FORT ST. JOHN – A ceremony recognizing 13 new teachers was held at the Northern Grand Hotel in Fort St. John on December 7, 2017.
The recent AHCOTE program students celebrated their graduation with a dinner attended by their family members. AHCOTE, (Alaska Highway Consortium on Teacher Education), is a partnership between Simon Fraser University (SFU), School Districts 59, 60 and 81, local teacher associations and Northern Lights College.
AHCOTE is delivered at the Northern Lights College Fort St. John campus and provides aspiring teachers with the theoretical knowledge to teaching, along with practical classroom experience. Graduates of the program are eligible to receive either a Professional or Conditional Teaching Certificate, depending on their academic background, from the Teacher Regulation Branch of the Ministry of Education.
“I knew I wanted to be a teacher – even in grade 12, I was doing work experience in elementary schools.” said Kelsey Lariviere, AHCOTE graduate. “… the teachers who’d already graduated from AHCOTE said there’s a great program in town; you can do it right where you live.”
Fellow graduate Kathy Cowan had this to say: “I’ve always wanted to be a teacher. Being in the north, it’s a pretty remote area and the AHCOTE program was a wonderful option available, so not only was it accessible, I also heard some amazing things about the program, so it was a win-win situation.”
As the Faculty Associate of AHCOTE Angela Connelly explained, her role and involvement working with these new teachers was nothing short of a great experience. “It’s been the best decision of my professional career and the most rewarding thing I’ve done.” she said.
The graduation class included: Trevor Buller, Jennifer Dow Salinas, Rayna Gould, Nathalie Jones, Rebecca King Pimm, Katharina Krahn, Kelsey LaRiviere, Ida Lis, Jennifer Louie, Tara Maloney, Erica McNaughton, Kaitlyn Nelson Plews and Bronwyn Scott.
The next intake of the AHCOTE program is planned for September 2018. The application period opened this fall.
For further information, please email AHCOTE@nlc.bc.ca. or visit www.nlc.bc.ca/ahcote.
