Great things happening at WD South Alberta Hockey Academy
Grades are improving, enrolment is increasing, and interest in the WD South Alberta Hockey Academy is on the rise. The message was definitely a positive one when
Darren MacMillan, program development coordinator for the hockey academy gave his report to Prairie Rose School Division trustees at their Feb. 11 meeting.
“Hockey motivates these kids. Start there and what they learn transfers to other areas of their life,” said MacMillan, noting the importance of the academy’s mission, vision, and core values.
The students of the academy embrace its core values which include pushing each other toward great possibilities in the future, and training hard mentally and physically, continual improvement. They also gain the understanding that a negative mindset will not result in a positive life, the value of leadership skills, and that not every victory shows up on the scoreboard.
“They can redefine their journey and they learn you need to have dreams. You can do this,” said MacMillan. “The students take ownership of their own journey.”
In the academy’s first year, 65 students at four schools were enrolled in the program. Currently, in its second year, enrolment is up 40 percent with more than 100 students, taking part in seven hockey academies at five different schools. These include:
-Eagle Butte High School (Grades 1012)
-Foremost School (Grades 7-12) -Irvine School (Grades 7-9) Redcliff schools (Grades 6-9) There are also more than 30 staff members involved with the hockey academy.
MacMillan said that while they don’t have any concrete statistics yet, he has been receiving lots of positive feedback from the parents.
“I hear lots of anecdotes from the parents. One student is now on the honour roll-had never been there before and other students have seen their grades go up,” he said, adding that research is currently being done to determine those concrete stats.
The academy also shoots videos of the student athletes so the parents have a better idea of what’s happening at the hockey academy.
A hockey academy has been launched in Oyen and if the numbers are there, Grades 4 and 5 at Margaret Wooding School in Redcliff and Irvine School will be added to the program.