Speeches
Jules-Verne High School
Vancouver, British Columbia
April 3, 2009

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Minister of State McIntyre (Joan McIntyre, British Columbia Minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations),
Distinguished guests,
Dear friends,

Thank you for your warm welcome. It's wonderful to see the talent, creativity, and enthusiasm in the young people here.

I don't think I'm mistaken in saying that the future of the French language and culture in our province is in good hands.

As a British Columbian, Francophile, and Minister, I am proud to see that you are there to ensure the future. You are surrounded by parents, teachers, principals, and a community who want you to succeed.

And the fact that your education is offered in French makes it even more relevant. In today's world, knowledge of French and English, two world-class languages, is a tremendous resource.

I had the good fortune to learn French throughout my elementary and secondary education. My parents always insisted that I master my second official language. They wanted me to be able to form ties with my French-speaking fellow citizens and discover our collective heritage.

It is, I believe, in this spirit and with the objective of ensuring the development of British Columbia's Francophone community that many people have worked together to create the École secondaire Jules-Verne.

Parents, teachers, members of the community, and the school milieu, you have demonstrated a great deal of determination and solidarity in order to provide your young people with a quality French-language high school.

As its name suggests, your school will be a place for exploration where young people can broaden their horizons. I have no doubt that it will come to occupy a special place within the Conseil scolaire francophone and the Canadian Francophonie.

You can be proud of what you have achieved here.

The students of the École Jules-Verne will not only pursue their education in their language; they will acquire a sense of belonging to the community and contribute to its vitality.

Our Government was pleased to collaborate on this project with the Conseil scolaire francophone and the British Columbia Ministry of Education. Our partners did a fine job and, for our part, we supported the construction and enlargement of the community spaces. We have committed $4.5 million so that École Jules-Verne students will be able to enjoy a modern theatre, gymnasium, and library.

The school's community spaces will not only be used by the students; they will be special gathering places for the members of your community. For a community that is growing, like yours, it is essential to have places for exchange and discussion like these.

Our Government supports the vitality of French- and English-speaking minority communities. Last June, our Government announced its Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality, which presents our vision for the future of official languages and linguistic duality. This is an unprecedented government-wide investment of 1.1 billion dollars over five years.

As part of the Roadmap, we made a commitment to devote funds to minority-language education and second-language teaching. Today is an example of how our Government is making good on that commitment.

It is largely thanks to institutions like École Jules-Verne that our young people can look forward to promising careers, while preserving the French language and culture in Canada and our linguistic duality.

Before closing, I would like to thank Minister of State Joan McIntyre, the representatives of the government of British Columbia, the members of the Conseil, and stakeholders from the school community, as well as all the parents who joined their efforts to give our youth a fantastic learning environment.

In the 40th anniversary year of the Official Languages Act, I am proud to work with you so that British Columbia's Francophones are able to flourish and fully participate in society.

On behalf of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Government of Canada, I wish you every happiness and success in this magnificent school.

Thank you.

© 2009 James Moore - All rights reserved
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