New Neepawa Collegiate Principal Outlines His Role

Neepawa has seen a lot of changes to its education landscape over the past decade, and Mike Rainnie has been here for all of them. Joining the teaching staff right out of Brandon University in 2013, Rainnie was first a classroom teacher and sports coach for several years, then moved into the assistant principal role under former longtime principal Kelvin Hollier. After Hollier’s retirement last year, Rainnie became the new principal of Neepawa Collegiate. With a father who was also a school administrator, it didn’t come as a huge surprise to the family that Rainnie went in that direction as well.

The scope of responsibility of a high school principal is fairly wide and covers areas from staffing to course offerings to student support to discipline. There is no such thing as a typical day in the life when each day brings its own challenges, but Rainnie says he makes it a point to try to greet students coming off the buses each morning to start the day out.

When it comes to the courses the school offers, the Department of Education provides a handbook of programs that are eligible to be offered, and most of the programs are selected from those, trying to strike a balance between compulsory courses such as math and English, with additional options that match the interests of the student population, such as robotics and music. There is also an opportunity for school-initiated courses, which need to be submitted to the Department of Education for approval.

Two of the biggest challenges facing the school right now are space and staffing, which go hand in hand. With the division continuing to grow at a rate of about ten students a month, the current schools are full with several portable classrooms in use, particularly across the Neepawa schools. Rainnie says they hire to the projected growth, with the knowledge that so many students will be coming in mid-year, often from outside Canada. There is a constant need for new teachers as well as new support staff throughout the division to ensure student needs are met.

A new vocational high school is slated to open in 2027, which will offer both academic courses and vocational courses. While the final slate of courses won’t be chosen for some time, as they are designing the school they are trying to anticipate what kind of spaces will be needed to offer programs like carpentry, heavy mechanics, and healthcare options. Because the current high school has a robust apprenticeship program, they already have some idea of the programs that are of the most interest, but part of the process is also student consultation. The school is being designed to allow for future growth as well, with the existing Neepawa schools being used by a redistribution of grades K–8.

Rainnie welcomed the opportunity to come talk to NACTV for this new series because he wants to make sure the school stays connected to its community and the community in turn is familiar with what’s going on in the school.

“I’m all for open communication and building community,” says Rainnie, “so if anybody has questions, I’d like to answer.”

Community members can reach Rainnie through the Neepawa Area Collegiate Institute office.