YK1 School Board briefs
Yk1 chairperson, vice-chair re-elected
Elaine Anselmi
Northern News Services
Published Friday, November 21, 2014
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Another term is ahead for Yellowknife Education District No. 1 chair John Stephenson and vice-chair Heather Clarke.
Both Heather Clarke, left, and John Stephenson were re-elected to their positions as YK1 vice-chair and chairperson, respectively, at the Nov. 18 board meeting. - Elaine Anselmi/NNSL photo |
The board showed their support for both leaders, voting to re-elect the incumbents to their respective positions.
"I think we make a pretty good team, so we'll continue to work on your behalf," said Stephenson at the Nov. 18 board meeting. "I speak for you, but you have to tell me what to say."
Stephenson was first elected to the board in 2009, after a 30-year career with the GNWT. Clarke was elected to the board in 2012 and has worked as an elementary school teacher in both French and regular programming.
Healthy lifestyles foster heated discussion
A motion to extend the terms of reference for YK1's Healthy Schools Steering Committee drew dissenting positions among the board of trustees.
The terms of reference were approved in 2013, and by a vote of six to one, were again approved at the Nov. 18 meeting. The lone dissenting vote was trustee Terry Brookes, who argued that the committee is outside the purview of the board.
"I do not believe this is a board committee, it should not be a board committee," said Brookes. "This is an operational committee and I will continue to push this to be an operational committee."
Arguing that scheduling challenges for meetings held up progress, and that the content of meetings was geared towards operational decisions, Brookes adamantly opposed the motion.
"We can't become a good board unless we know our role," said Brookes, holding up literature on board functions and organization. "We're not doing a good job as a board if we're slowing things down."
The conversation took a turn when trustee Mira Hall surmised that inefficiency among the board permeates when trustees, who took part in the building of the original terms of reference for the committee, turns around and publicly opposes those efforts.
"I don't see any reason why healthy lifestyle is not a regular ongoing committee, except that it's new," said Hall, adding that she hoped to see it eventually become a standing committee.
New initiatives in aboriginal education
The YK1 board of trustees heard from Scott Willoughby, the district's aboriginal education coordinator, on initiatives to integrate culture and tradition into the school system.
Aboriginal cultural experience camps are offering students a chance to learn from elders on a variety of topics from plants and berries to plucking and preparing a duck.
A new program developed by Willoughby, elders and students from Dettah is called Moose to Moccasins. The group headed out on a moose hunting trip on Drybones Bay this fall, with the intention of bringing back their kill to be harvested and utilized by other students. Unfortunately, the group was not able to get a moose but Willoughby said it was overall a positive experience.
One area that Willoughby said has been a challenge for incorporating aboriginal learnings is within mathematics. By using activities such as dog-sledding and snow staking, adding in measurement and geometry components. He said an inclusive curriculum is being developed.
"To get a real integration, you have to get Dene Kede first," said Willoughby. "It's not about a day of Dene Kede math, but a real seamless integration."
Throughout the district, Willoughby said a number of teachers have expressed concerns around their ability to provide the necessary aboriginal education, often as non-aboriginals from the south. In order to address this, Willoughby is developing and seeking teachers' input on a speaker's series of First Nations leaders and members addressing topics such as treaties, the land, and the residential school legacy.
