Ecole La Belle Cloche students receive diplomas

A historic high school graduation takes place Monday night in Souris as six students receive their diplomas and end 12 years of being together in the same class.

It will be the largest graduating class ever at the French language school, Ecole La Belle Cloche, and the first group to attend the school from Grade 1 to 12.

Graduate Alysha Clement suspects it will be a difficult transition.

"I think it's going to be kind of hard honestly," she said. "Because they're kind of like my brothers and sisters now."

Principal Marise Chapman says in the past, the school has had single graduates and last year there were two, but never six at once.

Parent Jean MacDonald says there were benefits to a class of six.

"They had small class sizes. They had more one-on-one with teachers," she said.

But the students say it hasn't been without its challenges.

Austin McNally says he missed seeing his friends.

"Definitely the social aspect. Almost all my friends go to the high school. So getting together with them after school and on weekends was kind of like what I did because there's only six of us here," he said.

Missed sports opportunities

Graduate Symonne Outhouse missed some sports opportunities.

"We couldn't have our own volleyball team or soccer team so we had to go with the English school to do sports and stuff."

A few students took some courses online or by teleconference which parent Danielle Mill appreciated.

"There has been a lot of effort on the school's part and the school board's part to make it everything that it needs to be," she said.

McNally says no matter what the drawbacks were, graduating from a French language school will serve him well in the future.

"I feel like having French is really going to benefit me in the future. Even right now for job opportunities and stuff like that. That's the reason I got my job was because I'm bilingual," he said.

Since the Class of 2015 started 12 years ago, Ecole La Belle Cloche has grown from 15 students to more than 80.

After graduation, three of the students are staying on Prince Edward Island to attend either UPEI or Holland College. The rest are leaving the province.

Symonne Outhouse is expecting tears.

"I might cry. I very well might cry. It's going to very emotional I think for all of us," she said.