Chalo School

Welcome to the website of Chalo School, a school dedicated to providing an exemplary educational experience for each student with a First Nation perspective. A review of the website will enable you to quickly gain a sense of the energy and excitement that is associated with the learning that permeates Chalo School. From our website you will undoubtedly begin to construct an understanding that Chalo is a school dedicated to supporting and challenging each student to meet his/her full potential. The school has a rich and extended history of working with students to support their academic, emotional, physical, and social development. This is best done by everyone at Chalo School dedicating themselves to the application of “best practices” in facilitating the learning experiences of students.

Three statements serve to emphasize what is at the heart of the day- to- day interaction with students at Chalo School.
Academic rigor, Extraordinary care for the welfare of each child, and Professional excellence. The above statements collectively contribute to the creation of a wonderful Chalo learning community for students, parents, staff, and administrators. The commitment to the “Vital Few”, in concert with the development of a strong home/school partnership, is the key to forging a working relationship focused on promoting student success throughout the school year.

At Chalo School, we have a clear mission: Through outstanding teaching in a nurturing environment, Chalo inspires students to become Strong, Healthy, Proud, and Self-Reliant. We expect our students to leave Chalo School equipped for future academic success and, just as importantly, to depart with the knowledge and skills needed to be successful world citizens. Our school has spectacular facilities, technology, and programs, but these are not our most precious resources. The people at Chalo - our students, our parents, and our staff - are the heart of Chalo School.

Whether you are a family seeking to make a decision about the best school for your child or a current member of the Chalo learning community looking for specific information, you are invited to explore the pages of the website to learn more about what makes Chalo such a wonderful place for students between the ages of 3 and adult. We anticipate the information available on these pages will meet your needs, but if you have further questions, please do not hesitate to call 250-774-7651 or e-mail us.

The Science 10 class is learning about acids and bases by using pH indicators. The students participated by helping measure the amounts of chemicals; write the chemical formulas and equations; and make predictions about the reactions. These reactions helped us discuss concepts in chemistry and bring context to our practice calculations. The video clips captured some neutralization reactions as well as some fun and experimentation with the chemicals. Using a time-lapse feature, this video was filmed and edited by Justice Burke (Gr. 10).

The Science 10 class continues to practice writing symbolic and word equations to describe chemical reactions. In this lab, we turned pennies a 'silver' colour using a bond with zinc metal and a 'gold' colour by fusing the zinc and copper into brass. The lab demonstrated a synthesis reaction.

Each penny in this picture represents a phase of the experiment. First, we used the acidity of Coca Cola to clean the pennies. Then, we used boiling zinc sulphate and zinc metal to make the pennies look 'silver' in appearance. Finally, the finished brass coated penny has a 'gold' appearance to complete the effect. The Apprenticeship & Workplace Math 10 class built a working trebuchet as part of their unit on geometry. Our students were coached through the design process but they did the build completely on their own. Mr. Vincent provided the materials and helped with using the skill saw. In this first test, a softball was successfully launched using 100lb of counterweight.

Education is more than school. Education is about maximizing the potential in our children, our youth and all the way up to our Elders. Our focus on education will be life long, for our children, adults and community as a whole and to enhance learning in school, the trades, life skills and traditional ways. We will enhance the opportunities for all members to learn and share. Fort Nelson First Nation Education programs are governed by the Fort Nelson First Nation Community Education Authority (CEA). The Authority meets every two weeks to discuss educational policy and issues.

The Education Department oversees educational needs for the Nation and its membership. The departments works under direction from the Community Education Authority. The Education Department is housed at the FNFN Administration Building (Band Office) at 2026 Kennay Yah Road.

Chalo School is owned and operated by the Fort Nelson First Nation. The school also maintains Independent School status in the province of British Columbia. The school follows the prescribed curriculum of the Ministry of Education, and has been accredited by the Ministry, in 1993 and 2000, and by the First Nations Education Steering Committee in 2004. In 2003/2004 Chalo School was recognized as one of ten exemplary schools for Aboriginal education in Western Canada and the Yukon. In 2006 Chalo School was recognized in the House of Commons as a role model for B.C. and for the country.

The school enrolls 150+ pupils from preschool three year old to grade twelve. In April 2006, the Nation opened its new four million dollar high school complete with a cultural arts room and a culinary arts program. The school has a staff of sixteen teachers and a support staff of eleven. Exceptional leadership, coupled with Fort Nelson First Nation’s vision for a Strong, Healthy, Proud, and Self-reliant community, guides our exemplary school.

The school is located 7 km south of Fort Nelson, just off of the Alaska Highway. Chalo school has been featured in the Globe and Mail, the Vancouver Sun, CBC radio interviews, and by the Society for the Advancement of Excellence in Education.

​Chalo School was established in 1982, and is named after Harry “Chalo” Dickie. Harry has always promoted education for the Fort Nelson First Nation. He has served as a member of the Board, the Council, as Chief and was the first member of the Fort Nelson First Nation to serve as a Trustee of School District 81.

Carole Corcoran was Harry and Adeline’s daughter. She also shared in her father’s belief in education. She worked with her friend Sue Gower to create Chalo School. Carole was a preschool teacher at the time, and then moved on to become a lawyer. Carol’s list of accomplishments is long, from her term as Band Councillor, to her appointments with the Royal Commission on Canada’s Future, the B.C. Treaty Commission and the U.N.B.C. Board of Governors. Carole passed away well before her time, in 2001, but Chalo’s halls are forever warmed with bright and shining memories.