Thank you for that question.
We are involved in quite a number of high schools in Scarborough and are very involved with the newcomer community in the secondary schools. There are a number of issues with that particular group. Some of it is simply that it's difficult enough being a teenager, with all it includes, let alone in a new country and a new language, and maybe not even necessarily wanting to be here.
On top of that, you have no way to communicate with your peer group, and you may have been out of school for a while. Imagine all of those factors piled together, with an 18-year-old sitting in a classroom with 14-year-olds and not necessarily feeling like they belong. Our grave concern is that we need to provide these Syrian youth with a sense of belonging outside that classroom, which is challenging.
Through group activities.... We have a plan out with IRCC that hasn't been approved yet for a matching program. It would potentially match Syrian youth with youth who have gone through the settlement process but have been here for a while, who would bring them along and give them a sense that there is life after some of the more difficult initial stages.
We also are looking at providing some academic enrichment to help this particular youth cohort catch up on their academics, given that they may well have missed a number of years of school.