A parents’ association that has distinguished itself by its achievements received the prize awarded annually by the Commission nationale des parents francophones (CNPF).

The 2017/2018 award was presented to l’Association de parents (APÉ) de l’école Jack-Cook in Terrace.

The APÉ of the northernmost Francophone school in BC organizes events that bring people together, and knows how to mobilize parents to get projects done. For example, they recently cleaned up the forested area located beside the school. The location has now become a popular area where teachers can bring students to learn in nature. The APÉ has also worked very hard to revive an after-school program that gives kids an opportunity to play together twice a week in French, after school hours.

In addition, this association was committed to helping their small school through eventful years marked by challenges related to recruitment and retention of staff. Parents participated actively in looking for solutions, and have also worked closely with staff to facilitate the integration of newcomers.

The APÉ has also set up a “Committee for a New School” and has taken proactive steps to try to remedy the problem that the current building lacks adequate space to accommodate a growing student population.

This APÉ has clearly demonstrated that the parents in the community are willing to devote all the energy necessary to undertake a school project that would become the heart of the Francophone community, a bastion of the community’s vitality, despite its remoteness from larger centres.

In the photo, the President of the APÉ de l’école Jack-Cook, Meredith Skimson, is joined by Collette Stewart, Treasurer of the APÉ (left), and Suzana Straus, President of the Fédération des parents francophone de Colombie-Britannique (right).

Our congratulations to the parents of l’APÉ Jack-Cook!