A Grey Nun and an aboriginal saint will soon lend their names to the St. Albert region’s newest Catholic schools.
The Greater St. Albert Catholic board voted unanimously Monday to name its two new schools after Sister Marie Jacques-Alphonse of the Grey Nuns and Saint Kateri Tekakwitha.
The K-9 elementary school in the Jensen Lakes region of St. Albert has been dubbed Sister Alphonse Academy, while the K-6 school in Morinville’s Westwinds development will be known as St. Kateri Tekakwitha Academy.
It’s wonderful to be able to name two new schools, said board chair Noreen Radford. Both of these people were inspiring leaders and outstanding models for the Catholic faith, she added in a press release.
The board struck naming committees earlier this year that suggested about 40 names for these two schools, Radford said. The committees included students, historians, and religious leaders, all of whom backed their words with extensive research and documentation, Radford said.
“We really should have taped it for historical reasons.”
Each committee winnowed their lists down to a top three for trustees to debate Monday. Pope Francis made the shortlist for both schools. Montreal’s St. AndrĂ© was considered for St. Albert, as was St. John the Baptist for Morinville.
Alphonse was the runaway favourite for the board for St. Albert, Radford said.
“This sister was the first sister at the St. Albert mission,” Radford said, and the district just recently celebrated 150 years of Catholic education in Alberta.
“What a wonderful way to recognize the Grey Nuns and their contribution to the community!”
Historians describe Jacques-Alphonse (1835-1892) as “jovial, resourceful” and “a real sunshine for sombre days.” She knew Cree and made clothes and straw hats to support the community. St. Albert’s Alphonse Cres. is named after her.
St. Albert is the first place in Canada to name a school after Jacques-Alphonse, the board heard.
Tekakwitha (1656-1680) became the world’s first native American saint when she was canonized in 2012, the board heard. She worked for the Jesuits in Canada and prioritized youth education. Tekakwitha means “putting things in order,” which reflects how she put her life in order in a short time.
Edmonton and Calgary have schools named after St. Kateri.
Radford said both schools are in the design stage and will be ready for construction as soon as servicing and (in the case of Morinville) area structure plans are completed.
The schools are set to open in 2018.
Schools across Canada will be in the pink today as students don pink shirts and stand up against bullying.
Feb. 24 is Pink Shirt Day in Canada – a national campaign that has people wear pink to raise awareness of bullying.
While many local schools are taking part in this event, Sturgeon Composite High is going all out this year with pink shirts, pink anti-bullying pledges, free pink ice-cream floats and a Pink Shirt Day magazine, said teacher Mike Johnson. Every staff, club or team member at the school will be wearing pink, and they’ve ordered 250 pink shirts to distribute.
“Statistics show that the majority of high school students have had to deal with bullying,” he said, and it can be daunting to hang with same group of students for three years if you’re bullied.
School staff decided to go big for Pink Shirt Day this year to show students that there are still places they can go for help despite the fact that many of the school’s common areas are fenced off due to renovations, Johnson said.
“It’s just kind of trying to build school spirit in a world of plywood walls.”
Pinkshirtday.ca has more on this event.
