On September 24, Métis Artist and Knowledge Keeper Connie Kulhavy led students and staff through a guided drawing done individually on orange t-shirts in honour of Truth and Reconciliation Week.

Sherwood Park, AB. — On September 27, students and staff throughout Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) will wear orange and take part in lessons focused on Indigenous education to commemorate the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The day coincides with Orange Shirt Day and is intended to acknowledge the history of residential schools, remember the victims and honour the Survivors. The official day takes place on September 30—a Division closure day.

From September 23-27, EIPS has also been taking part in Truth and Reconciliation Week. EIPS staff have been leading students through activities to deepen their understanding of Indigenous cultures and the effects of colonization.

This year, Fort Saskatchewan Elementary students commemorated the week alongside Métis Artist and Knowledge Keeper Connie Kulhavy. On September 24, Kulhavy led students and staff through a guided drawing done individually on orange t-shirts.

“Our school community was honoured to work alongside Connie as she guided us through the history of Orange Shirt Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation—speaking also to the story of Phyllis Webstad,” says Kimberly Zapesocki, the Assistant Principal and First Nations, Métis, and Inuit School Lead at Fort Saskatchewan Elementary. “She also shared her own story and connection with residential schools, and then spoke to the history of how these days came to be. Connie created an Orange Shirt Day design specifically for Fort Saskatchewan Elementary, and each student drew this on an orange shirt—from their own heart to hand.”

On September 27, students will gather outside wearing their orange shirts around the school’s newly finished “Every Child Matters” mural—designed and led by Ojibway Artist Ellie Lagrandeur and her daughter Stacey Shearing. “The entire school community will proudly wear these shirts, and we’ll have a schoolwide photo taken together around our mural,” adds Zapesocki.

Many schools across the Division are taking part in activities from a 10 Days of Truth and Reconciliation calendar—created by the EIPS First Nations, Métis and Inuit Education team. Several schools are also attending a virtual field trip with Métis Knowledge Keeper Ann Bourque-Hardy through the Rupertsland Institute. These and other school-led activities include stories of Survivors, lessons about the context of residential schools within our shared history and engaging in the topic through art, storytelling and dialogue.

For more information on EIPS First Nations, Métis and Inuit education visit eips.ca.

Elk Island Public Schools is one of Alberta’s largest school divisions, serving approximately 17,750 students in 42 schools. We are proud to be an integral part of our communities, including Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Vegreville, Strathcona and Lamont counties, and the western portion of the County of Minburn.

RELATED INFORMATION:
Bruderheim School Student Receives Spirit Bear Award from the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
Orange Shirt Day

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For more information, media can contact:
Laura McNabb, Director, Communication Services, EIPS 780-417-8204 cell 780-405-4902