Jackie Taylor presented King Charles III Coronation Medal by Alberta Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides

Chinook’s Edge School Division and Olds College of Agriculture & Technology are pleased to  earn that Jackie Taylor has received a King Charles III Coronation Medal. Taylor is currently serving as the Executive Director of the Central Alberta Collegiate Institute (CACI) and the Community Learning Campus for Chinook’s Edge and Olds College.

According to the Canadian Government, The Coronation Medal commemorates the Coronation of King Charles, and recipients have made a “significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region or community of Canada, or have made an outstanding achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada.”

Taylor received the award at a ceremony in Edmonton on March 27, 2025. Alberta Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides nominated Taylor for the award, and presented it to her.

“Jackie’s dedication to advancing career education in Alberta has changed student’s lives by helping them discover skills they’re passionate about and find careers that are right
for them,” says Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides. “It was an honour to present such a deserving individual with a King Charles III Coronation Medal.”

"At Olds College, we believe in hands-on, real-world learning, and Jackie has been a key driver in expanding opportunities that bridge high school, post-secondary and the workforce," says Debbie Thompson, Interim President, Olds College.

Thompson says, "Jackie’s dedication to education and student success has created real opportunities for Alberta’s youth. Her vision and passion have been instrumental in building
pathways that connect K-12 learning and post-secondary education, ensuring students develop the skills they need to thrive. We are proud to celebrate her achievements and grateful for her contributions to youth education in Alberta."

Chinook’s Edge Superintendent Kurt Sacher says, “Jackie has made a profound impact on Career
pathway planning for students in our division and across the province for many years. She has also been relentlessly devoted to creating dual credit programs that change lives for students moving out of K-12 learning into an exciting and dynamic work world.”

Chinook’s Edge Associate Superintendent, Jason Drent says, “Jackie’s role in leading the development of student access to career pathways has been, in a word, life-changing. Because of her work, more students are graduating from high school, following their dreams, entering post secondary programs, and confidently pursuing their chosen careers.”

Drent says that under Taylor’s leadership at the Community Learning Campus (CLC) over the past 10 years, significant gains have been made in career pathways programming in Chinook’s Edge. Drent credits Taylor for:
● Increasing student participation in dual credit courses from a handful of students 10 years ago to thousands of students in Chinook’s Edge and across the entire province.
● Chinook’s Edge data shows that students who participate in at least one dual credit course graduate from high school, so because of Taylor’s work in dual credit programming, and with her team, many more students are completing high school.
● An expansion of dual credit offerings from a few courses to dozens of courses available in nine career pathways, and a continued focus on what might be possible in the future
● Being one of the lead influencers in the establishment of the Central Alberta Collegiate Institute (CACI) two years ago, which is a partnership between four K-12 school divisions (Wolf Creek
Public Schools, Red Deer Public Schools, Red Deer Catholic Regional School Division and Chinook’s Edge School Division), two post secondaries (Olds College of Agriculture and
Technology and Red Deer Polytechnic), and CAREERS (a not-for-profit organization that collaborates with schools to connect youth with employers, providing valuable paid internship
opportunities).

Taylor says she feels humbled and honoured to have been nominated by Minister Nicolaides for this award. “This is life changing programming for youth, and the importance of this causes me to
pour my energy into supporting provincial career education for the success of all students. I am simply one of many colleagues across Alberta who are invested in this important programming,” says Taylor.

“The efforts of many are causing career readiness learning to grow significantly across the province. I am truly grateful to Chinook’s Edge School Division, Olds College and CACI leadership from across the partners for their commitment and support of this student programming. One person cannot do this work alone, and our teams across all of these organizations deserve a huge shout out for their passion and efforts to constantly go above and beyond for Alberta’s
youth,” she says.

Taylor says, “As a result, the transformational experiences provided for students are causing career transitioning success for more and more of our youth. I have been blessed over the past
ten years to be immersed in career readiness and dual credit programming, providing me the
ability to influence these areas that are changing the lives of our youth.”