Graduation Day Making the grades! Studying hard Classroom Who better than a Dans la rue graduate to talk to the kids at the Day Centre about the merits of going back to school? The more kids we can convince to resume their education, the faster the news spreads about how academic perseverance pays off in the long run! Dans la rue School: The students at the Dans la rue school abandoned the traditional educational system long ago. The purpose of our school is to encourage these young dropouts to resume their studies and thereby provide them with one of the key ingredients they need to win their struggle against homelessness and poverty. Every year, we help some forty students earn high-school French, math and computer science credits - and we are proud to say that their provincial test scores constantly outperform the Quebec average. Our orientation counsellor meets with the kids, either as a group or on a one-on-one basis, to talk to them about workplace realities and the range of job training programs available to them. The main objectives of our school are to: Instill a love of learning in young dropouts Enable students to discover their talents Develop their self-esteem Help them make an informed decision on employment issues Promote teamwork and group interaction Provide youths with the opportunity to be involved in projects that are meaningful to them Our students can also take part in an exceptional initiative known as the Concordia-Dans la rue project. This pairs one of our kids with a student enrolled in the Design Art program at Concordia while they earn Secondary IV or V credits in computer science. The commitment and positive influence of the Concordia students with respect to this project have been an unwavering source of inspiration to us. Scholarship Fund: Our commitment to promoting lifelong learning does not stop with the high-school diploma offered through the Dans la rue school. In fact, many of our graduates have gone on to study at the college, university or vocational level. To help them pursue their academic goals, Dans la rue can provide them financial assistance to pay for books, tuition, public transportation or groceries. To date, more than half of those receiving aid are enrolled in an institution other than our school. The scholarship fund can be particularly helpful to young parents. The increased level of responsibility associated with raising children often makes it even harder for them to make ends meet. But it also means that they are even more driven to succeed, fueled by a desire to build a better life for their children. A class at work The Scholarship Fund helped 90 street kids to study last year.