By accepting a gifted Indigenous name for the school, we have an opportunity to contribute to the preservation, revitalization and the strengthening of local history, language and culture,” said Board Chair Amanda Dowhy. “As part of walking the path of reconciliation, the Board of Education is committed to embodying a sense of belonging in our schools and honouring the Indigenous peoples that have called these lands home since time immemorial.”
At the beginning of the 2022/23 school year, a new secondary school option was approved by the Board of Education for students in grade 9-12 looking to complete their education while in training for high performance programs for athletics or the arts. The secondary school is located inside the Eagle Ridge Community Centre and welcomed its inaugural class of students in January 2023. The school was temporarily known as Eagle Ridge Secondary School.
A consultation process for a permanent name of the secondary school began in September 2023. The process involved students, parents/caregivers, staff, school community members and the Indigenous Nations the Sooke School District works with (T’Sou-ke Nation, Sc’ianew Nation, Pacheedaht Nation, Esquimalt Nation and Songhees Nation). The Nations determined the gifting of a name would come through Sc’ianew Nation, which is the nearest nation to the school location.
The Elders of Sc’ianew Nation met in early November 2023 to discuss a name for the new secondary school. With guidance from SENĆOŦEN language teachers and local Elders Lavina Charles and Shirley Alphonse, the SENĆOŦEN name recommendation to bring forward for the school was QELEṈSEN Á, LEṈ (pronounced K-wuh-Lun-Sun, Eh Lun). QELEṈSEN Á, LEṈ is SENĆOŦEN, and translates to “Eagle House”. The powerful spirit, resilience and grace that the Eagle symbolizes are the attributes that come with the word, QELEṈSEN and the word, Á, LEṈ means house or in this context, school. The Board of Education unanimously passed a motion to name the new secondary school QELEṈSEN Á, LEṈ Secondary School on November 21, 2023.