RED ROCK – Education Minister Jill Dunlop visited St. Hilary Catholic School this week for a tour of the school’s new addition and retrofit.
About 2,000 square feet of space was added to the school in a one-year project completed in August, said Maria Vasanelli, Superior North Catholic District School Board’s director of education.
The new space is designed for Indigenous programming and will also be used as training space on teachers’ professional development days, she said.
“It’s really more than just bricks and mortar,” she added. “It symbolizes a commitment to our students and the importance of Indigenous education and the parents who trust us with their children.”
Indigenous students make up about half of enrolment at the board’s schools, she noted.
Dunlop began her visit with a physical education class in which she joined Grades 1 and 2 students in a dance activity. Students presented the minister with a handmade thank-you card.
She also visited a Grades 5 and 6 classroom for a Q&A with students and toured St. Hilary’s new addition with the school’s principal, Wes Malo.
Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Kevin Holland, the province’s associate minister of forestry, visited St. Hillary on Sept. 18, Vasanelli said.
The school’s new space was completed to create learning environments that promote Indigenous culture, language and learning while improving accessibility and safety throughout the school.
St. Hilary Catholic School is a kindergarten-to-Grade 8 institution on Salls Street in Red Rock.
