A young student who was previously told he would have to finish high school at a French school will now be allowed to graduate in English.
Alois Orozco, 16, has spent the last four years at Royal West Academy in Montreal West — sitting comfortable with a 95 per cent average in both math and science.
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He came to Canada from Ecuador; his mother, Rebecca Estrata came to Canada about a decade ago to complete a PhD in telecommunications at ÉTS.
Orozco originally attended a French elementary school, but because of his mother’s temporary work visa, he was eligible to attend English school too.
An honour roll student, Orozco hopes to become a doctor, but his dreams were recently dashed when he was told he would have to complete his last year of high school in French.
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“Last year, we became permanent residents and because of that, I’m now under law Bill 101,” the teen explained.
“I feel like my grades would drop drastically and I probably wouldn’t have the same dreams of becoming a doctor going to French school.”
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The boy applied for a special exemption to finish high school in English, but was forced to wait with bated breath for the province’s decision.
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“Due process was followed,” explained Kathleen Weil, minister for anglophone relations.
“Based on the particular situation, the derogation was granted. Tomorrow he can go back to school.”
Orozco will be back at school Friday, after having missed the first three weeks of school.
“It’s incredibly frustrating to see a young person have to go through that,” said Principal Tony Pita.
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rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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