New position helps students transition to post-secondary education

Malaspina University-College has just received government funding to hire a Regional Student Transition Coordinator, a position designed to implement initiatives to increase student transitions into post-secondary education.

“This is a huge opportunity for Malaspina and the school districts to create and enhance opportunities for students going into post-secondary education,” said Patrick Ross, Vice President, Student Services at Malaspina. “We are very proud to be involved.”

The new position was created after a proposal was submitted by Malaspina and school districts 68 (Nanaimo-Ladysmith), 69 (Qualicum), 79 (Cowichan) and 47 (Powell River). Funding for the position was granted by the Ministries of Education and Advanced Education and was designed to promote future educational collaboration between the groups.

“This position exemplifies our strong partnership and commitment to our students by making the transition from high school to Malaspina painless. We are delighted,” said Jay Yule, Superintendent of SD 47 in Powell River.

“This is a continuation of our rich history of partnerships between Malaspina and the school districts,” added Ross. “We will now have the capacity to create and implement exciting new opportunities for students.”

The primary purpose of this position is to provide leadership in building collaborative arrangements in support of the mid-island and Powell River school districts to achieve several goals. These goals will include improving high school completion rates, increasing transitions to Malaspina and building better relationships between high schools, Malaspina and business and industry.

The position will also enable Malaspina to broaden the scope of its transition programs to all four school districts. While existing initiatives and programs have been targeted at grades 11 and 12 students, the new Transition Coordinator will also place more emphasis on younger high school students and work to develop or expand programs targeted at those age groups.

“It will be a big help to school district 79 to have someone help coordinate the transition plan and develop career opportunities for students,” said Betty Milne, Superintendent of SD 79 in Cowichan. “It will enhance communication between central island school districts and Malaspina.”