I
returned to Arctic Bay in early August.
Upon stepping out of the First Air plane on the gravel tarmac, I
breathed in the fresh arctic air and quietly whispered, “Home.” I collected my bags and was driven into town
by Frank. The only snow I could see were
of small patches high up in the mountains.
The remaining landscape was brown and the water was dark blue. It took me three hours to unpack and settle
in.
The
only major change I had to do was buy the new 4G Qiniq modem that the company
recently introduced. The old black
modems that many had relied upon for many years were no longer being supported
and their links to the Internet were cut.
I didn’t mind switching to the new modem, despite the price, because the
uploading & downloading speeds were much better. The only downside is that the usage cap is
set at 25GB per month. You can go higher
but have to pay a really high price. If
it’s one thing I miss, and Nunavut really needs, is unlimited Internet usage.
My classroom looked the same as I
left it in June: empty in the centre and all the chairs & tables piled up
in a corner. I organized the tables
& chairs just the way I wanted and then went to work getting my teaching
materials ready. I already new since
June that this year was going to be different: new school administration and
several new teachers from the south.
However, the school still had plenty of veterans on staff to help the
students with the transition.
The staff had its first meeting
several days before the beginning of school.
We had a minute of silence for a high school student who tragically
passed away over the summer. What
followed were introductions, schedules, list of committees, and upcoming
events. Once the meeting concluded, everyone
was dismissed to prepare their classrooms for the following week.
Arctic Bay is accessible by boat for
about two & a half months of the year, beginning in July. Aside from local boat owners who take
advantage of the open waters to hunt, fish, & camp, the region is frequented
by foreign vessels. And when I say
foreign vessels, I mean any ship that doesn’t originate from Arctic Bay. There were three foreign vessels, two tall
ships & a very expensive looking yacht, anchored in the bay when I came
back. I learned through word-of-mouth
that the yacht belonged to a German man.
All
vessels have to anchor in the bay because the community doesn’t have a small
craft harbour. The small breakwater pier
doesn’t count. If anyone from the
Nunavut Government is reading this: Arctic Bay could really use a small craft
harbour right now! If you want to get
ashore, you have to use a small boat like a Zodiac.
The first day of school was August
16. The staff followed the established routines
of the previous years and came to school early to get the Welcome Back
breakfast ready. The gym was also set up
with tables, chairs, and a sound system.
The teachers quickly divided up the food onto paper plates before the
first bell of the school year rang. The
student body & parents came down to the gym at 9:15am.
 |
| I introduce myself. |
The new principal & vice-principal
introduced themselves and welcomed everyone to the 2018-19 school year. They passed the microphone down the line of
staff standing at the front of the gym.
Each staff member introduced themselves and explained their role at the
school. The food was then blessed by an elder. The food, consisting of various fruits,
vegetables, cheese, and crackers, was distributed by staff. Everyone enjoyed the breakfast. At the conclusion of the breakfast, students
& teachers were sent back to their classes and the parents were free to go.
My schedule for the fall semester is
the same as last year: Grade 10 English, Grade 10 Social Studies, and Grade 10
Drums. I just spent the first day going
through course outlines, assigning binders & folders, explaining the layout
of the classroom, and playing several ice breaker games.
A new school year has begun.
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