In August, the school opened its doors in a temporary location as it awaits renovations on its permanent site at the former Pointe-aux-Chênes Elementary.
Gov. John Bel Edwards after his remarks at École Pointe-au-Chien on Tuesday, November 7, 2023. Wayan Barre/Télé-Louisiane
By Jonathan Olivier
Gov. John Bel Edwards, at an inauguration event on Tuesday for École Pointe-au-Chien, stressed that now is the time to take steps to preserve and advance French in Louisiana before the last generation of native speakers fades away.
“These kids come here and they’re learning French, and they go home to parents that don’t speak French,” Edwards said. “But the French is being reinforced by the grandparents. If we had gone one more generation, it would be exponentially harder, and probably would never have happened, that we would hang on to this.”
Edwards visited the small community of Pointe-aux-Chênes on Tuesday for an official inauguration of the schools’ new location in a Knights of Columbus building. The public school, the country’s first French immersion program serving a predominantly Indigenous population, was created through legislative action in 2022. The move came after the public outcry resulting from the closure of Pointe-aux-Chênes Elementary in May 2021, and an effort led by the Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe in collaboration with partners including Télé-Louisiane, the French Consulate, and the Louisiana Department of Education. The school is now governed by an independent state board.
Since signing the bill into law, Edwards has voiced support for the school and the historic move spearheaded by his administration. At the event Tuesday, he reiterated his commitment to French in the state as a way to strengthen Louisiana’s economy, culture and small communities.
“They will do better overall than kids in non French immersion schools—and you all are going to see this,” he said. “As a result, this school is going to pay dividends for years to come.”
Wayan Barre/Télé-Louisiane
In addition to Edwards, French Consul Rodolphe Sambou, school Board President and Télé-Louisiane CEO Will McGrew, and Rep. Mike Huval, R-Breaux Bridge, also shared remarks at the inauguration ceremony to an audience of Pointe-au-Chien tribal members, parents, state officials, francophone advocates and other community members.
Christine Verdin, executive director of the school, noted in her remarks that École Pointe-au-Chien has been temporarily housed in the Vision Christian Center in Bourg since August, and after moving to the KC Hall around Thanksgiving, it will remain there until the 2025-2026 school year when renovations are expected to be completed on the former Pointe-aux-Chênes Elementary building.
Verdin said they have enrolled more students since the beginning of the academic year and are working to acquire a bus, among other steps to ensure longevity of the program in the community. She noted that in August, her students didn’t know how to speak French at all—now, they use the language every day.
“To see them singing French, saying the pledge in French, and they speak to each other in French, it’s really something very positive,” she said. “And they go home speaking French.”