École Įtłʼò

The École Įtłʼò is a brand new school that was built over the same footprint of the original school, which has been demolished. It is a two-storey steel structure with an exterior envelope system and exterior siteworks and concrete. The facility is 46,919 square feet with 18 classrooms, a gymnasium, and a library. It can accommodate up to 572 people. Temporary portable classrooms were installed to accommodate the classes while construction was taking place.

An Indigenous consultant was brought in to provide insights on the facility’s design. Elements such as circular spaces, wayfinding, and culturally significant colour palates were incorporated into the building’s design.

Shortly after starting the project it was discovered that there was a 4.5 meter void under the centre of the school that had not been shown on the geotechnical information taken from around the existing school. This was handled by implementing an increased blasting program, and filling the remaining void with concrete. Revising the siteworks and dropping the main floor elevation by 1.5 meters not only benefited the geotechnical footprint below, but also improved the accessibility of the school.

A significant value to this project was our self-performing the cladding on the school. We first installed an exterior wall consisting of a Torch-On Air Vapour Barrier Membrane, 2 Layers of Mineral Wool Insulation, Full Depth Thermal Clips & related Galvanized sub-girts. This ensured a smooth transition between the profiled prefinished steel, phenolic panel, and fibre cement plank material that made up the cladding.

Originally named the J.H. Sissons school, it was officially renamed École Įtłʼò, honoring the region’s Indigenous culture and language. The project exemplifies culturally responsive design, technical precision, and community engagement.