By Kellah Lavoie

St. Anne says goodbye, moves into their new home

Apr 22, 2011 | 2:33 PM

It is a bittersweet move for St. Anne School.

On Thursday, teachers and support staff packed their classrooms and headed over to the new school where classes will start on May 3.

It’s very exciting, our staff are excited about it and our students just can’t wait to come back to the new school,” Kathy Gaudet, principal of St. Anne School, said.

They have been slowly packing for the past few weeks, and Wednesday was the last time the students were inside the old facility.

“It’s a happy but emotional time for everyone,” she said.

National

Ottawa to remove 30% investment cap for Canadian pension funds

1h ago

Budget woes

Golf and curling centre faces grim season without financial boost

4h ago

Raiders AGM

Raiders impact on Prince Albert local economy continues to go up: AGM report

23h ago

“It’s such a great place to be, the staff and the students we’re such a family. I think a lot has to do with the fact that we are so close knit.”

With some teachers putting in several years, it is more than just a change in venue.

“It’s difficult – it’s very hard to move. There are lots of good memories here at St. Anne School, but it’s exciting to move into a new school,” said Laurie Kuchapski, a Grade 2 teacher. Kuchapski is currently in her 16th year teaching at the school, the longest remaining teacher, and is retiring this year.

The school was outgrowing itself. At the end of March, enrolment was at 403 – up more than 25 students from a year before.

“We almost don’t fit in our gym to have an assembly or a celebration,” Kuchapski said.

It’s not just the gym that will make life easier for teachers. The new school has a music room, art room, science room, chapel, servery and a computer room – all places they had to do without in the old school. There will also be pre-kindergarten starting in May and a daycare opening in June.

Gaudet said they want to keep the same feeling in the school. In the old building, Grade 8 and Grade 3 students were across the hall from each other. They shared the same hallways and were completely comfortable with each other. When setting up the classrooms, she wanted to keep that closeness among grades.

Relationships and some materials are the only things that are staying the same. All the classrooms have new desks, lockers and are even equipped with a sink.

“It’s unbelievably beautiful, everything is so new, there is much more room – everything is just so modern,” Diane Fauchoux, one of the school’s secretaries, said.

“The kids are all prepared, they know exactly what doors they will be coming into, where the buses will be dropping them off, because that all changes,” Gaudet said.

Students have been over to the new school several times to get acquainted with it. On Wednesday, they moved all of their possessions into their new desks and lockers.

“It’s great to see their faces, especially when you see the tours going through and their eyes light up.

It’s so exciting for them to be going through and experiencing the newness,” said Fauchoux.

It has not been the easiest transition. The school yard does not have good drainage and one area of the playground has been mud all spring. Gaudet laughed as she said the older students are dealing with it well and all bought rubber boots – even though most Grade 6 and 7 students would avoid it at all costs.

When the students come back after their Easter break, everything will be different. The playground will have changed and the fence that is around the new school will be moved to surround the old facility.

Within the next few weeks the old school will slowly come down. They will recycle what they can and then demolish the building.

klavoie@panow.com