Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Feb 11/00) - Gordon Church says he's never worked as an alternative teacher before, at least not in the official sense.

That may sound strange when one learns he's the new teacher at New Beginnings alternative school in Inuvik, but one quickly realizes both the school and the teacher are taking an unorthodox, innovative approach to education.

"As far as working with young men and women who don't fit into the system, yeah, I've done it all the time," said Church, "through coaching and teaching."

Church is originally from New Brunswick, where he lived, worked and raised his family until moving to Fort Norman a year ago. He added he's held a variety of occupations over time -- from stock broker to builder to fund-raiser to political adjutant. His move into the field of education occurred in the '80s.

"I was hauling my sons and their friends back and fourth to school for years when one day they turned to me and said, 'You know, Dad, you'd make a really good teacher,'" he said.

Church said the encouragement expressed by sons, Eric and Andre, as well as high interest rates and an inflated housing market convinced him to try teaching and he soon began substituting in Saint John schools.

Church said he immediately fell in love with teaching, but decided to head North because he can't stand hot summers and wanted to live in a place "where winter is winter" and not some slushy, rainy facsimile.

Meanwhile, he has his hands full trying to make New Beginnings work. In its brief six-month existence, the school and its core group of 15 students have experienced an ongoing funding crisis, a change of teachers and a recent fire that forced them to give up their classrooms in the Northern Lights Building.

Now temporarily situated in the Samuel Hearne high school garage, New Beginnings is calling on Inuvik for assistance; for a new home, above all, but also for equipment to replace necessities like their smoke-damaged computers.

"The whole thing with this school is that it is called an alternative school," said Church. "That means there is a danger of people thinking it's a place for those with no ability to go anywhere else. But I've got news -- they're all bright young men and women, but they're also round pegs that don't fit into square holes.

"Now we need a place to hang our hat and get set up with the program, and unfortunately, over the last four or five months, most of the effort has been in picking up and moving, and the students are rightfully frustrated with that."

Enthusiastic in discussing the possibilities for New Beginnings, Church said he's focusing on getting the students to work with their hands as well as their minds. School programs range from work placements to mechanics to mathematics to getting out on the land. Programs geared toward giving the students the skills they need to make it in the world. The setbacks New Beginnings has faced in successfully delivering those skills has yet to dampen Church's spirits.

"Somebody asked me, 'Gordy, how's work?' and I said, 'This isn't work, it's fun, and they pay me for it,'" said Church.

"These young men and women make it fun, and hopefully I can help get them turned onto learning and getting their life going in the direction they want."