On November 15, Vaudreuil-Dorion's Brind'Amour elementary school launched its Creative Lab, where students can unleash their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit through projects and equipment.

The launch was attended by a number of guests, including Richard Dubois of Caisses Desjardins Vaudreuil-Soulanges and Vaudreuil MNA Marie-Claude Nichols.

François Cusson, Director of the community-entrepreneurial school, was also on hand, as were members of the school's Board of Directors from the Fondation des enfants de l'École Brind'Amour. Parents also proudly attended the unveiling.

The event was hosted by Alexis and Alexandrine, who brilliantly introduced the guests and talked about their career paths. Victoria, Liam and Victor presented their projects, while other students demonstrated the possibilities offered by the Creative Lab.

Creation of the Creative Lab

Sébastien Parent, the school's entrepreneurial coordinator, explains that the idea for Brin Média came from the students' desire to share their successes with their parents and the community.

“ We started by visiting the Lab facilities at the Vaudreuil-Dorion library. Nicholas showed us the equipment and the different elements that are possible to create there. Unfortunately, the computer equipment available from the Service Center's suppliers didn't match up. We were able to work with computer technicians and educational advisors to find the best possible equipment. Finally, in June 2024, we were able to order the equipment for our Creative Lab and start fitting it out ,” explained Mr. Parent.

In addition to equipment dedicated to the creation of quality audio and video material, students can give free rein to their creativity using a Cricut cutting machine , a sweater press and more.

A proud school principal

François Cusson, the elementary school's principal, said he was privileged to have been at the helm since last July.

“ I'm coming to the end of my career, and I'm lucky enough to see the project come to life. I'd like to start by thanking all the partners involved in the project: the Fondation des élèves de l'école Brind'Amour, the Caisse Desjardins de Vaudreuil and all the staff at Brind'Amour. In my opinion, the launch of Lab Créatif is partly due to the partnership between the Foundation and the school service center, which enables us to have an entrepreneurship coordinator, who greatly facilitates the organization and implementation of projects at our school, ” he says.

For her part, Sandra Jeansonne, President of the Board of Directors of the Brind'Amour School Children's Foundation, saluted the commitment of the Brind'Amour community.

“ Thanks also to the support of our beautiful Brind'Amour community, via fund-raising campaigns, we manage to raise funds for other different projects and especially, as Mr. Cusson mentioned, to now have Mr. Sébastien as full-time entrepreneurship coordinator .”

Snack project

At the launch, guests were treated to snacks prepared by students as part of the snack project. This is another project through which, every week, students cook snacks for the whole school.

"Two classes are paired up, younger and older, and they cook around 500 snacks which are then distributed to the whole school. The aim of this project is to encourage local purchasing and farming, and to teach children about healthy eating through choices that are good for them and for the environment," explains Ms Jeansonne.

On December 6 and 7, the public will be able to discover the Creative Lab and purchase products made by the students, while the school holds its traditional Christmas Market. Full details are available on the Brind'Amour Elementary School website.