(rdnewsNOW/Ian Gustafson)

By Ian Gustafson

Teacher strike

Red Deer students take part in walkout in support of teachers

Oct 30, 2025 | 3:11 PM

Students across the province, including in Red Deer, staged a walkout on Thursday in support of Alberta’s 51,000 teachers who were recently forced back to work by the provincial government.

This comes as classes resumed on Wednesday after Premier Danielle Smith’s government invoked the notwithstanding clause.

Today, approximately 50 students from multiple schools such as Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School, Hunting Hills High School and Central Middle School, met at Red Deer City Hall before marching to the provincial building just a few blocks away.

Chants could be heard in the downtown area as the students marched towards the building.

Ambrose Lee, a Lindsay Thurber student, said teachers have too many students and not enough support.

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“They’re severely underfunded,” she explained.

The students heard about the rally through social media and from their classmates. Hundreds of students in Edmonton also protested at the Alberta Legislature on Thursday.

Another Lindsay Thurber student, Sophie Ible, said teachers’ rights were taken away from them through the notwithstanding clause.

“[The government] broke the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, that is not okay,” she said.

Teachers were on strike since Oct. 6, before they were ordered back to work this week. Crowded classrooms and wages were the key issues.

Head of Alberta’s teachers’ union, Jason Schilling, said work-to-rule would lead to punishing fines, but he is urging his colleagues to re-evaluate going the extra mile when it comes to their volunteer time at school.

Schilling said, for example, while he could still fulfill his teaching duties, he used to direct the drama play and coach cross-country running, but perhaps won’t do the play next year.

Lindsay Thurber student Kristin Hicks said it’s important that they have a good education system where teachers don’t feel stressed, unsupported, or disrespected.

“So that we can learn better, and so we can have a better time in the classroom,” she said.

– With files from The Canadian Press