Students worry about their future after IB program is cut

Some Chippewa high school students are wondering what their fall will look like once school begins in September. 

Alistair McPherson and Mikaila Kimball are two students heading into grade 11.  They both just completed a two-year lead-up to the International Baccalaureate program, which runs in grades 11 and 12.

The Near North Board announced that the program was being cut as part of the board cost-saving measures going into the new school year.   

The IB program was considered “costly” and “unsustainable.”

The board also has created a new committee to review educational spending. 

"These changes mark the start of a transition with the NNDSB with a view to ensuring value for money spent in the system and to focus on 'student-centric' needs," stated Jay Aspin, Near North Board Chair after the last meeting. 

That news did not go over well with Kimball or McPherson.  

“We were shocked it was very 'out of left field,' and we had no idea that this was going on,” said Mikaila Kimball. 

“We had already chosen our courses, we had them locked up, we had made payments and we were all set to go and we were not expecting it at all.”

Now McPherson says there are plenty of questions around what is happening this fall.

“The grade 11s going into grade 12, I believe have been told they are 100 per cent getting to finish IB, but myself and the people in my grade we don’t know what’s going to happen at all, so there’s a lot of uncertainty, a bit of stress, a bit of anxiety,” he told Rogers Radio.

McPherson and Kimball would like the board to reconsider.

“A yearly fee could be covered by new students who come into the board and bring more funding along with them. I think that honestly, IB is more than worth the cost and I really want the school board to try to look more into how beneficial it is for students and reconsider their decision,” he said. 

Chippewa’s IB program started up in 2015 and accelerated learning program provides internationally accepted qualification for entry into high education which is recognized by many international universities.  

McPherson says the program offers a great opportunity for students who want more enriched learning.

Kimball says it offers enrichment in a multitude of areas from sciences to the languages and it provides us with good opportunities in the future.