Superintendent’s Update

Dear Parents and Caregivers:

It is hard to believe that we are almost starting the last week of May. This week has been filled with many successes. This week, I am focusing on how students and staff are one of the core values in the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan.

Provincials – Way to Go and Keep on Going!

Thank you, students and parents, for your hard work, persistence, and focus on attending practices and preparing for success at a high level in soccer, rugby, tennis, frisbee, and track and field. Congratulations to the following teams going to provincials from our District:

• Senior AA Girls Soccer – Westsyde Secondary
• Senior A Girls Soccer – Kamloops School of the Arts
• Senior 15's Boys Rugby – South Kamloops Secondary
• Senior Boys 7's Rugby – NorKam Secondary
• Senior Girls 7's Rugby – South Kamloops Secondary
• Senior Girls 7's Rugby – Westsyde Secondary
• Senior Boys Tennis – South Kamloops Secondary
• Senior AAA Ultimate – South Kamloops Secondary
• Track and Field – Westsyde and few kids from each school

Pinantan Elementary School – May 21, 2025

It was a beautiful day at Pinantan Elementary, where students, parents, and staff started their morning with a numeracy fair. Students shared with their parents what they have been learning in numeracy and mathematics.  Principal Naylor said, “We had over 40 parents attend and the students were leading their conversations by sharing the strategies that they have been learning.”

Students were also planting and tending to their garden outside and using their new greenhouse, just installed last year. They were watering their planters and excited to see little sprouts for some of the plants. Ms. Robinson and parents were helping and everyone was learning together about growing food and what can be made with what is grown.

In my update last year, I shared how the PAC and students were raising funds to expand their outdoor learning opportunities, and gardening was a favourite for everyone.

Principal Naylor explained, “Classroom based learning matters to our parents and students, and so, too, does being healthy, getting outside, and learning on the land.”

At lunch time, students were playing outside and then a surprise treat was provided to everyone for lunch—bannock! Trustee Jules had organized for the company, “BannockSlaps” from Vernon to come to the school.

Mr. Shane Miller, owner of this company, kindly started to set out the bannock, chili, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese, as well as serving trays and cutlery. The students lined up to help him to serve the students and staff. Everyone enjoyed a hearty meal, and most had left-overs for later.

Thanks to Feeding Futures funds, the students enjoyed this meal and have been enjoying others throughout the year as well as a healthy daily snack program.

Ms. Semesock and Mrs. Franklin supported the K-1 students to draw sunflowers. Ms. Semesock shared steps for how to put the outline onto their pages using chalk. Students chimed in with suggested color schemes and ways to draw the petals and to consider whether the flowers were just starting to grow or were in full bloom. We returned after the students had been working together to see the wide range of colors and shapes used to create their art work. Bravo K-1!

Ms. Head and Ms. Hoshowski led Grades 2-3 and 5-6-7 in a robotics lesson. They described how they had attended an inspiring session led by District Coordinator Elizabeth deVries. The purpose of the lesson was to have students program places to send their vehicle on a map that was designed to teach them about landscapes in the unceded territory of Secwépemc peoples and to become familiar Secwepemctsin. Ms. Hoshowski shared, “It did not take the students very long to learn the coding to program in earlier classes and applying the same logic to this activity came quite easily to them.”

Ms. Hrycan was sharing her strategies for teaching the Grade 3-4 students about tie-dyeing. One student, Tobias, happily explained, “We learned spiral (long roll), scrunch (bunched up), and bulls-eye (make the pattern from the center to outside).” Each student had selected two colors, and Tobias had three colors because of his experience and that he was creating a spiral. One student shared that she had done a combination of a “squash-swirl”. The students who had finished were inside writing their “hopes and dreams” for their story characters, and they had written their personal hopes and dreams following a reading of “Tree Lady”.

It was such a rich visit filled with learning and fun with the Pinantan staff, students, and parents!

SKSS Music Director Michelle McRae wins National MusicFest Canada Award

Congratulations to Michelle McRae, teacher and Music Director at South Kamloops Secondary School (SKSS), who recently received a national award from MusicFest Canada. At the MusicFest Nationals awards ceremony on Saturday May 17, 2025, Michelle McRae was awarded the prestigious MusicFest Canada Tommy Banks/NAC Orchestra Outstanding Jazz Director Award. Read more.

Elementary Students Select 2025 Sagebrush Book Awards Winners 

This year's winners of the SD73 Sagebrush Book Awards, voted by elementary students across all grades (K-7) from schools across the District, are Flat Cat by Tara Lazar and Odder by Katherine Applegate. Thank you to the Sagebrush Book Awards Team for creating and organizing this readers choice award program which is unique to our District! Read more.

Grade 7 Students Compete in the 2025 Gauss Math Contest and Team Challenge

On May 14, 2025, 72 Grade 7 students from 26 schools across the District took part in the 2025 Gauss Math Contest and Team Challenge event—the largest number of participants to date. Congratulations to this year’s top scoring students: Clover Yuan from Pacific Way Elementary (1st place), Owen Fan from Pacific Way Elementary (2nd place), and Sawyer LeDrew from Dufferin Elementary (3rd place). Read more.

Parent Engagement Session: Artificial Intelligence – May 28, 2025

Curious about Artificial Intelligence in your child's education? Join us for our upcoming Parent Engagement next week on Wednesday, May 28, from 6–7 pm on Zoom to learn more about AI in SD73. Led by District Technology Coordinator Elizabeth deVries and Director of Instruction Carol DeFehr, this session will provide updates on the AI Story in SD73, AI Literacy, and introduce parents to the SD73 AI Framework. Read more.

Take time to rest, rejuvenate, and enjoy your weekend.

Rhonda Nixon, PhD
Superintendent