School Message
Good Afternoon to our Western families,
We are well into our exam period, and would like to thank the incredible volunteers who ran "Grab and Go breakfast for WCHS students this week on Wednesday and Friday. Our students were thrilled with this treat before their exams, and we are certain it fueled them for success. We are so grateful to have a parent community so dedicated to supporting our students.
Report cards will be visible to students and families on June 25th. Please see the information on the following page for more details.
A reminder that all students who haven't yet cleaned out their lockers should do so ASAP, as we are beginning to clear and prepare lockers for next year. If a student's items have been removed from their locker, they can retrieve them from the main office next week.
Thank you,
Darrin Whitbread | Principal, Western Canada High School
Student Spotlight
Thank you to Forest M. and Brooke W. for creating and running DnD campaigns with the Creative Writing & Publishing class. We appreciate all the time you put into teaching everyone how to play and for running some engaging, eventful campaigns!
Updates
Google Accounts Are Not Forever
The CBE is reminding all students to save their files they wish to keep on a personal drive prior to June 26, 2026. It is especially important for students who are graduating or leaving the CBE to move all files over to personal storage because they will lose access to their CBE account after August 31, 2026, and their CBE email address and inbox will be deleted permanently.
Anyone who has applied to a post-secondary institution or scholarship with their CBE email address is encouraged to update their email contact information with the organization to which they have applied.
2025-2026 Year-End Report Cards
Families can view, download, or print online report cards for kindergarten to Grade 12 students June 25 – July 31, 2026, through MyCBE. Within MyCBE, families can also view student information, comments from your child's teacher, assignments and grades, and attendance information.
Please note: After July 31, 2026, report cards will no longer be available to access in MyCBE.
If you do not already have a MyCBE account, learn how here.
Creative Writing
Talk to your guidance counsellor today about joining Creative Writing & Publishing next year so you can have your work published!
IPP Families
IPPs have been handed out by classroom teachers. If your student was not in attendance the last few days at school, the IPP will be mailed to you.
As part of the IPP process, we are required to collect signatures confirming your acceptance of the IPP document.
If you have not already returned a signature page, please use this generic IPP signature page. Fill in your child's name, and sign the "End of Year Review Date" section, emailing it to westerncanada@cbe.ab.ca
If you plan to send back the page you received in the physical copy of the IPP, your student can bring the signature page to the Main Office.
It has been a pleasure to support your IPP student this year. I am in the building until the end of June, so please do reach out with questions or concerns.
Thank you,
Julie Dixon
Fall Drama Production - Into the Woods
Congratulations to everyone who auditioned for our Fall production of Into the Woods this week. We had an unprecedented number of students auditioning! We look forward to starting rehearsals with our cast and to welcoming our school community to see the big show in November.
Physics Contest Results
Twenty-four of our brightest physics students at Western participated in two different physics prize exams earlier in the spring and Western Canada High School students had some outstanding results:
Sir Isaac Newton Exam (SIN), which occurred in May
- Jasper Z.
- 4th in the world, out of 2274 participants
- 2nd in Canada, out of 1515 participants
- Certificate of Distinction
- Justin Z.
- 11th in the world, out of 2274 participants
- 3rd in Canada, out of 1515 participants
- Certificate of Distinction
- Gary W.
- 40th in the world, out of 2274 participants
- 7th in Canada, out of 1515 participants
- Certificate of Distinction
- Sylvan Z
- Certificate of Distinction
- Luke S
- Certificate of Distinction
Canadian Association of Physics Exam ( CAP) which occurred in April
Results for Alberta:
- 2nd Srihari K ( 9th in Canada)
- 3rd Blake D
- 4th Sylvan Z
- 5th Jack N
- 7th Andrew W.
- 8th Allen G.
- 10th Edward X.
The physics teachers want to congratulate all participants! Mr. Ma, Mr. Stewart, Mr. Vlietstra, and Mr. Freeman are very proud and in awe!
Student Services
2026/2027 Course Requests:
As we are fast approaching the end of the school year, we encourage grade 10 and 11 students to review their course selection for the 2026-2027 school year in PowerSchool. If they need any changes to their course selection, students should connect with their counsellor in person (through drop-ins) before June 9th. This is for course selection only. The schedule will be available by the 3rd week of August, at which point students can fill out an online form for adjustments. This will be directly communicated to families in August.
Summer School Confirmation:
Students who registered for summer school classes can expect to receive confirmation emails from CBE-Learn the first week of June.
Summer School Withdrawals:
Any student who registered for a CBE Summer School course and no longer wishes to take the course must meet with their counselor in Student Services by June 25 to withdraw from the course.
To complete the withdrawal process, a parent or guardian must also email the student’s assigned counselor requesting withdrawal from the course.
GRADitude Project
June Exam Schedule
June’s exam schedule has been finalized and is available on Western’s website. It can be found under the tab Teaching & Learning, then Exam Schedule.
Extended Absences
It is the school’s responsibility to ensure parent(s)/legal guardian(s) understand the impact that extended absences may have on their child’s education. When parents/guardians wish to remove their student from school for an extended period of time (longer than 3 days) for reasons other than illness or bereavement, we ask that an Extended Absence form, available in the main office, be completed and submitted.
Attendance
To report your child’s absence, please call 403-228-5363, option 1, or email westerncanada@cbe.ab.ca. When providing an update, please include: The student’s full name (spell the last name slowly and clearly if leaving a voicemail). The reason for the absence. The timeframe of the absence. Please note: Attendance updates may take longer during transit delays, winter weather, or other events affecting attendance, as the school manages records for approximately 2,250 students. Updates may take up to one school day. To avoid delays, please do not leave multiple messages unless correcting a previous one. Thank you for your patience and understanding!
Independent Student Form
Age 18 is the legal age of majority in Alberta, which affects the rights of parents/guardians of students who reach the majority to receive certain information from The Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and CBE schools concerning that student.
When a student reaches the majority, he/she/they become an “Independent Student” under the School Act. Alberta's Protection of Privacy Act (POPA) prevents the CBE from disclosing personal information concerning an Independent Student to any persons (other than that individual), including to the parent/guardian, unless the individual consents in writing. Without such written consent being received by the CBE from the Independent Student, CBE is not able to share personal information with the parent/guardian concerning the Independent Student. Such information includes, but is not limited to, attendance records, parent/teacher conferences, field trips, suspensions, report cards, and similar matters.
The required consent form is emailed to students in advance of them turning 18. Students may also obtain a copy of the form from the main office.
Subscribe to Stay Informed
Due to Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), you need to subscribe online if you want to receive email or text messages on “commercial” school topics such as the Weekly Update or IPP communication.
MyCBE Accounts
Parents, legal guardians, and independent students will need to create a MyCBE account to complete required forms, pay fees, etc. To create an account, please see the MyCBE Support page HERE. If you are experiencing difficulties in creating your account, please see Ms. Hanley in the main office.
Grad Fees – Now Due
Grad fees this year are $85, including GST. This fee has been added to your graduating student’s account and is now payable via your MyCBE account or in person at the Business Office.
A reminder that we ask ALL outstanding fees, from current and previous years, be paid in full prior to the end of the year. If you are experiencing financial difficulties, please see below how to apply for a central fee waiver. This waiver must be completed for a student to be considered for a school-based waiver of fees.
Centralized Fee Waiver
No child is ever denied access to an education in the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) because of an inability to pay. If you can't afford the fees, there are several ways to qualify for a central fee waiver.
Waiver applications for the current school year are found online through your MyCBE account and are available from the start of the school year until June 30. Please check out more information here.