October referendum to close Edmonton schools

Edmonton Public and Edmonton Catholic Schools have opted to close schools for the day during the provincial referendum in October.

Most Edmonton schools will be closed Oct. 19 as Albertans hit the ballot box for a number of immigration and constitution-related questions.

The Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) board of trustees voted 5-3 to approve the new school schedule recommendation for the upcoming year on Tuesday.

A Professional Development (P.D.) day originally set for Oct. 13 will be moved to accommodate the Oct. 19 provincial referendum.

Elections Alberta requested the move to make hosting polling stations at schools easier, according to the recommendations report.

Trustees in support of the rescheduled P.D. Day voiced student operational and safety concerns, including the logistics of parking, keeping the front doors unlocked and washroom capacity as voters pile into schools for what could be a lengthy wait.

Others against noted child-care concerns, as parents rely on the EPSB calendar in order to book time off during P.D. and non-instructional days.

“A lot of the families made it very clear in the last couple of days that making this a non-instructional day where kids are at home, for some families it limits their availability to get out there and vote … on the flip side, the safety piece cannot be ignored either,” said Ward C trustee Holly Nichol at Tuesday’s board meeting.

Oct. 19 is so far slated to have nine ballots on questions related to provincial social services for immigrants as well as giving Alberta greater jurisdiction under the Canadian Constitution.

Board policy does allow for calendar changes under requirements outside of the division’s control, like a government-mandated election date.

Schools previously had a P.D. day for the 2025 federal election and a non-instructional day for the municipal election. The difference is that teachers still work during P.D. days, but students stay home.

The Edmonton Catholic School Board announced this week that it too would be closing its schools during voting day at the request of Elections Alberta.