Joamie teachers, students reunite in $12 million school

GREG YOUNGER-LEWIS

Joamie students are back together again.

Hundreds of children reunited in their new multi-million-dollar school in Iqaluit on Tuesday, marking the end of their temporary separation, while the territorial government replaced the building that burned down in July, 2003.

David Serkoak, the principal of Joamie School, said teachers and students have turned a page on the shocking day when they watched their classrooms and books go up in smoke.

However, Serkoak admits that staff are making extra efforts to make the transition easier for their 218 students.

“We’re trying to have things as normal as possible,” Serkoak said while sitting in his new office. “There was a time when we had to talk to them, keep an eye out for stressed students.

“They pulled through, though. They helped each other always.”

The first day at the new building went off without a hitch. They began with a low-key assembly in the gym, before shuffling off to classrooms decorated with Inuktitut posters, and, in one case, a home-made thank-you card for their teacher.

One class sorted through cards from students at Aqsarniit school, which helped house Joamie kids while they waited for construction of their new building to finish.

Later, wide-eyed students filed around the halls, impressed by the open area for cultural performances and story-time at the back of the building, and a home economics classroom and computer lab near the front.

But at least one student was dreaming of the way things used to be.

“I miss the old school,” said Neil Livingstone, 5, as he tottered to class in his snowsuit.

“It was funner there, because it had a playground.”

The new school has other perks. Designers describe the project, worth more than $12 million, as the most environmentally friendly school in the territory, complete with extra energy-saving technology, a video surveillance system, and state-of-the-art air ventilation.

Despite the sizeable investment, Upah Picco, a school counsellor, said the best feature is having all the staff and students reunited under the same roof.

“We are all excited today,” Picco said on the first morning back, “because we’re all getting together. The whole family is together.”

Staff will be hosting an open house for the community on March 11. Later in the month, students and teachers will have an official opening, with activities yet to be determined.