Constable Neil Bruce Middle School led the Central Okanagan Public Schools contingent which received the 2023 Premier鈥檚 Awards for Excellence in Education.
The awards were presented at Government House in Victoria on Thursday, Oct. 26.
Of the six local award recipients, three were from Constable Neil Bruce Middle: teacher Amanda Liebe, extracurricular leadership category; teacher Lauren Klassen, outstanding new teacher; and Danielle Brown, certified education assistant.
The other local award winners are teacher Jim Elwood, Indigenous education category, Mount Boucherie Secondary; teacher Rob Bennett, outstanding new teacher, and Amanda Hilverda, certified education assistant, both from Ecole 琉璃神社 Secondary.
Each award recipient received a $2,000 personal bursary for professional learning, a $1,000 contribution to their school for professional learning, and a commemorative trophy.
The awards, launched in 2018, are intended to honour public, independent and First Nations school teachers, support staff, principals, vice-principals and school and district leaders who go above and beyond to make life better for K-12 students across B.C.
School deputy superintendent Terry-Lee Beaudry and board of education chair Lee-Ann Tiede also attended the awards ceremony.
鈥淪tudent well-being is always at the heart of our work,鈥� said Tiede. 鈥淔rom our new teachers to our long-serving educaors, these award recipients represent the many professionals in our district who go above and beyond to provide rich opportunities for all students.鈥�
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Combining the elements of environment sustainability with Truth and Reconciliation, teacher Aaron Veenstra along with two of his Grade 6 students, Kade Parnell and Ronika Nejatifard, made a presentation to the Central Okanagan Board of Education meeting Wednesday about a project they embraced to bring transformational change.
The students conducted a waste audit at A.S. Matheson Elementary and sourced funding to revamp the school鈥檚 waste management system to encourage recycling efforts while reducing the school鈥檚 garbage contribution to the landfill.
Their presentation talked about the project as a reconciliatory action, and how treating the land with kindness and reciprocity helps connect our own well-being with that of our earth.
While this project was carried out last year, the students remain committed to reducing the carbon waste footprint at their school and encouraging younger grades to follow in their footsteps.
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New staff appointees introduced to school trustees were: Wynter Oakes, district vice-principal, international education and settlement services; and Elise Saraceni, director of instruction, international education, anti-racism and equity.
