Community Articles
General News · 15th May 2022
Kiera Tsakonas
Hi Folks!
Some of you may know me from my childhood, and for others I’d like to introduce myself. My name is Kiera Tsakonas, and I moved with my family to Cortes Island in 2005. In my early years on the island, I attended Linnaea School, the Cortes Island School, and was homeschooled. I left Cortes to attend Carihi Secondary School and have since finished university in Vancouver. Now I find myself, like many others in my peer group, seeking ways to become involved in the community once again.
I personally understand how important it is that rural youth be given opportunities for enriched education in localized contexts. The lack of such opportunities is among the reasons that rural students in Canada continually underperform their urban peers and drop out at higher rates.
The lack of high school opportunities for students on Cortes is highlighted in the LEAP report as a barrier to the island’s sustainable future, and reflects my own experiences.
However, this barrier also presents an opportunity to make use of the incredible ecological and human resources available on Cortes to create exceptional, experiential, and place-based education for our youth. Myself and other young people on Cortes have experienced first hand the willingness of knowledge holders in our community to share their wisdom and experiences. This is what we are building with the Cortes Island Academy (CIA).
We are currently looking to raise $50,000 to cover the cost of local facilitators for this program. Any donations pledged by May 31st, 2022 will be generously matched by a donor.
My ask is that you consider contributing to this program as an investment in the future of our community.
For more information about investing in our program please view our pitch deck. View Pitch Deck.
If you would like to support our community in this way you can Donate Now, at the Cortes Island Community Foundation and select the Cortes Island Academy Fund. Or reach out to me directly for more ways to contribute.
Thank you.
Kiera
Some of you may know me from my childhood, and for others I’d like to introduce myself. My name is Kiera Tsakonas, and I moved with my family to Cortes Island in 2005. In my early years on the island, I attended Linnaea School, the Cortes Island School, and was homeschooled. I left Cortes to attend Carihi Secondary School and have since finished university in Vancouver. Now I find myself, like many others in my peer group, seeking ways to become involved in the community once again.
I personally understand how important it is that rural youth be given opportunities for enriched education in localized contexts. The lack of such opportunities is among the reasons that rural students in Canada continually underperform their urban peers and drop out at higher rates.
The lack of high school opportunities for students on Cortes is highlighted in the LEAP report as a barrier to the island’s sustainable future, and reflects my own experiences.
However, this barrier also presents an opportunity to make use of the incredible ecological and human resources available on Cortes to create exceptional, experiential, and place-based education for our youth. Myself and other young people on Cortes have experienced first hand the willingness of knowledge holders in our community to share their wisdom and experiences. This is what we are building with the Cortes Island Academy (CIA).
We are currently looking to raise $50,000 to cover the cost of local facilitators for this program. Any donations pledged by May 31st, 2022 will be generously matched by a donor.
My ask is that you consider contributing to this program as an investment in the future of our community.
For more information about investing in our program please view our pitch deck. View Pitch Deck.
If you would like to support our community in this way you can Donate Now, at the Cortes Island Community Foundation and select the Cortes Island Academy Fund. Or reach out to me directly for more ways to contribute.
Thank you.
Kiera
