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Completion rates for SD73 students continue to improve

Submitted by Diana Skolund
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Submitted by Diana Skolund

Completion rates for students in School District No. 73 continue to improve according to the recently released stats from the BC Ministry of Education.

The rate for all SD73 students in the 2019-20 school year is 89.5 per cent, up slightly from last year’s 88.3 per cent completion rate. The graduation rate measures the number of Grade 8 students who graduate within six years.

“Since 2012-13 there has been an upward trend in SD73’s Six-Year Completion Rate,” said Dr. Terry Sullivan, Superintendent of Schools. “This is especially evident with students earning a Dogwood Graduation Diploma.”

The completion rate for BC resident students in the district (excluding international students who move out of the district before graduation) continues the upward trend set in 2012-13, coming within the target range of 90 to 95 per cent.

While the average is up for all students, the rate for Aboriginal students has decreased to 78.7 per cent from last year’s 84.1 per cent, a rate similar to the 78.2 per cent seen in 2017-18.

“Successful school completion for all learners, and closing the completion rate gap between Aboriginal learners and Non-Aboriginal learners remains a priority,” Sullivan said.

The structured support for struggling learners, and connecting learners to opportunities to complete, is largely the work of the School Completion Coordinator, Gino Coltrellaro, who, through detailed data analysis, continues to identify students who have not yet graduated within six years of starting Grade 8.

Sullivan commented on the system-wide changes that have been implemented to support school completion since his retirement in 2014.

“When I look at this trend line I can see how far we have come in the last few years. These results are possible because of the hard work by students that commit to graduating despite obstacles and the people like Gino that connect with those students and help them complete high school.”

-Diana Skolund is Communications Manager for School District 73