Construction work is underway at the new Unisus International School in Summerland as the private school will open its doors to students this fall.
The new school on Pierre Drive will follow the International Baccalaureate program when it opens this fall.
For its first year, it will have around 50 students from preschool to Grade 6.
Cindy Leung, operations director for the new school, said most of the students are from Summerland and Penticton.
“We are getting mostly local students,” she said, but added that some families are looking to move to the area so their children can attend the new school.
Throughout the summer, crews are working in the building to prepare the classrooms for the students.
Leung said the new school will have a new approach to education.
“We’re pushing the boundaries of education,” she said. “It’s not about memorizing certain content; it’s about collaboration with others. It’s about problem-solving.”
She said these skills are needed to prepare students for the world they will face in the future.
She said creativity, innovation and problem-solving skills will be needed in the years to come.
“We’re building on the skills of the 21st century,” she said. “Skill sets and mindsets are so important.”
The classrooms are set up with the teacher’s desk at the rear, not at the front. The desks are modular and can be configured for group discussions and collaboration projects.
The school also has a technology lab, with equipment to teach coding, 3-D printing and other related skills.
In the future, higher grades will be added to the school and the first students are expected to graduate in the spring of 2022.
The new school is also planning to build a dormitory which will be able to accommodate up to 100 students once it is completed.
The school is at the site of the Glenfir School, a private school that operated from 1993 until March, 2011. The Glenfir School offered Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 and at its peak in the early 2000s, had around 175 students.
The school building, on a seven-hectare property, was built in 1996 and underwent an expansion in 2006. The building occupies 3,700 square metres.
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