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No cellphones, no gender ideology, no tuition: New independent school proposed in B.C.
A group of British Columbia youth advocates are aiming to open a tuition-free independent school by September 2025 – a school that would exclude the province’s controversial SOGI 123 (sexual orientation and gender identity) program and keep classrooms free of distractions.
Instead, Vernon Oak Elementary, in the Okanagan city of Vernon, B.C., would develop a homegrown anti-bullying curriculum.
“We’re going to have a whole policy around how we are going to deal with bullying. One of the things that we’re going to focus on is how we are all the same, as opposed to pointing out differences between people. Because we think that creates more division between people,” Vernon Oak Learning Society director Amber Stamm’ler told True North.
The school, which would begin serving Kindergarten-Grade 2 and grow from there, would also be a cellphone-free environment.
“Cellphone-free does not mean we’re against technology or teaching children technology, we just don’t want the distraction that it causes. And we would like to encourage face-to-face socialization, as opposed to doing all this online with social media,” Stamm’ler said.
“And of course, there’s also the added danger of cellphones and bullying, it’s much easier to bully online.”