'Everyone's welcome': Rainbow flag installed on sidewalk at Kitchener high school

Regan McCorkindale doesn't attend Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School anymore, but she's thrilled with a new rainbow flag on the sidewalk beside the school.

"It's awesome," she said sitting on the sidewalk Monday afternoon after the flag was installed that morning. "It looks really, really good."

McCorkindale was co-prime last school year, an elected student leader position at the school, and graduated in June. 

She says in the role of co-prime, and as an ally to her fellow students who are part of the LGBTQ community, she advocated for the rainbow flag to be installed on the sidewalk because she wanted to make sure people felt like it was OK to be themselves at the school, which is also known as KCI.

"No matter who you are, you're welcome in KCI, whether you're staff, student, visitor or even just someone that's seeing the sidewalk on the ION from King Street. Everyone's welcome," she said.

The rainbow sidewalk art installation was funded by the City of Kitchener's Love My Hood grant. Teacher and student activities adviser Abbey Gingerich said it took about a year to get the flag on the sidewalk and they used thermalplastic, which will last longer than paint.

From a faculty perspective, Gingerich says there are "certainly faculty that needed to be seen visually" at the school.

"I think it's also really important for the staff to know that the students and any of the community that are coming into the school as well feel seen and feel heard for however they identify," she said, calling the flag "pretty impactful."

She says it's great to see the historic school — KCI was originally Berlin Grammar School in 1855 — change to support staff, students and visitors.

"We want to keep updating the school and updating the aesthetic of the school so that it is permanent and long lasting for many years to come for all the students and again staff that are going to come through these doors," she said.