Photo: Ribbet32 · CC BY-SA 4.0The schools around Grande Prairie County No. 1 answer to 5 boards
The Grande Prairie School Division runs the most, 15 of them; The Peace Wapiti School Division, The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division and The Fort Vermilion School Division run the rest. Results lean low: 21 of 35 in the lower two fifths in Alberta. Taken together, Grande Prairie County No. 1 and its 3 km edge hold 24 elementary schools, 6 secondary schools and 9 schools for every grade for 16,110 students.
What stands out about Grande Prairie County No. 1’s schools
One big school
With 1,502 students, Grande Prairie Composite High School is the area’s biggest. Every school ↓
Big elementary schools
Elementary schools here average 392 students, against 274 in Alberta; Whispering Ridge Community School and Clairmont Community School are the largest. Every school ↓
The strongest results
Derek Taylor School (elementary) posts the area’s strongest results: the top fifth in Alberta. Results ↓
Every figure here sets the area’s schools beside the rest of its province.
Which of the 5 boards runs which school
Each board’s schools in the area, largest first.
| Board | System | Schools | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Grande Prairie School DivisionGrande Prairie, Charles Spencer, Riverstone, Isabel Campbell, Montrose, Crystal Park, Grande Prairie Christian, Roy Bickell … | English public | 15 | 7,984 |
| The Peace Wapiti School DivisionPeace Wapiti Academy, Whispering Ridge, Harry Balfour, Robert W. Zahara, Hythe Regional, Clairmont, Helen E. Taylor, Bezanson … | English public | 14 | 3,747 |
| The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School DivisionSt. Joseph Catholic, St. John Paul II Catholic School / Faculté St. Jean-Paul II, St. Catherine, Holy Cross, St. Kateri, Mother Teresa, Ecole St. Gerard, St. Mary's | English Catholic | 8 | 4,086 |
| The Fort Vermilion School DivisionSt. Mary’s | English public | 1 | 94 |
| The Northwest Francophone Education RegionNouvelle Frontière | French public | 1 | 199 |
Boards and districts as the provincial lists name them.
How Grande Prairie County No. 1’s schools do on Alberta’s tests
The Provincial Achievement Tests in Grades 6 and 9: each school against every school in Alberta.
Its School Grade is C: it compares these results with the other towns of the province.
The area’s schools by fifth of the province
Each school’s band is the average of its measures’ fifths. The mark shows an even fifth of the area’s schools.
| Measure | Schools | Middle here | Alberta |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAT: acceptable standard | 35 | 61% | 67% |
| PAT: standard of excellence | 35 | 7% | 13% |
Furthest from the provincial middle is the standard of excellence: 7% here, against 13% in Alberta.
Every school’s results (35)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Derek Taylor SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 80% · Excellence 27% | Top fifth |
| Grande Prairie Christian SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 82% · Excellence 26% | Top fifth |
| Bezanson SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 77% · Excellence 17% | Second fifth |
| Elmworth SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 76% · Excellence 17% | Second fifth |
| I.V. Macklin Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 64% · Excellence 25% | Second fifth |
| La Glace SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 81% · Excellence 11% | Second fifth |
| Ecole St. Gerard Catholic SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 72% · Excellence 12% | Middle fifth |
| Peace Wapiti AcademySecondary · Grades 9–12 | Acceptable 72% · Excellence 12% | Middle fifth |
| Robert W. Zahara Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–6 | Acceptable 68% · Excellence 16% | Middle fifth |
| Harry Balfour SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 75% · Excellence 9% | Middle fifth |
| Holy Cross Catholic SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 68% · Excellence 13% | Middle fifth |
| Isabel Campbell Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 64% · Excellence 10% | Middle fifth |
| Roy Bickell Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 65% · Excellence 13% | Middle fifth |
| Whispering Ridge Community SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 75% · Excellence 10% | Middle fifth |
| Charles Spencer High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Acceptable 60% · Excellence 11% | Fourth fifth |
