Quebec dad says son missed ‘milestone’ after elementary school didn’t hold graduation ceremony

A cap, gown and a diploma — that’s all Jose Perez wanted for his son Ricardo — who finished elementary school at the beginning of the summer and is now in high school in Thetford Mines, about 187 km northeast of Montreal. 

“When he graduated, I expected like any other school to have a little ceremony to give them the recognition that they made it. They moved to another step in life. Sadly, that was nothing done. I was a few parents and myself that were completely caught off guard with that,” explained Jose Perez, who is a parent of five.

Ricardo attended St. Patrick Elementary and is now at AS Johnson High School, housed in the same building. Even though he didn’t move too far, Perez says he feels his son and others missed out on a special milestone.

“It’s a small school, I understand, but it was just a small little ceremony could have been and a certificate or diploma. Nothing. Not even a piece of paper saying you made it.”

So Perez and other parents decided to buy their own graduation decor and outfits and host their own version of a celebration. He says they initially offered to pay for it if the school put on a ceremony. 

“We did what we could to make their day be worth it, and be excited for them that they made it,” said Perez.

“It wasn’t really about the price, it was just about to have a moment for the kids. And what we tried our best with what we had, and they had a good time.”

He says he and his wife brought this up with the school’s governing board, and later with the school board, to no avail. 

“When I asked this school, and they told me it’s the school board, you know, the budget thing, I don’t know, school board. So then when I contacted the school board, they told me it was the school. So it was a blame-blaming game,” he explained.

CityNews first reached out to the Central Quebec School Board on Aug. 30. They did not immediately respond to our repeated requests for comment.

In a Sept. 17 statement, they said that graduation ceremonies at St. Patrick’s Elementary are not “traditionally held.” 

“Discussions that took place during the 2023-2024 school year between the school administration and parents that are members of the Governing Board did not result in any commitment to celebrate the transition between the end of elementary school and the beginning of high school. However, while the parties did not formalize a plan to celebrate the 2023-2024 elementary to high school transition, the school administration remains open to discussing celebration possibilities for the current 2024-2025 school year.”

Perez says, “If I can get the certificate for my son and the other kids, that would be great. I mean, at least we got, we will have that. And to secure the future of the next graduates.”