High Prairie School Division is pleased to announce Steve McLeod of High Prairie Freson Bros. as our nominee for the 2022 ASBA Friends of Education Award. Mr. McLeod is the General Manager of our local Freson Bros. store, which has been part of the High Prairie community since 1966. Freson Bros. has been partnering with High Prairie School Division schools for over 30 years. Steve, as Store Manager, has been directly responsible for the continued support of our schools and students for the past four years.
Steve and his staff have partnered with our local schools for many years as part of our Work Experience and Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAP). These programs are important opportunities where students can take an active role in their path toward career exploration. Potential employer partners need to understand the employer's critical role in training employees to work safely and be diligent, dependable, and loyal. Accepting and working with students with no job site experience is not for the faint of heart. With time, patience, and support, our students become valuable community members as well as workplace assets. Quite simply, our students are a work in progress, and these employment opportunities help students to understand who they are and what they have to offer to the world.
Countless students have benefited from the workplace coaching that staff at Freson Bros. have provided. In addition, students are able to earn an income and credits toward their high school diploma. Freson Bros. provides a very helpful orientation and they work very closely with new employees until they are more skilled in their job.
Steve has always been an enthusiastic supporter of education in general and E.W. Pratt High School in particular. He is generous with access to his store for school and community groups. As well, Freson Bros often contribute to fundraising initiatives and are very generous to a wide variety of community groups.
Every year, Mr. Mcleod has stepped up and offered employment positions for our students. As a transition to the world of work, Steve's staff coach and guide our students to become valuable members of the work force. We entered into a discussion with Steve last year, to determine whether Freson Bros. could accept an apprenticeship student in their bakery.
Steve set about building an apprenticeship opportunity with his bakery manager and regional bakery manager - the program became a critical step in the pathway to career exploration for our beginning apprentice. The student who embarked on this experience received high praise for her progress and skill development.
Steve understands how Work Experience and RAP are extensions of the educational programs that students have been part of through high school. He encourages students to become the best that they can be while making it clear that schooling is critically important. Steve is always able to make himself available to discuss student issues, needs and supports.
In addition to all of the support previously mentioned, Freson Bros., under Steve McLeod's leadership, actively supports local community groups and non-profits through donations, the provision of space for fundraising and BBQs, and many other formats of charitable work to improve our community through genuine, thoughtful supports. Their efforts in our community are often noted by community members on our community discussion sites.
The continued support from community partners like Steve McLeod and Freson Bros. makes it possible for our students to be prepared for life after school. Partnerships like these are the embodiment of our mission; through exemplary teaching, leadership, and collaborative partnerships, we prepare students to be socially responsible and to succeed locally and globally. Steve, thank you for your ongoing efforts to support quality public education.