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Kootenay Lake: School District 08

School District Website
www.sd8.bc.ca

About

We focus on excellence for all learners in a nurturing environment. Our strong professional development program enables us to achieve this goal, with its focus on literacy, exemplary teaching strategies, assessment of and for learning, and numeracy development. Our Director of Student Achievement has provided workshops and coursework for teachers and administrators throughout the province.

Communities in the District 5
Number of Schools 32
Elementary 18
Middle 1
High School 7
Innovatrices 5
Immersion française 1
Nombre d’élèves 5,000
Nombre d’employés 850

Regional Diversity

About 450 of our students have self-identified as First Nations learners. The Lower Kootenay Band is located just south of Creston. A strong Russian community exists in the Slocan Valley, and the Russian language is taught at the elementary and secondary levels.

Specialty Programs

The Valhalla Wilderness Program and Adventure-Tourism Leadership and Safety Program take advantage of our wilderness and mountains. Dance and hockey academies attract students from across BC, and our student-led social justice programs are exemplary. More than 100 students from Korea, Mexico and Brazil participate in our international program.

Community Culture

Commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable development characterizes our interactions with one another and our environment. Our towns and cities are noticeably different with their lack of strip malls and highway development and their valuing of heritage buildings. Many buildings in Nelson’s core date from the early 1900s.

Draw for Employees

Teachers are attracted to be part of a high-performing organization ranking high in all measures of student achievement. Many people come to the district for an active outdoor lifestyle: the skiing, fishing, kayaking and mountain trekking in this area are without equal. Nelson, with its 350 preserved heritage buildings, is recognized as a vibrant cultural centre with a thriving arts community.