Lakes District Secondary School (LDSS) is announcing an initiative to educate students on residential schools and the impacts they have had on First Nations.
The project will be called “Roots of Reconciliation,” and is planned to start in September.
“Our goal is to give everyone in our school an opportunity to listen to presentations and engage in meaningful discourse around these very sensitive issues,” said LDSS teacher Rayanne Charlie.
The initiative started soon after a report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada was released in early June. The report culminates a six-year examination of residential schools where more than 6750 survivors and witnesses from across the country were heard.
Among the calls for action in the report, the commissioners highlighted the role of education in reconciliation and called for the development of age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, treaties and Aboriginal people’s historical and contemporary contributions.
“Since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its interim report directing the education system to do a better job of informing the public, we have been working toward a process of doing just that,” said Charlie.
The school’s Roots of Reconciliation project took its first step on June 24. A small group of LDSS teachers, along with former Burns Lake Band Chief Robert Charlie, went out to Ootsa Lake to select a tree for a sculpture.
“The tree will be used as a pedestal for an eagle sculpture to be built with artistic contributions from many students,” explained Rayanne. “We intend this to be a visual centre piece for our initiative going forward.”
Rayanne said the community can expect to see lots of events at LDSS starting September.
“We will be sure to keep the community posted and involved in the healing process [of residential schools],” she said. “These are exciting times and we look towards a future where we can celebrate peace and understanding amongst us all.