Sometimes you can’t see a forest for the trees.
It is perhaps a good thing that St. Mary of the Lake school let the dust settle before having their school profile hit the newsstands.
Issues with the French immersion program (issues that have plagued all Alberta schools) seemed to overshadow the good work the school does on a daily basis.
Wisely, the staff of the school sat back and let the storm blow over. They let the talking heads, nay-sayers and politicians worry about worrying, while they focused on the job at hand; educating the students of St. Mary’s.
Education, not politics, does make the grade at Saint Mary of the Lake. If you don’t believe it, take a trip through the corridors of the recently maligned institute.
The hallways are still lined with smiling kids. Posters of the upcoming student elections color the walls. There is no talk of fighting board members; there are no weeping French teachers.
There was, however, some chocolate pudding on the floor.
In other words, its business as usual if schooling kids can be called usual.

Now into the second month of studies, the beleaguered institute is rolling along at a nice normal clip. Clearly, the school has not been shaken to its foundation by the earlier fracas. On the contrary, the school welcomed five young teachers to its faculty, excited by the prospect of schooling another round of youngsters.
Vice-principal and resident ball-of-energy Cara Block was herself a student at the school. Her children now attend studies there. She has taught there and is also currently vice-principal. To say she knows her way around is an understatement.
With one foot in the school yard and another in the office, she is well qualified to report on the state of the union as it relates to school matters.
“There was a time when we have around 500 students. We are right around 300 currently. When this school was built it was mainly for (grades) K through six. So we have seen serious growth. In my time here, I have seen maybe ten staff members come and go. Not because of the facility, or the town. People just move on. Perhaps a husband got a transfer to another town. Some got married. It’s hard to keep teachers in small town.”
That being said, Block was eager to introduce five new staff members.
Shaun Peters arrived with only days to spare on Aug. 25. He teaches physical education and brought with him a heavy Newfoundland brogue.
He says “I like it here. It’s a nice small town. A small school, so I get to teach mostly phys. ed. Back east, I taught half gym and half of something else.”
Evan Mellsen is an Albertan, but new to Slave Lake. He teaches third grade students at St. Mary’s, where he is thankful that he has only a handful of names to remember.
Ben Tupling is also an Albertan. He is teaching band and some junior high, and is a former student of St. Mary’s.
Gary Clarke, recent transplant from Halifax teaches grade 4 and Jared McLeod teaches junior high classes.

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