Parents and community members attended a student-led open house that included tours, activities and a special ceremony, featuring Jean Augustine.

"The focus at our school is truly inspired by Jean Augustine's mandate to empower students to achieve their potential through activism and service," says Sandra Dussiaume, principal at Jean Augustine Secondary School. 

Jean Augustine Secondary School, which opened for students in September 2016, is the first school in Canada to be named for Canadian social justice advocate and politician Jean Augustine.

"I am honoured that the Peel District School Board chose to name the school after me," says Jean Augustine. "I am impressed at how everyone at the school has built such a strong school spirit."

Augustine became the first Black-Canadian woman to be elected to the House of Commons, sitting in Parliament from 1993 until 2006. During this period, she served as parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, minister of state for multiculturalism and the status of women, and was a deputy Speaker. Augustine is also the former national president of the Congress of Black Women of Canada, and was instrumental in the declaration of February as Black History Month in Canada—a month celebrated in Peel schools and throughout the country.

Jean Augustine Secondary School is located at 500 Elbern Markell Dr. in Brampton. For more information visit www.jeanaugustiness.com.

Photos courtesy Dayo Media & Communications.

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