Full graduation ceremonies could be in the cards for B.C. high school students this spring as the province eyes a return to more “normal” school environment.
Dr. Bonnie Henry signalled the move at the province’s Feb. 15 COVID-19 briefing.
She said the team at the B.C. Centre for Disease Control has been working with the province’s K-12 education steering committee on ways to shift schools back to a more typical environment for the rest of the 2021/22 school year.
“We are very aware that graduation will be coming up in a few months, and how can we make that aligned with what we are seeing in risk in the community and a more normal experience for grads this year, too,” she said.
For the past two years, high school grads haven’t been able to experience the traditional full ceremonies in packed gyms and auditoriums.
The Class of 2020 experienced the most restricted ceremonies, with schools opting for a combination of virtual and limited in-person events, while the Class of 2021 saw a return to more live events but with limited audiences.
Henry said health and education officials are also working on possible changes to other aspects of schools, including spectators at school sports events, noting there will be more word from the Ministry of Education “very soon.”
She said officials are working on ways to make school “as normal as possible.”
“We recognize that’s so important, especially for younger children. Now that we have vaccination available to school-age children, the risk profile changes,” she said.
“We’ve learned from Omicron there’s no such thing as zero risk in the school setting – in any setting, really – so it’s about how do we manage it in a way that allows for full participation in school activities without some of these restrictions.”
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