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A new princi/ra/at Kirby Public School by Anita DeVries She's fun! She's exciting! She's interesting! Who is she? She's Lisa Dunn the new principal principal at Kirby Centennial School. "I'm so excited to be here!" said Dunn. "I had children coming up to me on the first day, shaking my hand and introducing themselves to me!" Dunn has always enjoyed small, close-knit communities. communities. When she graduated from Nippissing University with a Bachelor of Education, she and her husband, Kevin, who had also just graduated, went to Attawapiskat Indian Reç* vvc on James Bay to jach. "We had a wonderful time there," she said. "It's a wonderful wonderful way to start teaching, we didn't have the paper work and the community was very appreciative." "English is a second language language on the reserve. So the first day I was there I taught until 10 a.m. before I realized no one knew what I said! I looked at them and said, 'Do you understand what I'm saying.'" saying.'" Sweet, innocent, blank eyes stared up at her; "They smiled and noddéd. I realized that they hadn't understood a thing!" Laughs Dunn, her shoulder length, dark brown hair, bobbing up and down with merriment. "Living in a community as a minority really opens you up," said Dunn. She really got into the Indian culture: she did her grocery shopping by canoe, ice fished every weekend weekend and even learned how to smoke a goose! After four years on reserves, the couple decided they needed to set down roots somewhere, since they were not allowed to buy a house on the reserve. They bought a house in Bowmanville. Dunn started working at S.T. Worden as a special education teacher. The next year she taught at Bowmanville Senior Public School. While she worked there, she and Kevin began working on their Masters of Education through Queen's University. They also were blessed with their first child, Colleen. It was five years and three children later (Sam and Molly completed their family) that they both completed their Masters. Dunn worked at Percy Centennial School in Warkworth for two years and was vice-principal at Otonabee Valley School in Peterborough. Both Dunn and her husband took the Principal Qualification Courses offered through Queen's University during the summer months and became principals. Dunn's first year as a principal principal was last year at Grove Public School in Peterborough. She enjoyed it thoroughly, but wanted to work closer to her home, which is on Rice Lake. So when she was offered the job at Kirby she was thrilled. "The first task I have is to get to know all the children's names and their families. Then I will be focusing on improving the reading scores. I love language and words, if I can foster that in the kids here that would be terrific!" Dunn will be bringing in her mother-in-law, Sonja Dunn, a well-known Canadian children's author, to Kirby on September 20. Sonja Dunn Letter to the Editor Lisa Dunn, the new principal of Kirby Public School, is surrounded by grade one students: students: Paige Minicola, Rachel Harris, Brett Lee, Ben Deboer and Jeminah DeVries. Anita DeVries photo Kyoto Protocol T)ear Editor, The Kyoto Protocol is a major commitment on the part of the Government of Canada to the world community and to the people of Canada. It is one way to deal with the harm done our environment by greenhouse gas emissions. Last January, I wrote the Prime Minister a letter saying, among other things, "If Canada is serious about meeting its targets, we must ensure that Canadians have the information they need to make an informed decision." He was good enough to respond with this commitment: commitment: "In closing, let me reiterate reiterate while the goal of the Government of Canada is to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, we will complete consultations with provinces, stakeholders will be reading to the children and doing workshops with them. The staff and students are thrilled to have her here as well. "She's a good communicator communicator and she's energetic...we've had the most dramatic assemblies assemblies I've ever seen!" said Tuula Gryg, the grade 5 teacher at Kirby. "She does things you wouldn't expect her to do, she goes above and beyond the principal's role," said Melody Geurts, Kirby's grade 4 teacher. Rachelle Harris, a grade one student at Kirby says she enjoys the assemblies now, "I like her (Dunn) because she's nice." The children at Kirby like her so much, because they can sense that she likes them and wants the best for them, "I always had a love of children," children," said Dunn. On her cupboard in her office, is a folk art of a teaching teaching marm, holding up a chalk board that says 2 teach is + 2 touch a life + 4 a lifetime. The students at Kirby will definitely definitely be touched by her warm, enthusiastic presence and will definitely look back, years later, to the time when they went to a little country school in Kirby and had a principal named Lisa Dunn. Fall Beck Sale at Clarke Museum SL Archives 7086 Old Kirby School Road Saturday, September 14 10am to 2 pm Over a thousand books on every subject call 905-983-9243 for more information and the public before taking a decision. I am pleased you share the Government's commitment commitment to reducing greenhouse greenhouse gases and addressing climate change." In Johannesburg in September the Prime Minister committed to ratifying the Protocol without honouring his word that there would be complete consultations. The impact of Mr. Chretien's unilateral unilateral decision is unknown. Whether Canada's word can be honoured is unknown. What is known is that several Provinces, whose concurrence concurrence is necessary for implementation, implementation, flatly reject Mr. Chretien's unilateral decision, . and believe it will harm Canada. Continued on page S U ilfiili mm Live Entertainment, Climbing Wall, Jumping Castle, Vendors and Artisans Chili Taste Testing and Judging at 2:00 pm Cooks start at 8:00 am iili Cooks with Donna 983-5207 Evelynn -983-9167 Prizes for Best Chili and Best Decorated Chili Table FREE TABLES FOR ARTISANS AND VENDORS PHONE NOW 905-983-5207