For their dedication in making the Welcome to Kindergarten program a true community partnership, General Wolfe Elementary school's team received one of six national awards from the Learning Partnership.

The General Wolfe school team included Wendy Cameron, Ravinder Jassal, Jennifer Thomson, Robyn Fenyedi, Cathy Thomas, Ashlie Arbour-Polley, Kelly Lee and Arnhild Hognestad.

Their work is described as a 'true team effort' with each person taking a leadership role in their areas of expertise. The school team is also known for its tireless work planning year round to engage and involve community partners such as the Vancouver Park Board. The result has been significant positive results year after year. 

In addition to the General Wolfe team, VSB Director of Instruction Denise Johnson also was honoured with an award for her work developing collaborations between the Vancouver School Board and the region's community centres, allowing for easy expansion of the Welcome to Kindergarten events. Through her hard work and leadership, Johnson shepherded the initiative to eight elementary schools, five community centers and over 350 children in less than four years. Her focus on implementing physical literacy stations has led other school districts in British Columbia to replicate this initiative at their schools' WTK events.

Honourees are chosen by a national selection committee consisting of members from across Canada with extensive knowledge and interest in early years initiatives.
 
"Early education is extremely important because it lays the foundation for future academic and social success," says Akela Peoples, President and CEO of The Learning Partnership. "These leaders play significant roles in getting our young children excited about and well prepared for school.  We feel it is important to recognize them for their outstanding leadership and exceptional efforts to build strong partnerships within their school communities in order to make early learning a priority." 

To watch a short video about the District's Physical Literacy program, a key component of much of Team General Wolfe and Johnson's Welcome to K programming, click here or below.

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