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Arrow Lakes School District receives grant for musical instruments

School district notes from Sept. 24
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Five-year-old Sarah Gillis of Aldergrove tries her hand at a classical instrument for the very first time. Dan Ferguson Langley Times

 

The application must have struck the right chord, because Nakusp Elementary was awarded an $18,000 grant from the MusiCounts Band Aid program. Dianne Perry, the district’s music specialist, submitted the grant.

NES will be the hub for purchasing new instruments for intermediate and secondary students across the district. It was one of 74 schools nationwide to receive funding to promote a love of music and encourage students to try out new instruments. 

Enrollment holding steady

Superintendent Peter Dubinsky reported that enrollment numbers are holding steady across the district, with 521 full-time equivalent (FTE) students: 178 at Nakusp Elementary, 148 at Nakusp Secondary, 90 at Lucerne Elementary Secondary, 41 at Burton Elementary, 14 at Edgewood Elementary, and 50 with Arrow Lakes Distributed Learning. Enrollment at the Nakusp Early Learning Childcare Centre includes 10 children in multi-age childcare, and 13 children in after-school care, with room for more. 

The district welcomed new staff members: Dana Ypma, Childcare Manager; Stephanie Roger, HR Manager; and Cody Foster, Manager of Operations and Transportation.

Dubinsky also reported that there have been 259 bus service registrations. Red Mountain Road south was added to the Lucerne bus run, and some changes were made to the Burton and Fauquier runs due to capacity issues. Four electric buses will be running in the district this year. 

Personal digital devices policy

The first month of a new policy guiding student use of cell phones at school has gone smoothly, said Superintendent Dubinsky.

“The board wanted to remind everybody about the policy, and make sure that it’s very clear: the intention is for uninterrupted learning time in schools,” he said.

Under the new policy, personal digital devices during school hours are prohibited for K-7 students, with the exception of emergencies, accessibility, accommodation, or medical purposes under school staff supervision. 

For students in grades 8 to 12, devices are prohibited during instructional time, but teachers may give consent for instructional or digital literacy purposes, or for emergency, accessibility, accommodation, medical, health, or equity purposes. Students may use their devices during non-instructional time at the discretion of school administrators.

Nakusp early learning

Dana Ypma from the Nakusp and Early Learning Childcare Centre (NELCC) shared the centre’s second summer activities.

The multi-age childcare centre operates all year, but NELCC also ran a school-age summer camp program. It was a success, said Ypma, with full enrollment of 12 children each week. There was even a waitlist; if a child was absent, NELCC could call the waitlist to make sure the program was always full. The program was able to accommodate two students with special needs, supported by education assistants.

The second multi-age room opened in July, allowing five more children into the centre for childcare. Six children are in each room for a total of 12, with five under three years old and seven aged three to five. Ypma said NELCC hopes to open the third multi-age room in the fall. 

NELCC continues to incorporate Indigenous learning, following the Seven Grandfather Teachings to learn about love, kindness, empathy, honesty, respect, and truth. This summer, they focused on eagles (love) and the wolf (humility). 

Ypma added that NELCC is proud to engage in zero screen time with the children. 

Summer facilities update

Cody Foster, the new Manager of Operations and Transportation, presented an update on summer facilities work. 

“Since I’ve jumped into this role four weeks ago with both feet, it’s been a quite whirlwind; Art [Olson] was a busy man,” said Foster.

Olson, the former operations manager, was overseeing most of the projects this summer until Foster came onto the scene. 

Along with regular maintenance and deep cleaning, Olson, Foster, and the team worked on some larger projects.

At NES, phase three of the electrical upgrade is almost complete, and the primary and intermediate washrooms were replumbed. 

At NSS, an HVAC upgrade is 85% complete. Bathroom partitions, gym lighting, and windows were replaced, and new vinyl flooring was added to the photocopier room.

Lucerne has a brand new floor and reception desk, and 30 new lever door handles. 

Students at Burton Elementary can enjoy a new concrete basketball pad with adjustable nets, and there are new bathroom fixtures and a proper water fountain.

Edgewood has a new gym floor. 

NSS and Lucerne’s foods rooms got new ventilation systems. New LED lighting with proper dimming functions were installed at NSS, NES, and the board office. Drainage issues at NES and NSS were solved through added storm clean-out basins. NSS and Burton got new safety ladders on their roofs.

Minor capital projects

The board approved the minor capital project requests for the 2025-2026 school year. The requests will be sent to the Ministry of Education and Child Care for approval. 

NES: $60,000 to enhance the existing fitness and play infrastructure; $650,000 for a gym air handler and Direct Digital Control (DDC) upgrade; $120,000 for enhanced solar on the NELCC roof and a new office entry.

NSS: $220,000 for phase four of the HVAC/painting project; $90,000 for change room and shower facilities upgrades.

Lucerne: $450,000 for welding shop improvements.

Lucerne and Edgewood: $180,000 for LED lighting.

Edgewood: $195,000 for the playground.