When it was announced that St. Peter’s School principal, Tyson Volk, had accepted a job in the Light of Christ Catholic Schools office in North Battleford, residents were eager to know who the next principal would be.
Kelvin Colliar will fill the position. Colliar served from 2007-17 as superintendent of instruction for LOCCS. Colliar's name may also sound familiar for his role as serving as league commissioner for the NSRBL.
Colliar was born and raised in North Battleford and attended Catholic schools as a student. He has served many roles in his career in education including teacher at Moosomin First Nation School, Spiritwood High School and at John Paul II Collegiate in North Battleford from 1995-2007. He served six years as vice-principal and six years as principal at Holy Family School in North Battleford. From Holy Family, he moved to the division office where he continued his career in education for 10 years. Colliar retired in 2017.
What brought him back? Colliar says, “my passion for student learning led me back to the school level leadership, as my most cherished career moments were as an administrator and educator in a Catholic elementary school. The experience in an elementary school, working with the students and their families is so rewarding. It’s an opportunity to impact the future.”
Colliar was awarded the Saskatchewan Band Association Outstanding Administrator Award in 2014. This award is given to an administrator who has made an outstanding contribution to music education in Saskatchewan.
He says he is passionate about the band and music programs in schools because he believes the arts offer opportunities for kids to express themselves and find their individual talents and successes. While it will be challenging to run a band program this year due to the pandemic, especially with wind instruments, he will be meeting with Mrs. Keller to make a plan.
Familiar with St. Peter’s as a result of his division role, Colliar says, “I know the staff, I have met many of the parents at different educational events at the school. I look forward to providing leadership in helping St. Peter’s navigate the COVID-19 reopening and mediate a safe back-to-school plan for students, staff, families and the community.”
Although the back-to-school plans given by the government have changed often, Colliar maintains he and his team at St. Peter’s, along with division staff, will find the safest possible return for everyone. As of Aug. 15, the return to school has been bumped back to Sept. 8 allowing for a little breathing room for school divisions and schools to fine tune their plans.
Colliar adds, “St. Peters is blessed with a student body in the 150 range, and the school size to social distance and isolate. The number of entrance/exit doors will help them in following government and health authority guidelines.”
Becoming part of the community is his intention and Colliar adds he loves working in small towns, as he has done so before in his career. He says he looks forward to being a part of the St. Peter’s family both at the school and parish level.
Colliar says he believes it is important to engage students, and keep kids connected to the real world. School is not just about academics, the social aspect is important, too, he says. In his view Schools need to facilitate and foster the love of learning for students and help them to explore their God-given talents. He says he believes the only way to do this is to support a school that is based upon positive relationships among students and between the staff and students. It is within these relationships that students are allowed to seek relevance in their studies and see how it relates to their future goals, he says.
Coilliar says he likes to find opportunities for students that can create a sense of excitement so they have something to look forward to each and every day of the school year.
Colliar and his wife are empty nesters, as their children and grandchildren live in Alberta. He says they are looking forward to his new role at St. Peter’s School and being part of the community of Unity.
