News Stories

When James Beaudoin goes to work each morning in Nelson to pick up his school bus, he knows that he is directly supporting a child’s education, social and physical well being.

“Being a bus driver is an important job, and the feeling of being needed and helping my community is very fulfilling. In some cases, we are the first smile that a child will see at the start of their day. Without our support, many kids would have a lot of roadblocks in the way to get to school.”

At a meeting on March 28, the School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake) Board of Education directed Superintendent Trish Smillie to pause the Proof of Vaccination Regarding COVID-19 Administrative Procedure pending further changes to public health orders and further information from BC Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA).

The School District No.8 (Kootenay Lake) Board of Education has hired Johan Glaudemans as the new secretary-treasurer and chief financial officer for SD8, effective April 12, 2022. He will take over from Interim Secretary-Treasurer Teri Stoneman, who has been in place since previous Secretary-Treasurer Michael McLellan left to work as secretary-treasurer for School District 10 Arrow Lakes in February.

An overview of discussion items and major decisions of the Board of Education of School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake). For meeting agendas/minutes and a schedule of upcoming board meetings visit our meetings and minutes page. 

On March 10, the Province of B.C. announced several changes to existing public health orders (PHO) that affect the Provincial COVID-19 Communicable disease Guidelines for K-12 Settings. These changes come into effect the first day of Spring Break – March 14, 2022.

At a meeting on March 3, the SD8 Board of Education directed Superintendent Trish Smillie to extend the implementation date of the district’s Proof of Vaccination Regarding COVID-19 Administrative Procedure from March 11 to April 11, 2022. This one-month extension will allow the Board time to consider evolving COVID-19 data and changes to public health directives.

The purpose of the Proof of Vaccination Procedure is to safeguard the health and safety of employees and students from COVID-19.

An overview of discussion items & major decisions from the School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake) Board of Education (SD8). Full meeting agendas/minutes and a schedule of upcoming board meetings are available on our meetings page.

The recent announcement by the Williams Lake First Nation of 93 unmarked burial sites discovered at the former Williams Lake, St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School adds to the terrible truths of missing children buried at other former residential school sites in B.C. and elsewhere in Canada.

January 20, 2022, Nelson, BC -

The Board of Education - School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake) passed a resolution on January 18 that directs Superintendent Trish Smillie to create and implement a Proof of Vaccination Procedure for all staff and contractors. It will not apply to students.

The purpose of the Proof of Vaccination Procedure is to safeguard the health and safety of employees and students from COVID-19.

- Partners and public invited to complete online survey

School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake) invites students, parents, staff and the wider community to share their voices in an online survey. The survey is part of a comprehensive public engagement process initiated by the Board of Education to inform a new policy to address racism.