BANFF – While the thought of going back to school can conjure up a range of emotions for students, for those in the NOW, preparing to head back is a big deal.
For the seventh year, Banff Community High School students who have immigrated to Canada and are new to valley school systems took part in a Settlement Services in the Bow Valley Newcomer Orientation Welcome.
With smiles everywhere, plenty of selfies taken and certificates handed out by Canmore Mayor John Borrowman and Banff Councillor Corrie DiManno, this year’s NOW group graduated on Friday (Aug. 24). The NOW program sees peer leader students work with those new to Banff and Canada to help prepare them for the upcoming school year.
“I just want to say how much I look forward to this day every year,” said Borrowman. “Because I have kids myself, the thought of having kids separated from my wife and I for any length of time is hard to imagine and some of the stories I’ve heard about you and your families and the length of time you’ve been separated is hard to imagine.
“I can’t help but think about all of the struggles and the work that your parents have done over year, sometimes, 14 or 15 years, in order to be here and create a place where you can come and have a good life.
“Be sure to say thank you to your folks for putting in those years and finally being able to bring you to Canada to start your life here. You’re all going to have an amazing life in Canada. It’s a great country, very welcoming and particularly here in the Bow Valley.”
The NOW students have received a lot of support prior to entering Grades 7-12 from peers, and other supports are in place, said DiManno on behalf of Mayor Karen Sorensen. “It’s similar with the community. We are here to see your success and please don’t hesitate to use that support.
“It’s really great to be here,” she added with tears in her eyes.
One of the students who has long been separated from her complete family is Weifel Castillo, 14, from the Phillipines, whose father arrived in Banff some years ago, then worked to have his daughter join him. Castillo is going into Grade 9 this year.
“When I was in Grade 5, my dad got my papers and asked me if I want to come here and I said, ‘yes.’ After some months, in Grade 6, they told me my papers were stopped and before Grade 8 they processed them again and I came here.”
Today, Castillo and her father Felix (nine years) are in Banff, “but my mom’s (Wilhemina) not here yet because our family’s complicated. And I have a sister, Welixen, who’s 26 and is married and I have one nephew. I haven’t seen my mom for one year and five months and I’m not sure when she’s coming here.
“This program is so good. I’m happy to be here for this.”
Abel Candia 17, also arrived from the Phillipines to follow his mom, Shirley, just a couple of months ago, and is going into Grade 12.
After first moving to Taiwan, Shirley has been in Canada for eight years and Candia had last seen her in 2007 when she when back to the Phillipines for a couple of months.
Candia’s father, Alberto, remains in the Phillipines, although his brother Chan, 23, came to Canada at the same time.
The NOW program, he said, “is a really nice thing to have, especially when you’re new here to Banff. It’s a good way to start your life here.
“It’s a different way of living here, especially the weather.”
Candia is from a small town in the Phillipines, but he said it was much different than Banff.
“It’s a big difference. There’s a lot of illegal settlers there and a lot of homeless people, especially kids. This is very organized here and I have friends here, both Filipinos and from other places.
“Some of the Filipinos texted me because they knew there was another Filipino coming here and they met me and are very welcoming. It’s not really that hard to make new friends here.”
Candia hopes his father will join them soon, as well as his brother’s wife. In future, Candia has his eye on a career in accounting or finance, possibly after taking a couple of years off and re-visiting Phillipines.
In all, 42 kids, newcomers and leaders, took part in this year’s NOW project, said Settlement Services’ Jeanie Godfrey, including students from Ukraine, Phillipines, Jamaica, China and Korea.
“These are the kids who will be permanent residents, not the international students,” she said. “They’ll graduate from our school systems. We have 17 new students this year, and there are a lot more in the younger grades.”
Peer leaders give the newcomers a top 10 list of how to be successful in school, “things like don’t worry about speaking English perfectly, Canadians don’t care about your grammar, they just want to hear you messages,” said Godfrey.
“When we interview kids for school, their biggest concern is gym class, because they’ve never had gym in their home countries, so they don’t know what they’re doing. So they don’t know what sports we do; the leaders teach them about how that works.
“So it’s everything from teaching about their locks and lockers to sharing personal stories about what school was like for them when they first started. That’s powerful because it normalizes the experience for new students.
“They also see that the peer leaders are successful now, so it’s really uplifting to have that shared experience.”
Peer leaders and students discuss the community, the 12 most important places to go, like the job resource centre, a bank to see how to start an account, the library, the rec grounds and Town Hall.
Students are also shown by peer leaders all the rooms in the school, the rules in those rooms, etc. They learn about attendance and what to do if absent.
“These kids (peer leaders) are best to show the new students all this. We have the peer leaders for four days and we train them to lead the program, then they lead the three-day orientation welcome.
“These kids can now step into the school and they’re prepared. They know what the expectations are going to be of them and they’ve made friends. What’s unique about this program is that it’s about Banff and Canmore schools and the Catholic school and they make friends across the community and across the schools.”
Students taking part in the NOW program will attend Banff Elementary, Lawrence Grassi Middle School, Banff and Canmore high schools and Our Lady of the Snows.
