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Big White Community School fosters athletic excellence

Former olympian Tess Critchlow attributes success to her educational background
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Former Olympian and five-time national champion Tess Critchlow got her snowboarding start at Big White Community School on Big White Mountain.

For most, skiing and snowboarding are winter pastimes that require scheduled trips. For others, they’re a part of everyday life.

Sustaining the ski and snowboard lifestyle can become difficult for people with families and young children, but the Big White Community School at Big White Mountain has been helping families overcome a major logistical hurdle for 25 years.

Since its inception in 1998, the Big White Community School has offered a B.C. curriculum education to children living on the mountain.

“It’s a lifestyle choice that we all make,” Rachelle Marcinkoski, the president of the school’s parent advisory council, said.

Marcinkoski, like most parents whose children attend the Big White Community School, works on the mountain full-time.

The institution is a private-public partnership between the province and Big White Ski Resort.

When it first opened, the school welcomed children from kindergarten to grade 12. However, now students from grades 10 to 12 must travel down the mountain to get to school.

There are currently three full-time teachers at the school and the student population is generally between 30 and 45.

In addition to providing a full academic curriculum, the school also takes advantage of its setting by integrating the outdoors into its teaching plans. On Mondays, students go snowshoeing; Tuesdays are for ice skating; and on Thursdays, students practice their skiing and snowboarding with help from Big White’s instructors.

On warmer days, when winter activities are not possible, students learn survival skills and go on group hikes.

The school’s outdoor education program is what jumpstarted Tess Critchlow’s snowboarding career. Critchlow represented Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.

I was really lucky to have had the opportunity. It’s such a cool experience and definitely grew my love for the sport,” Critchlow said. “I knew when I was young, it was a blessing.”

All students at the school participate in competitive skiing and snowboarding events.

“We’re trying to breed athletes here too,” Marcinkoski said.

Although most students from Big White’s school don’t go on to become Olympians, parents are still appreciative of the school’s educational environment.

According to Marcinkoski, “there’s a lot of happy kids and a lot of happy parents.