Wednesday, May 13, 1992 - North Shore News - 41

Lions Gate Hospital, a 720 bed acute
and extended care facility is the fifth

largest hospita! in the province and

one of the largest employers

on the North
Shore.

There are many exciting career
opportunities at Lions Gate in the
areas of nursing, dietary, clerical, radiology
and physiotherapy ... just to mention a few!
Look into the dynamic field of health care, May 20

at Carson Graham.

NEW INITIATIVES in our high
schools can make a significant
impact on drop-out rates.

Proof of that success lies within
the West Vancouver Schoo!
District where the withdrawal
rate is actually negative
because of people moving into
the community, said assistant
superintendent Bob Overgaard.

Four years ago, 82% of the
students who started Grade 12
would graduate. But with some
important changes that gradu-
ation rate has been increased
fo 90%, he explained.

The changes included split-
ting Hillside and West Van-
couver Secondary, making the
former a middle schoo! with
grades seven through nine only,
and making the latter a senior
secondary with grades 10 to 42.

Now each schoo] — including
Sentinel Secondary — has a
higher enrollment for each
grade, and the district is able to
expand funding for more exten-
sive alternate and career
preparation programs.

The aiternate program was
strictly pre-employment —
preparing studenis for getting a
job — but now students in the
allernate Sentinel Work Activity
Programme are studying aca-

231 East 15th Street
North Vancouver, BC.
V7L 2L7

demic subjects in preparation
for graduation.

The career preparation
courses include co-operative
(work experience) and business
education programs.

Because of the success of the
initiatives introduced through
the local schoo! board, West
Vancouver is not eligible for any
funding through the federally-
funded Stay In Schoo! program,
said Overgaard, explaining that
their drop-out rate is not high
enough to qualify.

But. he added, he doesn’t
think the school district should
have been penalized for being
successful through their own ef-
forts.

“We'te still losing some: we'd
rather not lose any students.”

Overgaard offered one good
example of West Vancouver's
need to fund their own initia-
tives. Both North Shore school
districts have a Pathfinder
computer-based academic in-
struction tool, but North Van-
couver recieved a Stay In
School grant for theirs, while
West Vancouver had to budget
$160,000 to purchase the com-
puters.

 BOUCATOE nvotved In tryl
EDUCATORS ARE | fe smaller budgets. The

Ittee at Seycove Secondary meets fo
ake improvements.

quality of education desp
ETHOS comm
discuss ways to m

EDUCATION

ing to improve the

OPPORTUNITIES START WITH

Stong’s Food will feed
your body but only
Education will nourish

your mind.

Be smart — Be
Healthy —- Stay in
School

Education — A
Deor to Your
Future