A new report shows French Immersion enrollment in the Prince Albert Catholic School Division took a slight hit in 2020, but remains strong heading into the next school year.
The PA Catholic school board received the update on Monday at their regular meeting. Education director Lorel Trumier said the division has had the highest number of French Immersion students per capita in Saskatchewan, and she expects that trend to continue.
“I think that it’s pretty impressive,” she said. “We have maintained and we have grown our French Immersion program. It’s a tribute to the students and staff in our system.”
The report showed French Immersion enrolment from 2008 to 2020 as reported for federal grant purposes. According to the data, PA Catholic had 923 students enrolled in French Immersion as of September 2020. That’s roughly 30 per cent of the total student population.
In September 2019, there were 935 students reported, which also represents around 30 per cent of the student body.
The number of students has steadily grown from 2008, when there were 593 students enrolled in the program.
“We have a high number of students graduating with their bilingual certificate, and a high rate of success, and that’s a success story,” Trumier said.
The board was also updated that the Ministry of Education has approved the designation of French Immersion programs for the Catholic Division for the 2021-2022 school year. The Minister’s Order approved St. Anne, Holy Cross and Ecole St. Mary High School for French Immersion for the new school year.
