At the March 11th, board meeting for The Chinook's Edge School Division, The Roy E. Cope Award was presented to retiring École Olds High Principal, Tom Christensen.

This award is an honour considered each year by the Board for a person who has made significant contributions to the welfare of students

Tom Christensen’s contribution to Chinook’s Edge has been significant – not only for his 30+ years as Principal and Vice Principal of École Olds High School, but also as a steadfast mentor to his colleagues throughout the division

As a Master Teacher, Tom has placed students at the centre of all his efforts. His strength led to several acknowledgments and awards, including the Alberta Education Excellence in Teaching Award. Throughout the years, Tom has lent his gentle leadership skills to guide many innovative practices at Olds High – from being a High School Re-Design pioneer and an early adopter of Gay-Straight Alliance efforts, to ensuring the school’s place of pride as an internationally recognized UNESCO-Associated School.

 “My favourite part of my role, though, has been without question being able to work with multiple generations of families in Olds. Olds is like family to me, because I have been able to work with so many people from the same family. I’ve seen so many amazing things that Olds High graduates go on to accomplish in the community and beyond. “I am very honoured to receive the award, because I know what Roy Cope did for Red Deer County and I’m humbled to be in the same category as the other recipients. It means a lot to me that the Board and my peers at Division Office would consider me for this award.