“SelfDesign is a unique opportunity to pursue your interests in a different way,” SelfDesign graduate Erik says. “It’s also a great opportunity to find like-minded people – which could be hard to do otherwise – but SelfDesign provides the perfect opportunities for these connections to be made.”

Although many families spend much of their time learning at home and in their community, when SelfDesign learners do use technology for learning, we take their online safety very seriously.

SelfDesign_® Family Services provides resources and supports to help learners and families when events or situations interfere with learning. Within Family Services, members of the Contact Assistance Team – referred to as CAT – are experienced in working with learners in kindergarten to grade 12, including learners who receive Support Education services.

As part of its commitment to furthering reconciliation and intercultural understanding and respect, SelfDesign_® became a member of the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack foundation’s Legacy School network in 2019, joining a community of more than 1,600 legacy schools across Canada and linking to funding, educational resources and opportunities that advance reconciliation.

When the BC Ministry of Education completed its inspection of SelfDesign_® Learning Community’s programs and processes last fall, our Learning Experiences Library, our in-person camps and gatherings, and how we provide learners with opportunities to design their own learning received particularly high praise.

Art Intensive Camp brings SelfDesign_® learners in grades 9–12 together for one week to connect, collaborate and share while they immerse themselves in art. When the B.C. government suspended in-person learning in B.C. schools in mid-March to protect students and slow the spread of COVID-19, SelfDesign decided to take the camp online and opened it up to all interested SelfDesign learners.

SelfDesign_® has been working to build cultural bridges across and throughout our own organization. Our efforts are driven by the more than 80 recommendations put forwards by SelfDesign’s Indigenous education task force, comprised of a First Nations elder, a First Nations SelfDesign parent and learner, and SelfDesign educators including those with Indigenous heritage.

SelfDesign_® Learning Community is one of the largest independent online learning schools in British Columbia. If you are interested in providing your child with a SelfDesign learning experience, here is a list of the documents you need to have in place to enrol – and re-enrol.