Grades 10 through 12 is on Work Education and preparing students for the world of work beyond high school. Every trimester for three years students participate in an extended period of work experience, where students spend entire days for one or two weeks as employees of local employers. By the time students graduate, they will have built an extended resume with a diverse set of experiences and skills to make them work ready. Graduates of City Park are eligible for some programs at the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST), but cannot graduate and go directly to university.
In addition to our core academic and Work Education programs, we offer a wide array of innovative and flexible learning opportunities for students. For those students who have been out of school for a period of time, we offer a Junior (i.e., Grades 8 and 9) VISIONS program that allows them to re-enter school gradually and to work at their own pace. Similarly, in Grades 10 through 12, we offer a Senior VISIONS classroom experience, where students attend a half-day and work toward high school matriculation. The goal of each of these classrooms is to re-integrate students into regular programming at City Park. Students may also earn credits through our Extensions Program (ESP), where they attend once a week while making progress at home.
Finally, we offer two flagship programs as part of our Collegiate Renewal strategy. Our Resource Room mixes physical movement and fitness with learning. In Jog Your Memory, twenty minutes of exercise on treadmills or stationary bikes leads to increased learning for students. In our Cultural Immersion Program (scheduled in Trimester 3), female Grade 10 and 11 students immerse themselves in First Nations and Métis culture while earning credits in Visual Art, Language Arts, Cree, Native Studies, and Word Education.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss our school with you in greater detail. We invite you to contact us directly (Tel: 306-683-7550) to arrange a visit and personal tour of City Park Collegiate.