A group of École du Sommet students had their first day of classes at their new school in St. Paul last Wednesday morning. The brand new facility is located at the southeast side of town.
Karen Chalmers-Beaulieu, principal of the school, commented that the students and teachers are very happy to be in the building.
However, some parts of the building are still under construction, including the gymnasium that is currently designated as non-accessible to the students.
“The gymnasium is currently used for storage,” explained Chalmers-Beaulieu.
Guy Généreux, chair of the East Central Francophone Education Region (ECFER), said his understanding is there is finishing work to be done on the floors, and on some of the main areas.
“One of them being the students’ lunch area, parts of the gymnasium … but the secretary treasurer felt that will be looked after by the end of the month,” said Généreux, adding that he heard that the students are happy to be in a new school.
“(The students) are excited, and the teachers are also excited about that.”
Superintendent Marc Dumont couldn’t agree more on the excitement the new building brings.
“We’re certainly excited to be in the new school after so many years of waiting,” said Dumont, adding the school board is pleased with the model that new building is based on. The new building is comparable to the model used for École Voyageur in Cold Lake, and also École des Beaux-Lacs in Bonnyville. It is an “excellent model for any K – 12 school,” Dumont said.
“We’re very proud of the fact that we’re able to build upon our previous experiences with essentially the same plan,” he said.
Dumont added that together with the gymnasium, the school’s Career Technology Studies (CTS) room is not available due to the on-going construction.
“Those rooms we are hoping will be available for use shortly,” he said. “But with our experience in Bonnyville, we know that it does take some time up, to a year to get all the bugs out and get everything fixed.
“(The students and teachers) are certainly happy to be in the school, and to have what they have … we’re certainly not going to complain but there are things that must be completed.”
