HGT Magazine #99 May/June 2019

y Elizabeth Condrotte
Your Communities, Your Schools
In the summer of 1972, I arrived on what was then known as
the Queen Charlotte Islands with my partner, my 9-year-old
son and a new baby daughter. No maternity leave in those
days meant resigning from my job in Alberta and, after spending
a few months in Vancouver, we came to visit my parents
and brother in Port Clements. Just a visit, but a Northern
Alberta connection with the then secretary-treasurer, Jeanne
Karlson landed me a temporary position at George M.
Dawson High School in Masset, which was enough to provide
me with Unemployment Insurance, so we stayed. When the
new Kindergarten opened in the Port Clements Elementary
School, I began my forty-five-year long residence in Tlell as
well as my career with School District 50 (SD 50).
Why did I stay? These islands were unlike anything I’d
experienced back in Alberta: I was in awe of the ocean, the
beach, the forest and the mountains. Haida Gwaii’s small
school district was also unlike my past experience with education.
The environment and community are part of every
classroom and a spirit of innovation has grown out of those
involvements. SD 50 pioneered the inclusion of Indigenous
education and became the talk of every education conference
I attended. We published our own Haida Readers and
continue to publish culturally sensitive materials to support a
sense of place for all of our students. This district was also
among the first to promote the Haida language as the second
language taught in our schools and soon Haida Immersion
classes will be offered.
Over the years I became involved in the community,
particularly in the area of food security and Farm to School,
the latter having now grown into food programs in all of our
schools. After I obtained my master’s degree in 1996, I
returned to a position in alternate education. Before my retirement
in 2007, I spent the last seven years in administration as
a principal in Port Clements, Queen Charlotte and finally,
district principal. After retirement, I spent a year in South
Africa working in pre-school education in the district of Sisonke,
and then came home to ten years as a trustee for SD 50.
All of this experience has led me to this HG Trader project
showcasing a few of the wonderful things happening in
education on our islands. Did you know that Haida Gwaii has
eight schools?
Six are public:
• Tahayghen Elementary School (TAH), Masset,
• Gudangaay Tlaats’ gaa Naay Secondary School (GTN),
Masset,
• Port Clements Elementary School (PCES), Port Clements,
• Sk’aadgaa Naay Elementary School (SNES), Skidegate,
• GidGalang Kuuyas Naay (GKN), Queen Charlotte,
• Agnes L. Mathers Elementary School (ALM), Sandspit…
…and two are private:
• Chief Matthews School (CMS), Old Massett, and
• Living and Learning School (LLS), Queen Charlotte.
12 HG