IQALUIT
Nunavut had one of the smallest contingents at the Canadian Student Leadership Conference last month, but the six girls from Inuksuk High School in Iqaluit sure made an impact.

Nunavut's contingent of six students from Iqaluit's Inuksuk High School wave the flag at the Canadian Student Leadership Conference in Kelowna, B.C., last month. They are, from left, Rosalie Suclan, Alexia Galloway-Alainga, Amabel Mora Flores, Elizabeth Maerzluft, Jessica Matthews and Natalie Maerzluft. - photo courtesy of Canadian Student Leadership Conference

"They showed their pride, the pride of their territory" said advisor Tina Morrissey, who took the students to Kelowna, B.C., from Sept. 23 to 27.

"Sometimes they would have cheeroffs, and in amongst 1,200 people, you could hear my six girls all over the auditorium, 'Nunavut, Nunavut', and they would get other people cheering for Nunavut."

While school spirit is an important part of student leadership, the conference was not simply a series of cheeroffs. The event included a TEDx conference, leadership workshops, and daily keynote speakers.

"From the moment we got there, we wanted to get more involved in stuff," said Grade 11 student Amabel Mora Flores. "Coming back here gives us a clear view on having more ideas on leadership and getting more involved in the school. The entire weekend, the workshops, the environment, we had a great experience."

Grade 12 student Alexia Galloway-Alainga would like to see a Nunavut-wide student leadership conference, but until that happens, she and the rest of the club are focusing on school initiatives.

"I think leadership here is very important because it brings positivity to everyone, which is what we need here," Galloway-Alainga said. "We came up with this thing called TC Lunch Tuesdays (the TC is the central shared space in the school). It's not mandatory, but people can come and sit in the TC at lunch, and bring their lunches and we could have someone doing an activity or someone could talk."

The trip to the national conference was the first for Inuksuk High School, but a group from Kugluktuk attended the conference last year, Morrissey noted. The Inuksuk group attended the Alberta Student Leadership Conference in Drumheller in May.

"They were chosen for their leadership qualities and the potential for leadership, and their involvement within student council," Morrissey said. Both the regional and national conferences bring long-term benefits.

"It's an amazing experience for the girls and for myself for professional development," she said, "just to be in amongst 1,200 people, with 900 student leaders from all over the country. It gives them ideas to bring back to the school. They were already getting together and coming up with ideas for building leadership here at the school and how to build school spirit."

Mora Flores is brimming with ideas.

"I would like to bring in more speakers from the south to talk to our students about leadership stuff," she said. "It would be awesome to get more involved in the community, and I was thinking we could, with a couple of students who aren't involved in the (leadership) club, go help out at the thrift stores and the soup kitchen."

Considering the reception and the education received, Morrissey said she plans to return to the national conference, and thanked Qulliit NSWC, Astro Theatre, Lester Landau, Royal Canadian Legion, NCC, Royal Purple, and First Air for their help in making the trip happen.