Construction on long-awaited school underway in Nunavik community of Quaqtaq
The Nunavik community of Quaqtaq is breathing a sigh of relief that construction has got underway on a new school.
“It’s been a long road to get here,” said Sarah Aloupa, president of Kativik Ilisarniliriniq, Nunavik’s school board. “I’m very excited and the employees are very happy and anxious to get the new school.”
Quaqtaq is a community of approximately 450 people.
The Isummasaqvik school was built in 1971, intended to operate as the village’s French-language school. But over time, it came to accommodate the village’s entire student population, which now stands at 117.
The building has been plagued by ongoing repair issues and overcrowding, despite some extensions, requiring difficult decisions.
“We used to have a library, but now we’re using it as a classroom and also for emergency daycare,” Aloupa said. “The janitorial room is also being used for special needs education. There’s just no more space.”
The physical location of the school—next to a steep hill where snow easily builds up—has also proven a problem, preventing access by municipal services.
“We end up closing the school more than once a year during the wintertime because water and delivery services can’t get to the area,” Aloupa said.
The new building will accommodate up to 250 students and be built in a different part of town, with a direct hook up to the water plant.
MLS + Jodoin Lamarre Pratte are the architects behind the new building’s design, inspired by an umiaq, a traditional Inuit boat.
“It will be culturally and modernly designed, and with culturally appropriate classrooms,” Aloupa said.
“That’s very important for the design.”
The new school is scheduled to open in 2030 and current plans are to keep the Isummasaqvik name.
The old school building will be renovated and become an adult vocational training centre, Aloupa said.
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Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Nunavik eyes post-secondary education rooted in Inuit culture and offering Western credentials, Eye on the Arctic
Russia: More than 75% of schools in Murmansk need major repair, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Northern Swedish municipality of Luleå bans mobile phones in schools, Radio Sweden
