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Inclusive Education

K-12 Education

The Fort McMurray School Division provides a range of supports and services to meet the diverse learning needs of all students. A dedicated team works collaboratively to understand each student’s unique learning style and to personalize program planning through a continuum of supports and services. With this individualized approach, students are typically successful in their local community schools.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive learning environment that aligns with Alberta’s vision for inclusive education. The following principles guide our student-centered and inclusive practices (Alberta Education, 2020):

  • Recognize, value, and support diversity and differences in learners.
  • Maintain high expectations for all students.
  • Identify and respond to individual strengths and needs.
  • Remove barriers to create accessible learning environments.
  • Build capacity within our schools and staff.
  • Collaborate with families and stakeholders to ensure success for all students.

Inclusive Education in Community Schools

All students enroll at their designated catchment school based on their home address, including all students meeting Alberta Education’s criteria for special education coding. In Alberta, the first and preferred option for educating students with exceptionalities or specialized needs is to be enrolled within inclusive settings at community schools. School staff, in partnership with families, develop an Individualized Program Plan (IPP) to outline strategies and supports that address the student’s specific needs and conditions for academic success.

Division Programs

Specialized Programs and Unique Learning Environments

If a student requires additional support beyond what the community school can provide, the school learning team may explore other programming options. This process begins with the principal and school learning team, who work collaboratively with families to identify appropriate specialized programs or unique settings. Decisions regarding specialized placements involve input from parents, school staff, and other education partners, as applicable, to ensure the best outcomes for the student. The Fort McMurray Public School Division has a variety of programs designed to support students with severe exceptionalities and needs.  Click the links below to find out more about each program.

Specialized Programs

There are a variety of programs designated for students with severe disabilities. Click the links below for more information.

Transportation for Programs

Students attending programs at schools outside of their catchment​ will have access to transportation options. Transportation pick-up and drop-off locations will be close to a student's home, but not necessarily door-to-door service. When determining student pick up and drop off locations, a number of factors are considered, including student safety, levels of independence, and mobility.

School-Based Supports

Each school employs a Learning Assistance Coach (LAC) teacher who focuses on curriculum, staff capacity building and collaboration to support students with diverse learning needs. The LAC is the key person on the school learning team to assist with all elements leading to furthering inclusive opportunities for all students in the school. The LAC will work directly with division personnel, counsellors, Child and Family Services and Alberta Health Services to facilitate quality programming and wraparound services for students.

All Division schools are staffed with qualified counselling personnel.  The role of the counsellor is to provide comprehensive support in the areas of educational, personal and/or career counselling for students for their academic, social and emotional success within their school environment. 

In matters related to social/emotional involvement, the school counsellor is a member of the school team, who is supported by the Supervisor of Mental Health, who provides ongoing consultation and supports families in removing barriers to appropriate supports.  School counsellors across the division provide both individual and group interventions that focus on identifying core problem areas and supporting classroom learning.

The Division employs two Mental Health Therapists and one Play Therapist that can support with family therapy services, supported by a division Supervisor of Mental Health. The Supervisor of Mental Health works collaboratively with counselors and school system staff to promote safe, healthy, and inclusive learning for all students.

Referrals are made from school-based counselors, with the consultation of the Mental Health Supervisor for appropriate division referrals. If these therapeutic services are recommended, parental/guardian consent is required for ongoing psychological services provided to a student.  Schools are required to ensure that relevant documentation is provided in the student's file regarding custody and decision making authority.

Parents or guardians who feel that their child would benefit from more in-depth psychological services are encouraged to discuss the referral process for community support with school personnel.

Division-Based Supports and Services

Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) play a vital role on educational teams, supporting students with speech, language, literacy, and communication challenges to reach their academic and personal potential. SLPs contribute to student success by promoting access, participation, and inclusion in both the curriculum and the wider school environment. The FMPSD offers a variety of SLP supports for school-aged children with communication challenges. Speech-language co​nsultation and collaboration may involve collaboration with school staff to provide universal classroom strategies, whole group lessons, and consultation on developing Individual Program Plans (IPP).​ Alberta Health Services (AHS) provides additional SLP services to pre-school and school-aged children through their Pediatric Community Rehabilitation Services. 

The FMPSD SLPs offer consultative supports to teachers and children in specialized classes. They also provided screening, assessment, intervention and teacher collaboration for children experiencing communication and language challenges that significantly impact their learning and participation in ECDP through to grade 2. Services are also available to students with complex communication needs requiring augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) tools and devices. 

