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The Yukon NDP is celebrating the passage of party leader Kate White鈥檚 private member鈥檚 bill on education curricula.

White鈥檚 Bill 307, An Act to Amend the Yukon Education Act, cleared the legislature on Wednesday, with unanimous support from MLAs.

鈥淭oday鈥檚 vote is a win for high school students across the Yukon,鈥� White said later Wednesday afternoon.

The bill updates the Education Act by repealing part of the legislation that limits students鈥� options to take locally developed courses.

It also brings the act in line with British Columbia鈥檚 policies on school curricula already followed by the Yukon鈥檚 Education department.

The portion of the act to be repealed states that locally developed courses can鈥檛 account for more than 20 per cent of student courseloads per year or per semester.

鈥淭his had stopped many high school students from taking locally developed courses at all, because most Yukon high schools offer four courses per semester,鈥� the NDP said.

White added, 鈥淪tudents are much more likely to stay in school when they can learn skills that are relevant in their communities.

Many of these locally developed courses cover things like youth leadership, local knowledge keeping, and climate change.鈥�

White鈥檚 bill received letters of support from the Yukon First Nation School Board (FNSB) and First Nation Education Directorate (YFNED) as well as the territory鈥檚 French-language school authority, Le Commission Scolaire Francophone du Yukon.

Ted Hup茅, the president of the Yukon Association of Education Professionals, emailed all three parties in support of the bill.

鈥�(Yukon students) are here, on this land, right now 鈥� that is a part of who they are, and their story,鈥� said FNSB director Melissa Flynn.

鈥淏ecause of this, they have a responsibility and a privilege to learn the history and culture of this place.鈥�

Melanie Bennett, the YFNED鈥檚 executive director, wrote that the directorate 鈥渨holeheartedly supports鈥� repealing the cap on locally developed courses.

鈥淣ot only does this fail Indigenous students who want to take culturally relevant coursework, but it also deprives non-First Nations students from taking courses that teach them about subjects relevant to their home: courses on land claims, leadership, traditional technologies, etc.,鈥� Bennett said.

Longtime Yukon educator Bob Sharp, who consulted with the NDP caucus on White鈥檚 bill, watched Wednesday afternoon鈥檚 House debate from the public viewing gallery.

鈥淚t was touch-and-go for a while, but in the end, MLAs made the right call,鈥� said Sharp, who is now retired.

Sharp played a pivotal role designing experiential learning programs for the Education department. He continues to develop school curricula for the YFNED.

Wednesday was the second round of debate on the bill.