‘One for the history books’: Grade 12 class graduates together
North Vancouver’s Maplewood Alternative High School pulled off something on Friday that most secondary schools have been unable to do this spring: a traditional graduation ceremony.
With just a dozen students in the Grade 12 class, the independent school was able to keep the graduates socially distanced and allow each to invite two guests, and still keep below Dr. Bonnie Henry’s requirement for gatherings to be less than 50 people.
Finishing high school can be an important rite of passage for many of the estimated 40,000 Grade 12 students across B.C. this year. Arguably, though, celebrating that milestone takes on even greater significance for the youth attending a school like Maplewood, which specializes in helping kids who struggled in the more traditional education system.
“Obviously this is a remarkable year,” Jim Christopher, the head of the school, said Friday during the scaled-down graduation ceremony. “This is one for the history books.”
To avoid any potential spread of COVID-19, the grads did not wear rented gowns or caps, instead donning paper, disposable mortar boards. They sat on chairs spaced two metres apart, and the ceremony was held in a covered breezeway that allowed for fresh air and protection from the pounding rain.
Competing their final three months of Grade 12 at home was a challenge for most of these students, who have often relied on one-on-one teaching support.
“Good things come out of bad times,” Christopher said. “You had to draw on all your personal resources to be successful and you did it.”
Every student at Maplewood has an individual education plan, to help them with their learning differences, says the school’s website. Many of the grads are now heading off to post-secondary schools, such as BCIT, UBC and Capilano University, an accomplishment many had not thought possible when they were younger.
Ethan Gilbert has dyslexia, and can remember struggling in school before coming to Maplewood in Grade 5.
“The previous school I attended, I had lots of trouble with my school work and I was barely passing my grades,” he said. “I’d always end up throwing the homework out on the way home.”
Gilbert, who was the valedictorian on Friday, said he and his tightknit group of classmates are grateful for individualized teaching that helped them complete their dogwood diplomas. The 18-year-old plans to study carpentry at BCIT this September.
During his valedictory address, Gilbert joked about his classmates putting the teachers “through hell and back” with their different learning styles.
“It’s an amazing school. It took me from basically being unable to read to being able to read pretty good,” he said.
Gilbert said it was tough when COVID-19 restrictions cancelled their graduation dance and several end-of-year school trips. “I’m glad that we had a little graduation for our class and that we were a small enough group to have it.”
One graduate, Thinley Laprairie, did a backflip when he received his diploma. Another, Mason Davis, sprinted down the breezeway, hooting with delight.
Math teacher Blair Yochim told the grads they will achieve their own version of success because it is measured in different ways. And, he added, life is unpredictable; who would have predicted that in their Grade 12 year, there would be a global health pandemic and widespread protests against racism?
“Everybody struggles. Everybody has problems. You guys know of the struggles you have … everybody is trying to do the best they can. Everybody fails. It is how humans are,” said Yochim.
“Some dreams don’t come true because life isn’t all planned. It is the hope in our dreams that keeps us striving.”