Northern Lights Public School (NLPS) held their monthly board meeting this past Wednesday. During their meeting, the trustees discussed NLPS and Beaver Lake Cree Nation’s first traditional powwow.
“[The trustees] were absolutely thrilled with the turnout… they were also excited about the support from Beaver Lake and everyone in the community who took part,” wrote Communications Officer of NLPS, Nicole Garner.
The powwow was a concerted effort between NLPS and Beaver Lake Cree Nation, and came to fruition as a result of NLPS Associate Superintendent Jimmi Lou Irvine connecting with Beaver Lake’s Student Success Ambassador Valerie Favel.
As a Student Success Ambassador, Favel connects students from Beaver Lake Cree Nation who are attending NLPS, as well as share protocols and cultural teachings with NLPS. The two had their first meeting in Amisk Community School, at Beaver Lake, and from there, a working relationship grew.
In their second meeting, Favel discussed the possibility of students in Lac La Biche learning about Beaver Lake Cree Nation Culture because the two communities are in close proximity to one another. From there, a committee of volunteers representing the school division, Amisk Community School, and the Lac La Biche Canadian Native Friendship Centre, began to plan the new annual event.
There were students and staff from throughout the division in attendance and they were also excited about the support from Beaver Lake and everyone in the community who took part. This was an amazing experience for our students and we are so grateful we could provide them with this opportunity.
“My goals for the students and audience was to learn about powwow and also bring unity to the schools, and to work together…Together we will become a strong nation works together for the benefit of all,” Favel said.
Working Together
The powwow also represented the beginning of their work to reconcile and to continue learning as partners that jointly work together to support students and families in their communities. It is a way to, “bring the schools together to make a better community,” said Favel.
“By collectively working together it created an opportunity for the team to learn from each other,” she said.
“This was an amazing experience for our students and we are so grateful we could provide them with this opportunity,” wrote Garner.
“We learned so much during the planning for the event and working with Beaver Lake Cree Nation and we want to continue to learn and build relationships together.
Future of Event
At this time, it is not confirmed if it will definitely be an annual event, but Garner said that NLP is interested in exploring that possibility and perhaps even expanding upon it.
“It was such an amazing opportunity for the students that were there and we definitely want to explore ways that we can provide additional opportunities like this for all of our students,” wrote Garner.
