Headlines: June 21, 2024

June 21, 2024 · The Pulse
By Kevin Holowack

The Edmonton Police Commission reviewed procedural and policy changes during a June 20 meeting that affect public input during meetings and how commissioners can get information. One policy, which was sent back for further review, would prevent the public from speaking on topics already discussed within the past six months, from making allegations against specific commissioners or members of the Edmonton Police Service, and from making "unreasonable or unfounded statements or demands." The meeting was the commission's second consecutive virtual meeting, which chair John McDougall said was because of security concerns. A meeting in May was moved online after a protest in city hall against the police's removal of a pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Alberta.
The Alberta Teachers' Association says 24 school boards will have fewer teachers in the fall, with 2024-2025 school board budget reports projecting 250 teaching positions to be cut. ATA president Jason Schilling said Alberta's education system suffers from chronic underfunding, and the province should be "ashamed and embarrassed" by the projections at a time of increasing enrolment. Neither Edmonton Public Schools nor Edmonton Catholic Schools are among the boards expected to make cuts, and both told Postmedia there will be no reduction in teaching staff despite high enrolment and budget constraints. Elk Island Public Schools is projecting 12.2 cuts to teaching positions, and St. Albert Public Schools is projecting six.
Edmonton is a hot spot for community farmers' markets, which are also growing in regional municipalities, Global News reported. Edmonton has 12 approved farmers' markets along with many public markets, and there are 15 markets within 50 kilometres of the city. The St. Albert Farmers' Market, which runs every Saturday until Oct. 12, has grown to be the largest outdoor farmers' market in Canada. The Alberta Farmers' Market Association has a tool to help find farmers' markets near you.
Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation and the University of Alberta's Li Ka Shing Applied Virology Institute have broken ground on the Critical Medicines Production Centre, a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in the Edmonton Research Park. The centre is the "cornerstone" of the $200-million Canadian Critical Drug Initiative to improve pharmaceutical supply chain resilience. Construction is set to be done by 2026.
Sports writer Stephen Whyno observed that Edmonton Oilers forward Connor Brown — the "other Connor" — has played a pivotal role in the team's comeback against the Florida Panthers. Brown was instrumental in an early short-handed goal that set off an 8-1 win in Game 4, and scored a goal in Game 5. Brown "finally looks like himself" after suffering a serious knee injury in 2022 and drawing criticism about his "lack of production" since joining the Oilers, Whyno wrote.
Chief Willie Littlechild, who appears in the Treaty 6 land recognition played at Rogers Place before Edmonton Oilers games, spoke to the Associated Press about the league's outreach to Indigenous and First Nations communities in Alberta. The Oilers have led the NHL when it comes to inclusion and access, said Littlechild, who serves on the team's community foundation board. The video, which started running in 2021 and has gotten significant North American airtime during the playoffs, has drawn positive reactions locally and nationally, said Tim Shipton with the OEG.
Edmonton Oilers fan Warren Sillanpaa has made headlines again for decorating the yard and fence of his home in Wîhkwêntôwin. This year, he put up life-sized paintings of players, along with flags and and oil derrick. In past Stanley Cup postseasons, Sillanpaa painted his fence with Oilers jerseys, earning cheers from fans passing by on his downtown street. Another Oilers fan, William Dmytrow, made headlines for remembering that he predicted a 2024 Oilers playoffs win in his 2018 high-school yearbook quote.