Entering her third year of the Nunavut Teacher Education Program at Nunavut Arctic College based out of her home community of Naujaat, Candy Ivalutanar is taking advantage of the education opportunity before her.

"Ever since I was a kid, it was my dream [to become a teacher], but with no high school, it was hard. I never even went to high school. So I became a school bus driver instead, for 12 years, and during [those] 12 years, I would substitute."

Ivalutanar takes the majority of her classes online in Naujaat, but says sometimes the teachers will come in to teach in-person.

She has persevered even though two thirds of the class dropped out of the program since 2021.

"I think [they dropped out] because the work is hard," she says. "Some of them have family problems, some of them have kids they have to look after. The pay is so small during the year."

She says the $3,000 Danielle Moore Scholarship has helped sustain her and her family for the summer, when she has no funding for her studies.

"It helped me a lot, it really did... I got some supplies, I got my kids their school coats. I want them to know education is important. And I got some supplies for me, because I'm going to need it... it's hard, but I'm getting through it. So it really helped me to get the supplies I need."

When she gets her teaching licence, Ivalutanar thinks she might like to become a math teacher, and plans to stay in her home community. 

"I really do love math, and I like psychology because it's really helped me to understand more and help kids out. They know me as a bus driver, so they trusted me before I became a teacher."