Chippewa Secondary School has a reason to celebrate – it's been 10 years as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School.
Every five years, the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) evaluates IB schools, and Chippewa recently passed its second evaluation. The evaluation process is lengthy, taking just over one year to complete.
Remy Lemon, Chippewa’s world school manager with the IBO noted, “I would like to thank your school community for the thorough and thoughtful presentation of your self-study results. Your commitment has been evident in the review of your school’s documents and engagement throughout the process.”
Indeed, the evaluation team emphasized, “Chippewa Secondary School has consistently aligned its mission and vision with the IB educational principles.”
The IB program is a globally recognized academic program for university-bound grade 11 and 12 students. Chippewa’s website details “The IB extends beyond the regular curriculum and actively promotes critical thinking, independence and social awareness. The program has gained recognition and respect from the world's leading universities and can lead to advanced standing or credit.”
Kim Larivee, Chippewa’s IB coordinator, noted in addition to stringent academic standards, “One of the key components of the program is that students are involved in community service and reaching out to their community.”
Larivee has been involved with Chippewa’s IB program since the earliest days, and she’s looking forward to many more years to come. For her, the IB program encourages students to step out of their comfort zones and tackle new challenges.
This year, about 75 Chippewa students will write their final exams for their IB program.
Arwyn Hicks is currently in the IB program and enjoys it very much. She knew it would suit her well. “I’ve always been someone who loves to learn, and I’m interested in so many different subjects, and IB has really given me the opportunity to dive deep into these different subject areas and fields.”
See: Chippewa holds stem cell registration event
This past fall, Hicks organized a stem cell registration event at her school as part of her service project for the IB program.
“They really take everything a step further,” Hicks said of those within the program, “And it’s truly lovely being surrounded by so many other kids who want to learn as much as they can and want to make a difference in the world.”
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
