Note: Some footage used in this video was filmed prior to the pandemic and may not depict social distancing measures.
Year: 2020 — Province: New Brunswick
Certificate of Excellence Recipient
Sussex Regional High School
Home Economics (Culinary Technology, Early Childhood Services, Housing and Design,
Child Studies), grades 10 to 12
Sussex, New Brunswick
Counsellor, nurse, life coach and a teacher of appropriate social norms, Stacey uses every square foot of our property to engage students of all levels in learning. … She has a true gift for involving all aspects of the school culture in her classroom.
Known at her rural high school for being happy, optimistic, intelligent and resourceful, Stacey Stairs can feed the whole school for a year on the proceeds of one grant. Always there for anyone in need, she removes barriers so everyone is on equal ground, teaches them the sky's the limit and supports them along the way.
Teaching approach
Stacey teaches the entire person. She seeks to maximize each individual's strengths and to support them in areas where they need to improve, while creating out-of-the-box thinkers who are community-minded, and involved both locally and globally.
In the classroom
- Designs practical, relevant approaches to learning and evaluation: students run a preschool, including one day a week in French, prepare breakfast and a hot lunch for middle- and high-schoolers; the culinary course exam involves creating a menu, running the kitchen and operating a café for parents, staff and others.
- Integrates literacy skills into her practical courses: culinary students learn math concepts when working with and converting recipes from imperial to metric; they then share their literacy and numeracy skills with younger students, along with lessons about healthy living.
- Champions collaborative learning to show students they are all part of a bigger team: for example, students and community members cooperate to run the school breakfast and lunch program; everyone must show up to do their shift, follow food safety guidelines, prepare and serve the food and clean-up afterwards.
- Support students with various abilities so they can succeed: assembled a wheelchair-accessible space in the school kitchen, bought nesting measuring cups for a blind student and coloured ones for a student who struggles with numbers, supplies "Good Grips" tools for children with physical impairments.
Outstanding achievements
- Secured nearly $250,000 in grants, including to purchase technology to better serve students who don't have home Internet access, to completely refurbish a welding lab, and to feed students through school lunch program; she also provided funds to local middle school for their breakfast program.
- Headed a committee to bring provincial Skills NB competition to the school: students competed in areas such as cooking, sewing, carpentry, welding, electrical and automotive; Stacey recruited community judges for each category, sourced materials and equipment, and recruited volunteers to make it happen.
- Recognized by the New Brunswick Teachers Association with a teacher recognition award, the Town of Sussex with a community volunteer award, and the school's staff and students with a school-wide award.
- Provides exceptional support to each year's graduating class, helping them with team-building events that develop a sense of family among the grads, seeking donations of prom dresses for grads who can't afford one, and working with students to organize class fundraisers and help students contribute in other ways.
Get in touch!
Sussex Regional High School
55 Leonard Drive
Sussex NB E4E 2P8
506-432-2017
Lori-Ann.Lauridsen@nbed.nb.ca; sussexhigh.nbed.nb.ca/
Twitter: @sussex_regional