New sign installed outside Division office Aakaipookaiksi Building

In March of 2023, the Lethbridge School Division Education Centre was gifted a Blackfoot name - Aakaipookaiksi, meaning Many Children.
Soon after, the Division commissioned a local artist to bring that name to life.
Earlier this month, a graphic developed by Rudy Black Plume was included in the new sign that now adorns the front lawn of the Aakaipookaiksi Building (Education Centre).
"I feel very honoured to have been asked by the Lethbridge School Division to create a logo for their Aakaipookaiksi Building," said Black Plume. "It is always good to help bring peoples' visions to fruition."
The lodges in the logo represent the many Indigenous families who rely on the Division to educate, uplift and inspire their children to pursue knowledge.
"The ihkitsiammiksi (Big Dipper) and the mioohpokoiksi (Pleiades) constellations serve as reminders that we must always protect, nurture and love our children/students," said Black Plume. "Both of the constellations have origin stories in Blackfoot epistemology, which refer to the importance of taking care and respecting children in a sacred way."
These symbols can also be found on the smoke flaps of Blackfoot painted lodges.