School District No.8 (Kootenay Lake) has won an Award of Distinction 2023 BRAVO! Award from the Canadian Association of Communicators in Education (CACE) for its 2024-2029 Strategic Plan Engagement.

The award recognizes and honours exemplary work in public relations, communications, marketing and engagement in school board communications across Canada each year.

“It’s an honour to be recognized nationally by the Canadian Association of Communicators in Education for the hard work and commitment that the SD8 team demonstrated in engaging with our communities," said SD8 Superintendent Trish Smillie.

"Our strategic plan is the result of participation from many people, and it is heartening to know that residents of our region are passionate about seeing children learn and thrive across our district."

SD8 has been recognized for its work engaging with students, staff, families, educational partners including Indigenous partners as well as the broader public to develop the five-year plan.

Between January and April 2023, the district engaged with close to 1000 people online and hundreds in person during meetings and in community sessions held in the Slocan Valley, Kaslo, Crawford Bay, Creston, Salmo and Nelson. Participants submitted 1882 ideas for the strategic plan that led to five strategic priorities: lifelong learners, connected learners, a caring and inclusive learning culture, cultural and identity development, and career development. 

Photo(l to r): CACE-ACACE President Galen Eagle; SD8 Public Engagement Manager Frances Maika; and Manager, Business Development for SchoolBundle (awards sponsor), Jacques Major. 

“On behalf of the Board of Education I want thank the CACE for this award for communicating and engaging with our communities. Each trustee in our district gained a much deeper understanding of what is important to students, staff, families, and our educational partners on the journey to developing our strategic plan. That’s a reward in itself. To receive formal recognition is the icing on the cake,” said SD8 Board Chair Lenora Trenaman. 

Under the Communications Project category, the Award of Distinction is one of the highest recognitions for education communications and engagement programs and campaigns in Canada. Each year, hundreds of school districts submit projects and pieces for judging by communications and engagement experts outside the K-12 education sector, in the in pursuit of recognition for excellence, distinction or a “coup de coeur” for a single communication piece that stands out from the others. 

About School District No. 8 (Kootenay Lake): Located in the southern Interior of British Columbia, SD8 serves numerous diverse communities in the Kootenays including Crawford Bay, Creston, Kaslo, Meadow Creek, Nelson, Salmo, Slocan, South Slocan, Winlaw, Wynndel, and Yahk. We also serve students across B.C. through our provincial online learning school, Elev8. Our dedicated team focuses on providing the best possible educational opportunities for over 4,700 students and their families. Our mission is to inspire and support each learner to thrive in a caring learning environment. 
                                                                                                                                                  
The Canadian Association of Communicators in Education (CACE): offers the best resource and professional development, bilingually, for educational communications professionals and system leaders in Canada. They are also the only association, in Canada, to provide direct support for the work of more than 375 communicators and organizational leaders in school districts, school board associations, private school institutions, post-secondary institutions, teacher organizations and provincial education ministries.