| St. Catherine Catholic SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 58% · Excellence 15% | Fourth fifth |
| Aspen Grove SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 61% · Excellence 5% | Fourth fifth |
| Crystal Park SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 57% · Excellence 7% | Fourth fifth |
| Maude Clifford Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–6 | Acceptable 58% · Excellence 5% | Fourth fifth |
| Mother Teresa SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 56% · Excellence 6% | Fourth fifth |
| Riverstone Public SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 57% · Excellence 7% | Fourth fifth |
| St. John Paul II Catholic School / Faculté St. Jean-Paul IISecondary · Grades 9–12 | Acceptable 58% · Excellence 6% | Fourth fifth |
| St. Kateri Catholic SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 64% · Excellence 5% | Fourth fifth |
| École Montrose SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 64% · Excellence 5% | Fourth fifth |
| École Nouvelle FrontièreAll grades · Grades K–12 | Acceptable 56% · Excellence 9% | Fourth fifth |
| Alexander Forbes SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 62% · Excellence 4% | Bottom fifth |
| Grande Prairie Composite High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Acceptable 46% · Excellence 7% | Bottom fifth |
| Helen E. Taylor SchoolAll grades · Grades 4–9 | Acceptable 52% · Excellence 3% | Bottom fifth |
| Hythe Regional SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | Acceptable 47% · Excellence 5% | Bottom fifth |
| Teepee Creek SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 61% · Excellence 1% | Bottom fifth |
| Clairmont Community SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 37% · Excellence 3% | Bottom fifth |
| Hillside Community SchoolElementary · Grades K–6 | Acceptable 47% · Excellence 4% | Bottom fifth |
| St. Joseph Catholic High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Acceptable 40% · Excellence 4% | Bottom fifth |
| St. Mary's Catholic SchoolElementary · Grades K–8 | Acceptable 48% · Excellence 2% | Bottom fifth |
| St. Mary’s Catholic SchoolElementary · Grades K–6 | Acceptable 8% · Excellence 0% | Bottom fifth |
Alberta Education and Childcare, PAT multiyear school results (core courses pooled). Alberta’s own notes: breaches in 2021–22, wildfires in 2022–24, the January 2026 sitting cancelled, pilot-curriculum students excused. Open Government Licence – Alberta.
Where the 39 schools in and around Grande Prairie County No. 1 are
Each pin is a school, coloured by the system that runs it, sized by its students where the province publishes them.
Points from the provincial lists; Alberta’s missing ones from OpenStreetMap’s Nominatim (© OpenStreetMap contributors).
Schooling in English and French around Grande Prairie County No. 1
The language each school teaches in, against every school in Alberta.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in Alberta.
The Northwest Francophone Education Region runs the public French-language schools; all 1 are École Nouvelle Frontière.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives French-speaking parents the right to French-language schooling for their children, through the French-language boards.
Who runs Grande Prairie County No. 1’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English public, English Catholic, French-language, and independent or other.
Counted by who runs them: English public 30, English Catholic 8 and French-language 1.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
How children get a place in Grande Prairie County No. 1
French-language schools
French-language schools are for children of section 23 rights-holders first; the board may admit others case by case.
Catholic schools
A separate (Catholic) board runs its own schools with public money and its own admission rules.
The neighbourhood school
Attendance zones do the sorting here. Inside the zone a child is in; outside it, the answer turns on how full the school is.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 39 schools in and around Grande Prairie County No. 1
High schools within reach of Grande Prairie County No. 1
Secondary and all-grade schools within 15 km, by distance.
11 secondary schools are within 15 km: 5 English public, 4 English Catholic, 1 independent and 1 French public. The shortest trip is to St. John Paul II Catholic School / Faculté St. Jean-Paul II, 1.7 km.
