History

A recognized need.

A group of parents just like you had children with learning difficulties who were struggling to succeed in their current schools. With a collective belief that every child has untapped potential, and that the current school system was not meeting the needs of unique learners, they set out to change things. They searched the country for the best teachers, and they studied unique programs across North America, taking what they learned and creating the unique experience that now makes up the CA program.

Our doors opened on September 14, 1981 to 42 students. The results of our efforts became quickly apparent: our teachers tailored their instruction and our students started flourishing. They were closing their learning gaps, and realizing how much they were capable of. Graduation stopped being just a possibility, and became a reality.

In June of 1987, we proudly graduated the province’s first learning-disabled grade 12 class. We haven’t stopped growing since.

The strength of a community.

By our ten-year anniversary our school had grown to 120 students, and we initiated a capital campaign to find and build a permanent space for Calgary Academy. It was an overwhelming triumph that showcased the depths of dedication our community had for our program, evidenced by their generous donations. We also learned just how supported we were by our own people as our incredible staff made a commitment to CA’s future, helping us continue to grow. Just as a forest is evidence of the life-supporting contributions from the soil, water, and sunlight that helped it survive, our gold-plated tree is our dedication to every supporter that helped us flourish.

Our future is their future.

At the end of the day, the size of our school or the number of teachers we employ doesn’t showcase our accomplishments; our students do. Our alumni community has grown to more than 4,000 members. They’ve achieved heights remarkable for any person, and made only more impressive by the challenges they have overcome. Our alumni are artists, doctors, engineers, entrepreneurs and teachers. Some of those alumni have even come back to teach at the school that first helped them unleash their potential. But more important than the title behind their names is the confidence you can’t see. Our alumni have worked through challenges, gained skillsets and experience, and left our school empowered, ready to forge their own path. That’s how we choose to measure our legacy.

Paying it forward.

Showing we could deliver the education learning disabled students needed to succeed allowed us to drive change within the Alberta Education system. Our board has always been committed to taking what we have learned through building and growing CA and finding ways to share it and give back to the community. We have provided professional development and external outreach to more than 2,500 teachers through seminars and in-services.

Starting a school is no easy task, and our existence wouldn’t be possible without the help we received early on. An active, committed Board of Governors has supported our school and staff from the very beginning. Our three founding members, Jim Gray, George Perry and Doug Rogan, served as board members for 30 years.