Future École Plamondon School graduates will be scientists, tradespeople, and botanists – thanks to a $3.3-million upgrade to the school’s facilities.
Students, faculty, and visitors packed the school’s gymnasium Nov. 30 for the official grand opening of two new science labs, a computer lab, a greenhouse, and a woodworking shop. On hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony were the superintendent, school division trustees and board members, along with Lac La Biche County mayor Peter Kirylchuk and councillor Guy Piquette.
“We’re really excited that the facilities are here,” Northern Lights School Division board chair Walter Hrycauk told the crowd. “And to the students, we encourage you to utilize these facilities and make sure the education you receive in the Career and Technology Studies (CTS) lab and science labs will help you to pursue your interests once you leave school.”
The renovations, which started last summer and finished this September, upgraded the school’s aging infrastructure. NLSD superintendent Roger Nippard said École Plamondon School was built in the mid-1960s, and lacked the equipment to offer lab experiments and full CTS courses.
“Your school has been excellent over the years,” Nippard said. “It’s actually quite amazing you’ve done as well as you have in a facility that wasn’t designed to offer a full range of programming.”
That the school has the expansion at all can be credited to division’s creative use of funding, Nippard said. When it became clear that government funding for the project would likely be years away, the Northern Light’s board used money from their own reserves – a move unique for the division, maybe even the province.
“It’s the first time the board has used their own funding for infrastructure,” said NLSD board trustee for Plamondon Arlene Hrynyk. “It needed to be done – and we didn’t wait for the government to make it happen.”
Thanks to the creative money management, École Plamondon School now has state-of-the-art facilities offering cutting-edge educational opportunities. The CTS lab has brand new woodworking equipment, the science labs are fully stocked with the latest gear, and the computer lab has dozens of new laptops for student use.
“The area is rapidly expanding and services like education need to keep pace with the growth,” Kirylchuk said. “Congratulations on your vision and your excellent work to help our students grow and excel.”
