Nunavik school board to pilot sex education in Kuujjuaq

Kativik Ilisarniliriniq, Nunavik’s school board, will test a sexuality education program in Kuujjuaq and Umiujaq in November, with parents invited to review the materials before it is finalized.

The pilot was developed with the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services and is meant to help children understand personal boundaries and how to stay safe in sexual situations, said Sarah Aloupa, president of the school board, in an interview with Nunatsiaq News.

“It’s important for parents to take this very seriously. This program is for the students’ well being,” Aloupa said.

The program covers students from kindergarten to Grade 11, with information packages for different age groups. It will run Nov. 2 to 6 at Jaanimmarik School and Pitakallak School in Kuujjuaq, and Nov. 16 to 20 at Kiluutaq School in Umiujaq.

Board spokesperson Jade Duchesneau-Bernier said the schools were chosen in part because they were ready to take part and have staff with relevant experience. During the pilot weeks, staff will take part in training, and parents can review the material and ask questions at evening information sessions.

Parents can opt their children out, Aloupa said, though the board has not yet explained how. Information about the sessions is being sent home in school letters and posted on Facebook.

Aloupa said the initiative responds to a need raised by Nunavik residents and parents. The school board’s council of commissioners heard a presentation from the health board about the proposed program in June. She pointed to sexual abuse cases in the region as part of the broader need for education on the subject.

Parent feedback will help shape the final program. The two organizations will use the pilot to decide whether to expand it to the 18 other schools the board operates. No timeline has been set for a region-wide rollout.

Nunavik, in northern Quebec, is home to about 14 Inuit communities. Read more of our coverage of Indigenous communities and of the North.

Via Nunatsiaq News.

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