Victoria School of Performing and Visual Arts

Victoria School of the Arts (formerly Victoria School of Performing and Visual Arts) is a public school in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada operated by Edmonton Public Schools, offering students from kindergarten through grade 12 an International Baccalaureate aligned, arts-focused education, and is recognized as one of the top arts-focused schools in North America. About Victoria School of the Arts is an International Baccalaureate World School, and offers the complete continuum of IB programmes for grades K-12; it is the only school in Canada to do so. Victoria is also one of a handful of schools in Canada that offers the new International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme. There are six programs students may pursue: Design and New Media, Visual Arts, Theatre, Dance, Music, and Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The arts are also integrated into academic classes within a framework of inquiry based learning. The school employs an entrance criteria based admissions system for all new K-9 students, and unlike other schools, students may not be grandfathered into the program. The application process has varied over time but it currently consists of a student letter and a parent/guardian letter. Applicants must also submit their most recent progress reports for evaluation. Applicants are notified of their admission status before the deadline to choose their school in April, and unsuccessful applicants may apply again the next school year. Senior High students are exempt from the application process and may register like any other school. Attempts in the past have been made to expand the entrance criteria based admissions system to grades 10–12, but were met with backlash from the community due to a lack of other Senior High schools in the area. Victoria School is home to one of the campuses of the academy at King Edward, a district site for Senior High students who meet the criteria for Learning Strategies. Students enrolled at the academy also take complimentary courses at Victoria School alongside their courses at the academy.