Joliette High School is a public school located in Joliette, Québec. We welcome about 230 students a year from twenty-nine different municipalities in the Lanaudière region. Students live in environments varying from very rural to small cities. They are geographically dispersed over the vast Lanaudière region with the largest concentration of students coming from Rawdon (26%), Lavaltrie (12%), and Joliette (12%). Many students travel up to three hours per day, taking a total of two or more buses to attend JHS.
Thirty-two percent of our students have an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) and 9% have an EHDAA code (élèves handicapés ou en difficulté d’adaptation ou d’apprentissage). 63% of JHS students speak mainly French at home. Most students live in predominantly impoverished Francophone communities, which presents Joliette High School with the numerous challenges of operating as an English language school in an area vastly dominated by the French language and culture. Consequently, students entering Joliette High School have often experienced significant delays regarding the acquisition and development of the English language as confirmed by DRA (Diagnostic Reading Assessment) and Fountas and Pinnell testing. The Resource Teacher assess between 30 to 40 students a year in the fall and again in the spring.