On April 24 th, 2008 BC schools on the road to 2010 shared an outstanding day with the President of ASCD Nancy DeFord as she reflected on education and the Olympics – the 2002 Utah experience. Participating groups and districts included: VANOC, the Ministry of Education, Principals and Vice-Principals Association, BC School Trustees Association and the following school districts: Vancouver, Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, Langley, Richmond, Abbotsford, Mission, West Vancouver, Howe Sound, North Vancouver, New Westminster, Francophone Scolaire, Surrey and the Sea to Sky District. DeFord was captivating as she guided us towards owning our 2010 Olympics and making the most of this incredible opportunity. Being the Superintendent of Park City, an Olympic venue city in 2002, provided DeFord both the knowledge and credibility to spark interest, answer questions and provide a highly valuable venue for conversation around our own upcoming Games. She was an outstanding presenter that we were very fortunate to hear and work with her.

from left to right: Carolynn Schmor, Leslie Andersson, Don Truscott, Margaret Ross and Pepi Kotsalis

DeFord encouraged us to think outside the box and to “see opportunities where others only see challenges”. She stressed that context is important and described Park City’s unique Olympic experience; the 2002 Games took place following the aftermath of 9/11, big scandals – the new CEO of the games was Mitt Romney- and of course the passage of the “No Child Left Behind” education act. Our context will have a unique impact on our games as it did hers. She reminded us to “celebrate the possible”.

She also reminded us of the medal highlights; the ice hockey, the Roots phenomenon and the Paralympic Games as particular notables. Canada was 6 th in the medal count with 15 medals and 27 athletes.

She described how one year prior to the games Park City District held a one-year countdown celebration where all students received Olympic pins and Elementary school students held opening ceremonies with Flags of nations. The district provided bussing for students to attend test events. There were regular meetings between the district and the Olympic Liasons to keep good lines of communication open. Schools accessed Olympic curriculum. Many students participated in trial events to see if they could realize their Olympic dream. Food handler courses were held for older high school students, staff and other community members interested in volunteering for the Olympics. Pin trading became a big event and sessions for trading pins were organized by the school. DeFord gave the advice to design early before you are likely regulated into creating only certain designs. Pin trading became a huge activity for kids and adults alike.

DeFord emphasized that there are many ways to make the games your own and that the technological advantages that are available now compared to 2002 make this opportunity filled with possibility.

Nancy mentioned that there was no state funding. Funding has to come from other sources and opportunities will often present themselves. For instance, the Granite School District, the venue site for speed skating, supported 33 schools to participate in service projects to make and donate fleece blankets to every Olympic athlete in the Olympic Village (800 blankets from Granite ). Three schools were rented to the Salt Lake City Committee (SLOC). Weight rooms were used by athletes and each school had various athletes from various countries visit classes and/or assemblies. Thousands of tickets were distributed to students within the Park City community that had been donated by SLOC and Coca Cola, and 9800 staff and students attended Paralympic events. Students had an opportunity to attend one or more Olympic events. The high school football field became the landing zone for helicopters.

Park City School District closed all schools in the district from February 2, 2002 to February 25, 2002. With only 2 major roads in and out of town and busses every 15 seconds, school staff and students would be in an impossible predicament. Traffic mixed with the post 9/11 security made the decision to close schools, easy. “We just couldn’t do it”. With traffic demands at a peak, it was not safe for families to be driving students to school. Deford’s advice is to take traffic off the road.

Nancy mentioned that enthusiasm for the games will come once it gets closer. In her district, people were at first cranky and not really into the games, but that “when the time arrived it was pure magic!” Nancy stressed that the International Olympic atmosphere still exists and impacts people today. The legacy projects sustain themselves and the gold medal schools project still exist today.

Involvement by schools in the Olympics took many forms; the Granite School District designed and built a bobsled that was used by U.S. Virgin Islands teams. Some schools took on “Adoption” and study of a participating country, many linked with a pen pal.

Following Nancy’s presentation, school districts debriefed and shared out their plans thus far. Leslie Andersson, President of BCASCD, commented that “The fires sound like they are lit”. District representatives shared many ideas that are formulating here in our province as we journey on our road to 2010.

BCASCD appreciated all the partners in helping to put on this highly effective day. Having representation from VANOC, the Ministry of Education and BCSSA meant that our rich conversations and questions were heard and answered. Of course, we still have time until the Olympics are here but there are many ways to get involved as educators.

Some educational sites of interest to explore include the VANOC website:

www.vancouver2010.com/edu. The /EDU website offers secondary Olympic curriculum that is cross curricular. For example there are projects to solve real life Olympic Games problems and currently Beijing is highlighted. There are handouts, teaching tips, evaluation rubrics and a list of links to provincial websites. As well, the Canadian Olympic Committee - free curriculum at www.olympicschool.ca in English and French for grades 2-12. The site also includes stories of Aboriginal Olympians. Nancy DeFord reminded us that “athletes are the best exemplars for teaching social responsibility”.

Some questions that came out of the day are: Does your calendar show the 17 days? How are you going to strategically place your break for the Olympic and Paralympic games? Building a Legacy? Have we calendared in expectations for events for legacy? How might we relate and pull people in for volunteer opportunities?

Who in your district is going to be the lead person in matters pertaining to the Olympics?

How important are artifacts? What about provincial exams and the FSA?

It was great to see so many districts represented at this district inservice with special guest Nancy DeFord and the exceptional work that has already started in many districts. Staff of the Italian Cultural Centre were perfect hosts in an excellent venue. A fitting end to the day was provided by the surprise visit of the 2010 Mascots. Seeing Quatchi, Miga and Sumi bought us closer to catching the Olympic fever.

by Carolynn Schmor (carolynn.schmor@sd75.mission.bc.ca)