The Ontario Ministry of Education has asked school boards to plan safe celebrations of student achievement.
With the school year winding down and Ontario's students engaging in learn-at-home programs during the COVID-19 pandemic, Education Minister Stephen Lecce has encouraged school boards across the province to consider events to ensure that the academic achievements of students do not fall by the wayside.
"Students have worked incredibly hard this school year, and we know that the COVID-19 outbreak has forced some schools to cancel or delay important milestones to recognize student achievement, such as prom and graduation ceremonies," said Lecce on Monday. "Although we are making great efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Ontario, it may still be some time before schools and boards are able to offer the kinds of ceremonies and traditions in the same way they have in previous years."
Traditional end-of-year events such as prom, honours nights, and graduations are in danger of not proceeding due to concerns over the pandemic, and current emergency orders from the province prohibit large gatherings. However, some school boards have been working on contingency plans for events, and a Windsor high school student is among those across Canada working on a "virtual prom" for later this month.
Lecce would like school boards to consider postponing some of these end-of-season traditions, to ensure students are able to celebrate their individual accomplishments.
"I am encouraging boards to reschedule these events based on input from local medical officers of health. In some cases, this might mean facilitating graduation ceremonies and proms during the summer or fall when it is safe to do so," said Lecce.
The minister added that at the end of the day, students deserve some form of recognition in the face of a crisis that has been no fault of their own.
"Students and parents deserve to celebrate many of these critical milestones, especially graduation ceremonies, and I expect boards to preserve these opportunities to proudly recognize the incredible success and achievement resulting from the hard work of our students," said Lecce.
Under current provincial orders, public school boards across Ontario are tentatively set to reopen June 1, though some educators and public health officials have conceded that there is a chance school may not reopen until fall.
