Prairie South School Division has experienced its first significant decrease in graduation rates since the 2014-15 school year, which concerns division administration since it’s unsure what is driving that drop.
In that year, the on-time graduation rate — students completing Grade 12 within three years of starting Grade 10 — was 81.7 per cent. That percentage fluctuated in the 80s over the next few years, reaching 90 per cent in 2019-20 before dropping slightly, several annual reports show.
By June 2023, the graduation rate was 87.34 per cent.
Derrick Huschi, superintendent of school operations, told trustees during their Oct. 3 board meeting that he was unsure why the decrease had occurred and whether it relates to what’s happening around the province or just the after-effects of the pandemic.
“I can’t dive into the data until I can do a comparable analysis, and we haven’t been able to do that yet,” he said.
When providing data about graduation rates by region, the division combines schools into clusters because some — especially rural ones — have small Grade 12 classes that could be identified, Huschi continued.
Recent data shows the north cluster had 37 students and a graduation rate of 88.5 per cent; the south cluster had 73 students and a rate of 92.4 per cent; and the high schools’ cluster had 297 grads and a rate of 77 per cent.
Meanwhile, division administration created a new program last year called the Pathways School — on Ominica Street West — to target high school students who weren’t attending or were unsuccessful, he said.
The board has funded a project since 2017 called the grad support program, which focuses on students in grades 10 to 12 who are falling slightly behind but could catch up and be successful with some assistance.
Of the 26 Grade 12 students who participated in the program last year:
- 19 graduated
- Five did not graduate but continued school
- Two stopped attending
Of the 33 Grade 11 students who participated:
- 17 moved into the green zone
- Eight remained in the yellow zone
- Three moved into the red zone
- Five stopped attending
Of the 19 Grade 10 students who participated:
- 11 moved into the green zone
- Four remained in the yellow zone
- Two moved into the red zone
- Three stopped attending
For students who didn’t graduate on time, the division created a program for them to graduate a year later since pupils learn at different rates and can’t all take the same “cookie-cutter” plan, said Huschi.
Meanwhile, since the number of students in grades 10 and 11 in the program was low, the division attempted to support them within their schools’ regular operations by creating the necessary structures and ensuring teachers worked closely with them, he continued.
When the division began the support program, it had a small group of students in the red zone and a large group in the yellow zone. However, those sizes reversed during the pandemic, leading Prairie South to lose 76 students last year and prompting the creation of Pathways School.
“Currently, the Pathways School has 31 students enrolled that we would have lost last year,” said Huschi, including one student who hadn’t been in a school in two years.
Administration has heard from stakeholders that it needs to adjust its career development program to ensure students attend and remain engaged, he added. Staff spoke to the board and hired two consultants, who will help ensure rural students also benefit.
Attendance data for last year shows the division’s overall rate was 91 per cent. In comparison, that number in 2022 was 92.1 per cent.
Afterward, trustee Crystal Froese said the Pathways Program was a “game-changer” for Prairie South.
The next PSSD board meeting is Tuesday, Nov. 7.
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