Boost Your Compassion and Creativity in the EIPS International Baccalaureate Programme

Salisbury Composite High students in the IB programme and Sal for Humanity group made cookies for a bake sale to raise funds for UNICEF.

Sherwood Park, AB. — Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) students looking for an academic challenge can cultivate their active, compassionate and lifelong learning in the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme. The IB programme is an academically and creatively challenging course of studies for students. IB is an excellent choice for those who are seeking a heightened level of preparation for post-secondary education and beyond.

Service is an integral part of the program and several IB students have formed a group called Sal for Humanity. “Sal for Humanity has brought IB students closer together and allowed greater interaction with the whole school community to help good causes,” says Shivani Lamba, a Grade 12 student in the program at Salisbury Composite High.

Last year, the group fundraised for the Red Cross. This school year, Sal for Humanity students ran a bake sale with all proceeds going to UNICEF. “Humanitarian causes often seem out of reach—as if there’s nothing I could personally do—but Sal for Humanity has shown me that I can make a difference,” says Layla Pettifor, a Grade 12 student in the IB programme at Salisbury Composite. “It’s especially fulfilling because I’ve helped develop these fundraising projects from the first ideas to the finishing touches.”

The IB programme’s overall aim is to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

“In IB English, students read complex texts through the lens of global issues and their interplay in real life contexts,” says Doug Siewert, a teacher at Salisbury Composite. “As such, students read eleven texts and approach their reading from a variety of critical lenses—Postcolonialism, Feminist, New Critical and more. This reading looks at a variety of texts, from novels to memoirs and poetry to graphic novels. Each one involves a high level of student engagement and verbal and written interaction. IB students often excel in the written communication requirements of the Alberta program—and we have a lot of fun with it.”

Interested students and families are invited to attend an upcoming IB information session:

Event Details:
Date: Feb. 4, 2025
Time: 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Location: Salisbury Composite High
20 Festival Way, Sherwood Park

The IB programme is currently offered in grades 11 and 12 at Salisbury Composite High. New and returning students may apply to the IB programme during the registration process beginning in February. For key registration dates, see the EIPS Guide to Registration 2025-26.

Elk Island Public Schools is one of Alberta’s largest school divisions, serving approximately 17,950 students in 42 schools. We are proud to be an integral part of our communities, including Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Vegreville, Strathcona and Lamont counties, and the western portion of the County of Minburn.

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For more information, media can contact:
Laura McNabb, Director, Communication Services, EIPS 780-417-8204 cell 780-405-4902