Everyone is encouraged to wear orange on Monday to honour those children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities.
September 30th is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Karyn Barber, Associate Superintendent with System Services for Chinook’s Edge School Division, notes that what stands out to them is that schools are safe for all students, and that their Indigenous students see and feel a sense of belonging in all of their buildings. She says “there is strong work happening in schools all across our division to support both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. So of course a lot of activity around Orange Shirt Day, around Reconciliation activities leading up to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation but we also are really excited about the cultural residencies that we have happening in a number of our schools and the fact that we’ve been able to access Jordan’s Principle to support a number of students right across our division for the year.”
Barber points out that CESD’s Indigenous lead teachers are a critical part of the work that they do in their school division. She says “not only do they have a passion that drives them in the work that they do, but they have a special place and attention to ensure success and support for Indigenous students across our division and also to ensure that all of us are moving forward at a pace that makes sense around our journey of Truth and Reconciliation. I appreciate the work that our teachers and all of our staff do as we work together on this journey.”
She adds, there are over 1,000 Indigenous students in their school division. Barber hopes everyone is able to take the time to observe and recognize in a way that makes sense for their families, and that they can apply some of the learning that they are doing in their schools and across the nation around Truth and Reconciliation. She says “I think it is really great for families to know what is going on at their schools. Different schools, of course with different age levels have different events and things happening. So please reach out and see what is going on at the local schools, but know how proud we are as a division around the work that is going into recognizing, celebrating, and supporting all of our students, staff, and families on our journey of Truth and Reconciliation.”
Chinook’s Edge has developed a land acknowledgment collaboratively with students, staff, leaders and Indigenous partners. This statement is one part of their work toward Truth and Reconciliation, and is represented in the video through the voices of CESD’s staff and students. See the video here.