Through a collaborative approach, SLPs work with school learning teams to identify and support students with significant challenges participating and learning due to difficulties with communication. The SLP provides a continuum of services at the universal, targeted, and specialized levels to support the implementation of strategies to meet student needs.  

Alberta Health Services Pediatric Community Rehabilitation Services provides family-centered services that focus on prioritized functional goals within home and community environments. These services are not provided at school. Visit Pediatric Rehabilitation at Alberta Health Services for a complete listing of services and how to access them. Parents may self-refer their children at (780) 788-1377 or (780) 791-6295 for the Fort McMurray area, which is the North Zone.

AHS provides support to children and their families in the following areas:

  • Speech sound disorders (including Apraxia)
  • Fluency / Stuttering
  • Feeding / Swallowing

The FMPSD provides support for students that impact learning and participation in the classroom in the following areas:

  • Receptive Language - understanding oral and written language
  • Expressive Language - use of oral and written language
  • Complex Communication Needs - students who can not use speech alone to communicate and may benefit from using Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) tools or devices. 

Parents who have concerns regarding their child’s language development or complex communication needs are encouraged to speak with their child’s teacher and school team.

The school learning team may explore additional supported programming options. If a student requires support and services beyond the community school, a referral for consideration of a placement in a division specialized program begins with the principal of the community school and the school learning team. Consideration for placement in a specialized class or program is a collaborative process among parents, principals, teachers, and others and is based on availability.

The following consultation services are used to support students in their diverse learning needs as appropriate:

  • Psychological Assessment Services 
  • Low Incidence Services
    • Consultants for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing
    • Consultants for the Blind and Visually Impaired
    • Educational Audiology
  • Physical Therapy
  • Occupational Therapy
  • CASA Classroom 
  • Behaviour Support

CASA Mental Health was previously named Child and Adolescent Services Association, a nonprofit developed to support holistic, culturally safe, wrap-around mental health services for children, youth and their families in Alberta. CASA Mental Health has partnered with the Government of Alberta, community partners and school divisions to deliver mental health care within classrooms. CASA Classrooms address the need for services closer to students by bridging the child’s mental health and school needs, through a coordinated approach. 

Please access the CASA website for more detailed information.

CASA Classroom was expanded to the community of Fort McMurray in the 2024-2025 school year with a partnership between Fort McMurray Public Schools and Fort McMurray Catholic Schools. You can read the news release here. 

CASA Classrooms support students and families in the following ways:

  • Tailored treatment plans and education for managing mental health conditions
  • Individual and group therapy sessions
  • Social-Emotional Learning for students and families/caregivers
  • Referrals to community and social supports
  • Assistance transitioning students back to their community school and care teams

CASA Classrooms are for students who are:

  • Currently under the care of a physician or mental health professional,
  • Have not responded to prior therapy, and
  • Are ready to participate in individual and group therapy with their family.

Our partnership has provided an opportunity for a joint classroom that is located at the St. Gabriel School/Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Thickwood. For the 2025-26 school year, the CASA Classroom is servicing students in grades 7-8. Please reach out to your child’s school counselor and/or principal for more information. The classroom grade offerings change each year and could range from grades 4-12 and are determined based on greatest areas of need. 

CASA House is a different level of service under the CASA Mental Health framework and includes both a day program as well as a residential program. Fort McMurray is scheduled to have a CASA House built in Fort McMurray to begin the 2027-28 school year. It is a 20 bed facility that will offer a day and a residential program for mental health care services locally. 

You may read more about the planned expansion here and here.

In partnership with families, school staff develop an Individualized Program Plan (IPP) to outline strategies and supports that address the student’s specific needs and conditions for academic success. Some, but not all, of these learner needs may be addressed in the student’s Individual Program Plan (IPP). In keeping with the individual abilities and unique learning needs, a specialized team supports students and assists with program planning. Behaviour support is available through a tiered intervention model, starting with classroom teachers and school teams, based on individual student needs and a Behaviour Support Plan (BSP).

If a student requires behaviour support beyond the scope of school-based resources, a tiered model of consultation is accessible through a division referral process. Behavioural supports and services begin with the community school learning team, including the Principal.  The process is a collaborative process of parents, the school-based team and outside consultation where available. The Division has a Behaviour Support Teacher who is able to help consult for classroom-based behavioural concerns.  The division also seeks specialized behavioural intervention consultation from an ABA Behaviourist (Applied Behavioural Analyst) as appropriate and available.