For these Quebec adult ed students, graduation celebrates long-awaited high school success

In the corner of a classroom lined with chairs and a buffet table, Afroditi Marinakis fiddles with the tassel on her graduation cap.

“Do you know if the point is supposed to be in front?” she asks, adjusting the fit.

After nearly 10 years of off-and-on study to earn her high school diploma, she’s had a whirlwind homestretch in the last few hours before graduation.

Marinakis, who completed the last six months of her self-directed studies at the end of May, only found out about the ceremony a few hours beforehand, thanks to an administrative glitch.

But her family quickly rallied and she says the school, CDC Vimont in Laval, rose to the occasion.

“[They said] ‘we ordered extra gowns, don’t worry!'” said Marinakis. “They even remade all the slips… to give me new programs for my whole family, to make sure everybody still sees my name on it.”

“They’re amazing people,” said Marinakis about the staff who have helped her through more than just this obstacle on her long road to graduation.

Students from CDC Vimont and CDC Lachute, two adult education centres in the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board, prepare for their processional to the graduation stage. (Ainslie MacLellan/CBC)

About 30 students from CDC Vimont in Laval and CDC Lachute — both part of the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board — crossed the stage to receive their diploma Tuesday night in a ceremony held at Laval Junior Academy. For many, it was the culmination of a difficult educational journey that administrators say deserves more recognition.

While Quebec, like most of Canada, did see its on-time high school graduation rate improve during the pandemic, it still lags behind all other provinces, according to Statistics Canada.

CDC Vimont and CDC Lachute, which also offer language courses and prerequisites for vocational training, had an overall enrolment of about 800 students this year, according to the centres’ director Christina Shousha.

Ferdos Rasuli’s sister Athar Rasuli, left, and mother Fahima Rasuli came to support him at his graduation from CDC Vimont. Rasuli says his mother, a former university biology professor in Afghanistan, inspired him throughout his studies. (Ainslie MacLellan/CBC)

The students study at their own pace, often while juggling work and family responsibilities, she said.

“I think what we do is to always make them feel welcome when they’re ready, when they’re able,” she said. “The doors are always open for them if they have to leave early, if they have to leave late.”

“They work so hard,” added Tamara Vachon, social worker for the two centres. “They’ve given up so much…coming from different countries, from a multitude of backgrounds, overcoming obstacles. They’re resilient.”

‘A step backward to move forward’

After completing three years of French language training, Ferdos Rasuli had delayed further studies while working to help support his siblings, parents and grandmother. The family of 10 moved from Pakistan to Tajikistan and finally to Canada in 2015 as Afghan refugees.

Though Rasuli, 28, finished high school in Tajikistan and taught computer science to fellow Afghan students there, he needed to redo certain courses to pursue post-secondary studies in Canada.

“It was … a reminder that sometimes we have to take a step backward to move forward and achieve our aspirations,” Rasuli said in his salutatorian speech to his fellow graduates.

Now, graduating from CDC Vimont will put him back on the path to his goal: studying computer science at Concordia University.

Ferdos Rasuli receives his high school diploma for the second time. An Afghan refugee, Rasuli first earned his diploma while living in Tajikistan but needed to redo some credits in Canada to pursue post-secondary studies. (Ainslie MacLellan/CBC)

Rasuli says he drew inspiration from his mother, a former university biology professor in Afghanistan.

“She always motivated me, gave me the hope to just focus on my studies,” he said. “That gives me hope that nothing is impossible and I can do it. Even if it takes time, that’s OK.”

Individual support

For 17-year-old Tristan Yakisir, studying at CDC Lachute was a chance to earn his diploma after struggles in the regular high school system.

He left high school last year without the English and math credits he needed to graduate.

“I had a false graduation. They gave me the hat and everything, but they didn’t give me the diploma in the end,” he said.

Now, diploma in hand, he intends to re-enroll at CDC Lachute in the fall to try to improve his physics grade so he can study civil engineering technology at Dawson College.

A moment of elation as students from CDC Vimont and CDC Lachute celebrate earning their high school diplomas, alongside Christina Shousha, director of the two adult education centres. (Alejandra Martinez Brina/AMB Photography)

“I think sometimes a lot of them who have gone through the regular school system have been sort of chewed up and spit out by it,” said Dan Cuvalo, who teaches social studies, art and English at CDC Vimont.

“A lot of times when they don’t have faith in themselves, we have to … jump in and carry some of that for them,” he said.

He says staff try to build relationships with students and check in on them, even calling them if they are absent.

Shurma Young, who earned her high school diploma at CDC Vimont with the goal of becoming an orderly, says that individual support from staff kept her going when things got tough.

“It was hard, with young kids in daycare and older kids … but it was worth it now, in the end,” she said.

She says support from her classmates of all ages also helped to overcome any awkwardness they may have felt about going back to school.

Young’s advice to other prospective adult students?

“You’re never too late to start,” she said. “Never give up.”