ABOUT
GREATER THAN

A collective of people who care for, work for, or are youth, working toward raising high school graduation rates in PEC. Working together we are Greater Than the sum of our parts.

OUR MISSION.

We want to raise high school graduation rates in PEC. We believe that to reach this goal, we must use a holistic approach. Our areas of focus are youth empowerment; well-being; relationships with caregivers, family, and peers; enhancing education supports; and helping youth see the connection between their education and future employment.

We are strengthening the network of organizations in the community so that we can respond to the unique needs of County youth using a collaborative approach. We want to create a community culture that embraces learning and personal development and enables everyone to reach their potential. Our goal is to have graduation rates at parity with the provincial average by 2026.

We identify the needs of PEC youth, spread the word to our Collective partners, and initiate action in the community to address issues and barriers communicated by youth. We engage youth to share their voice in a meaningful way through surveys, conversations, focus groups, and data parties. The information gathered through this process is compiled and analyzed by The Students Commission of Canada and then turned into a report!

OUR HISTORY.

In 2013, the County Foundation (TCF) produced a Vital Signs report that provided a snapshot of the community and raised awareness of its successes and challenges. This report was based on a collection of quantitative and qualitative data from municipal, provincial, and federal sources, and community conversations. The report pointed to opportunities for collaboration to analyze and address problems.

An advisory committee prioritized three key areas for immediate action: Learning, Food Insecurity, and Transportation. Working groups defined priorities and projects in each of the three areas. The Vital Signs Learning working group, with members from 15 local organizations, articulated a vision “to create a community culture that embraces learning and personal development and enables everyone to reach their potential.” The group has met on a regular basis since 2013, and in the early days focused on relationship-building and gaining awareness of services available in the community.

A driving force for the group was the knowledge that graduation rates in PEC are well below the provincial average. Conscious of the complex, long-standing nature of this issue, the group came to embrace a Collective Impact approach for reaching the goal of increasing the PEC graduation rate to parity with the provincial average by 2026, which was seen as a key indicator of progress toward the group’s vision.