It was just after spring break one year ago that the worldwide, COVID-19 pandemic changed how people live, work and interact with one another.

For the B.C. public education system, it meant finding a new way to continue to provide quality education to students and families without compromising their health or safety.

While government set new social distancing and health and safety parameters, it was left largely up to individual school districts to plan and implement “on-line” and eventually, “in-person” learning opportunities for students. These plans were modified again and again as a steady stream of directives, outlining new regulations and protocols, began flowing from government.

According to School District No. 5 (SD5) Board Chair Frank Lento, this required the Board of Education to work closely with Superintendent Yardley and Secretary- Treasurer Rice to adapt budgets, resources, policy and protocols. Inevitably, these changes led to an increased workload for district administration, school- based administrators, as well as all other employees not directly involved with student learning.

For educators and support staff, this meant adapting lesson plans and support systems. It also meant contacting each of their students by phone every week, to ensure “every child had a personal learning connection” and to identify those students in need of additional supports.

For students and parents it meant taking ownership of their or their children’s learning, adapting quickly to the “on-line” format and creating unique formats of their own to demonstrate and self-report on their individual learning. It also meant reimagining the traditional “graduation ceremony” and “prom” in order to comply with COVID-19 safety protocols without lessening the significance of this momentous occasion.

“This hasn’t been an easy year for anyone,” Lento said, “but thanks to the hard work of the SD5 board, administration, both teaching and non-teaching staff, students and parents, it has been a successful one for SD5.”

Lento is referring to the SD5 Graduation Completion Rates for the 2019/2020 school year, which sits at 91%; well above the provincial average.

It is one of the highest rates achieved by SD5 in recent years, as well as the SD5 Indigenous completion rate for the 2019/2020 year, which is 80% –one of the highest in the province. In comparison, over the past five years, the provincial graduation rates averaged 62% for Aboriginal and 80% for non-Aboriginal students.

“The SD5 Board of Education wishes to thank the entire school community for this success,” said Lento, “It was the hard work of all teaching and non-teaching staff, the cooperation of the teaching (CFTA) and non-teaching (CUPE) Union partners and the perseverance of students and parents collectively that enabled the SD5 school community to overcome the challenges to education posed by the pandemic.

“We couldn’t have achieved this level of student success without you!”

SD5

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