2005: A Year of Celebrations

1
2005 A Year of Celebrations

• 1905-2005
• Alberta turns 100!
• 1985-2005
• O.S Geiger School turns 20!

2
Who was O.S Geiger?

• For over 42 years, Orwill St. Clair Pelk
  Geiger was a teacher, a principal, and
  Superintendent of Elementary Schools in the
  Calgary Board of Education. He was an outstanding
  and innovative educator during the 1960s and
  1970s.

3
O.S Geigers beginnings

• Pelk Geiger was born in 1906 and attended school
  in Didsbury, Alberta.
• His first teaching job was at Eidswold School
  near Bergen, Alberta in a one room log school
  house.

Log school house
4
Teaching Career

• Orwill Geiger came to Calgary in 1920 and taught
  at Ramsey, and McDougall schools.
• He was later a principal at Cliff Bungalow, Bow
  View, and Elbow Park schools.

Ramsey School
McDougall School
5
After WW II

• Pelk was appointed Supervisor of Elementary
  Education for the Calgary Board of Education in
  1961.
• During the next 20 years, he opened 34 new public
  elementary schools in Calgary.
• He retired in 1971.

6
His Contributions

• While he was Superintendent, Pelk encouraged the
  upgrading of reading and math programs, and
  introduced French as a Second Language (FSL). He
  expanded elementary libraries and introduced
  Outdoor Education.

7
O.S Geiger A Family Man

• Pelk and his wife, Evellyn, were keen travellers
  and outdoor enthusiasts.
• They explored the Rockies each summer on
  horseback.
• Fishing and rock collecting were other hobbies
  they shared.

8
Why is our school named O.S Geiger?

• O.S Geiger is named after a respected and
  innovative educational leader who always asked
  Is it good for kids? It is an honour to be
  named for a man who contributed so much to
  education and students in Calgary.