November 26, 2025

Edmonton Catholic Schools has received recognition at the provincial and national levels. These three awards reflect our mission to inspire students to learn and prepare them to live fully and serve God in one another. They highlight leadership, innovation, and creative communication.

Edmonton Catholic Schools Board Chair Honoured with ASBA President’s Award

Edmonton Catholic Schools is proud to share that Board Chair Sandra Palazzo has been recognized with the Alberta School Boards Association (ASBA) President’s Award at the ASBA Fall General Meeting.

This prestigious award celebrates extraordinary leadership and vision in education. Selected by the ASBA President, it honours individuals whose contributions have profoundly influenced Alberta’s educational landscape and left a lasting legacy of excellence.

Sandra’s commitment to serving the families of Edmonton Catholic Schools is unmatched. Her vocation to Catholic educational leadership and advocacy has strengthened our Division and supported all Catholic school jurisdictions across Alberta, where we are blessed with publicly funded Catholic education. Her knowledge and experience have also helped shape the broader educational landscape in our province.

We congratulate Sandra on this well-deserved recognition and thank her for her dedication to Edmonton Catholic Schools.

Edmonton Catholic Schools Honoured with ASBA Innovation and Excellence Award

We are thrilled to announce that Edmonton Catholic Schools has been recognized with the ASBA School Board Innovation and Excellence Award at the ASBA Fall General Meeting. This prestigious award celebrates school boards that launch innovative programs and initiatives to enhance student achievement.

Our Division received this honour for the outstanding work of the Autism Working Group, a three-year initiative designed to empower educators and create inclusive, student-centred learning environments. The group was formed in response to educators’ calls for enhanced support in meeting the growing exceptional needs in classrooms.

Key goals of the Autism Working Group include:

• Reframing autism to celebrate, value, and accept neurodiversity.
• Increasing student voice, choice, and autonomy.
• Evaluating and refining supports and services for continuous improvement.

This initiative has had a significant impact by building the capability of staff and students to meaningfully engage all learners in their individual and collective learning journeys.

National Recognition for ECSD’s Take and Eat: Family Activities

Edmonton Catholic Schools is delighted to announce that Father Glenn McDonald and our Communications Team have earned national recognition! The Canadian Association of Communicators in Education (CACE) has awarded ECSD the prestigious BRAVO! Coup de Coeur Award, celebrating creativity and impact in school board communications.

The winning initiative, Take and Eat: Family Activities, began as an idea from Division Chaplain Father Glenn McDonald and was brought to life by our Communications Team. The faith-based cooking series invites our community to gather in the kitchen, share affordable recipes, and live our Catholic faith at home. Each episode was designed to be accessible and relevant, reflecting the diverse realities of families across the Division.

There are now five episodes in the series. Watch them all at ecsd.net/takeandeat.

Congratulations to Father Glenn, Multimedia Production Specialist Patrick Kelly, and the entire Communications Team for this nationally recognized achievement.