by Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 27/97) - From program to paint to principals, Yellowknife schools open doors today for a new year.

The biggest change for the 1997/98 school year is a new math curriculum, Ecole St. Joseph school principal Leah Von Hagen said.

Kindergarten to Grade 9 teachers across Yellowknife received professional development earlier this week on the new curriculum -- the Western Canada protocol.

It was developed to ensure curricula match resources across Western Canada and the territories, said Von Hagen.

After its development, the curriculum was taken to publishers, who matched the materials they published to the new curriculum, she said.

The result was a success, she added.

On equipment, Von Hagen said St. Joseph installed a new computer lab with 27 computers.

William McDonald school also added a new computer lab with 32 new computers.

At William McDonald school, Lilly Oldham, former French co-ordinator at the board office, is the new principal.

The school also has a dozen new teachers and a new sprinkler system for the baseball field.

At Mildred Hall school, Marion Barnes, previously assistant principal at J.H. Sissons school, is now principal.

There's a new principal at N.J. Macpherson school -- Pam Petten, the school's former vice-principal. New vice-principal is Mike MacDonald from Range Lake North school.

Macpherson has added new playground equipment, new ceilings and redone the gym floor.

Ecole Allain St. Cyr administrative secretary Carole St. Pierre said Eugene Leger, from New Brunswick, brings the French schools' teacher complement to six.

At Range Lake North, there's a new vice principal -- Adam Bunin from Mildred Hall school.

J.H. Sissons School principal Terry Bradley said Betty Vaughan has joined the school from Range Lake North School as assistant principal.

And around Sissons School, there's a new fence.

"We're looking forward to an exciting new year. It'll be busy as usual," Bradley said. Sissons has added a second Grade 5 French immersion class.

Anne-Mieke Cameron is the new principal at Sir John Franklin High School.

At St. Patrick high school, there's a new Internet room and computer lab with 25 new computers. The school has also added new wildlife and community programs.

St. Patrick's, like Yellowknife's other schools, is welcoming several educators new to the North.

Among them is Gilliam Dawe. In her second year of teaching, she joins the school from Newfoundland.

But her trip to the North was something she'd like to forget.

She said a large well-known moving company she'd prefer not name lost three boxes of her belongings. Other items that made it were broken, she added.

"It created stress that need not have been," she said.

Despite the damage, she said she can't wait until she next talks with colleagues back home so she can tell them about the resources at St. Patrick.

"This is teacher heaven."