| School | Board | System | Band | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. John Paul II Catholic School / Faculté St. Jean-Paul IISecondary · Grades 9–12 | The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division | English Catholic | Fourth fifth | 651 | 1.7 km |
| Peace Wapiti AcademySecondary · Grades 9–12 | The Peace Wapiti School Division | English public | Middle fifth | 703 | 4 km |
| Grande Prairie Composite High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | The Grande Prairie School Division | English public | Bottom fifth | 1,502 | 4.2 km |
| Hillcrest Christian SchoolAll grades · Grades K–12 | – | Independent | – | 56 | 5.2 km |
| St. John Bosco Catholic SchoolSecondary · Grades 10–12 | The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division | English Catholic | – | 54 | 5.7 km |
| Grande Prairie Christian SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | The Grande Prairie School Division | English public | Top fifth | 451 | 6.8 km |
| Ecole St. Gerard Catholic SchoolAll grades · Grades K–9 | The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division | English Catholic | Middle fifth | 459 | 7 km |
| Grandview Colony SchoolAll grades · Grades 1–9 | The Peace Wapiti School Division | English public | – | 10 | 7.2 km |
| École Nouvelle FrontièreAll grades · Grades K–12 | The Northwest Francophone Education Region | French public | Fourth fifth | 199 | 7.6 km |
| Charles Spencer High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | The Grande Prairie School Division | English public | Fourth fifth | 1,101 | 8.3 km |
All 11 secondary schools
| School | Board | System | Band | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph Catholic High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division | English Catholic | Bottom fifth | 683 | 8.3 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Towns its size in Alberta
Similar-sized towns and their schools within 3 km, by population.
| Town | Population | Schools | Students | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leduc | 39,966 | 17 | 7,735 | 0 | 0.7 km |
| … | |||||
| Chestermere | 31,671 | 10 | 6,332 | 0 | 1 km |
| Fort Saskatchewan | 30,575 | 14 | 5,407 | 0 | 0.8 km |
| Beaumont | 26,305 | 14 | 7,943 | 1 | 0.2 km |
| Beltline | 26,171 | 86 | 33,268 | 1 | 0.3 km |
| Grande Prairie County No. 1 | 25,883 | 39 | 16,110 | 1 | 1.7 km |
| Foothills County | 25,789 | 62 | 27,964 | 1 | 2.4 km |
| Panorama Hills | 25,494 | 24 | 18,188 | 0 | 0.6 km |
| Red Deer County | 22,076 | 57 | 20,163 | 1 | 3.8 km |
| Evanston | 21,483 | 20 | 15,319 | 0 | 1 km |
| … | |||||
| High River | 15,508 | 7 | 2,453 | 0 | 0.5 km |
Set against 35 others, 9 have more schools in reach. Teaching in French: 21 of the 36 have it.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Grande Prairie County No. 1
Schools in or within 3 km of each neighbouring town; distances in a straight line.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grande Prairie County No. 1 | 39 | 1 | 8 | 1.7 km |
| Grande Prairie 6.4 km | 34 | 1 | 10 | 0.6 km |
| Sexsmith 16 km | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0.2 km |
Each of its 2 neighbours has fewer schools.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. The page takes in schools within Grande Prairie County No. 1 and up to 3 km past its boundary, so a school just over the line is still here.
- The kinds of school. Elementary means kindergarten to Grade 6 or 8, secondary up to Grade 12 (Secondary V in Quebec); a few schools take every grade.
- Bands, not ranks. A band is the fifth of Alberta’s schools a result falls in, averaged over the two PAT measures; suppressed groups would make places misleading.
- What isn’t here. Inspection reports with ratings don’t exist here, and the lists give enrolment for one year at most.
- The year. Listed for 2025/26.
- Boards and systems. A school’s system is its board’s: the language it teaches in, and whether the board is public or Catholic.
Questions about schools in Grande Prairie County No. 1
Is there a French-language school in Grande Prairie County No. 1?
Yes: École Nouvelle Frontière, the French-language schools here.
How many schools are there in Grande Prairie County No. 1?
6 in the town, 33 just beyond it, within 3 km.
How do I get a place at a school in Grande Prairie County No. 1?
The board’s school locator gives the designated school; registration is with the board or the school.
Which boards run the schools in Grande Prairie County No. 1?
The Grande Prairie School Division (15), The Peace Wapiti School Division (14), The Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School Division (8), The Fort Vermilion School Division (1) and The Northwest Francophone Education Region (1), with each one’s schools in brackets.
Sources: Alberta Education and Childcare, school enrolment 2025/26 (Open Government Licence – Alberta) · map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).