Cara Loverock
Northern News Services
Published Friday, January 11, 2008

YELLOWKNIFE - Some Sir John Franklin students will be getting credit and experiencing new cultures during their March break.

Twenty-two Grade 10 and 12 students, as well as four chaperones, will head to England and Scotland with highlights of the trip including an Elizabethan dinner and a stop in Stratford.

"It's a tremendous opportunity for these kids," said Mieke Cameron, principal of Sir John Franklin high school. "They learn what life in another part of the world, another country is like."

The Sir John England Trip (SJET), is organized every two years. The students started fundraising at the start of the school year and will continue to raise money with various events. Grade 9 and 12 French immersion students will also be headed overseas, stopping in France and Spain.

The students will also be earning course credit during their journey.

Yk1 school board trustee resigns

School board trustee Dale Thomson announced his resignation Jan. 8.

During the meeting of Yk1 trustees, Thomson said he would be leaving his position starting immediately for personal and professional reasons. He plans to move to British Columbia and study wine marketing at Okanagan College.

Thomson expressed regret at leaving his four-year position with the board, but said he was excited at starting a new chapter in his life.

"Your commitment is humbling," said board trustee chairman Duff Spence of Thomson's service.

Yk1 superintendent Metro Huculak said Thomson will be missed.

"We are certainly going to miss him. He was a strong advocate for children," said Huculak.

The school board is looking for another community member to fill the position.

School gets more eco-friendly

Sir John Franklin high school is becoming more environmentally-friendly with the installation of a new pellet boiler.

The school is expecting the boiler at the end of January. It will replace the existing oil boilers. Dave Johnson, director of facility maintenance with Yk1, said the school was convinced to implement the new boiler after seeing how well it worked at the North Slave Correctional Facility.

"We had an opportunity to go look at it. There was a presentation to the board," said Johnson.

The school, which is the first in the district to receive a pellet boiler, will benefit financially, as well as environmentally, said Tram Do, director of corporate services.

"It's quite a substantial reduction in CO2 emissions, so it's very environmentally friendly," Do said, adding a pellet boiler costs less than an oil boiler to operate.

The new boiler was not purchased by the school; the equipment is owned by Arctic Green Energy.

Do said if it works well the board would consider getting pellet boilers for other schools in the district.