Kwalikum Secondary School

Kwalikum Secondary is a medium-size high school that is located in the Oceanside community area on Vancouver Island.

Kwalikum Secondary is located in the scenic Qualicum Beach. It is situated 5 minutes walking distance from the town square and 10 minutes from the sandy beaches of Qualicum.

On October 2, 2010, the school district announced that they are considering closing KSS and requiring that its students attend Ballenas Secondary School in Parksville. Local politicians and citizens have announced that they intend to fight this prospect.[1][2]

At its meeting in March 2011, the SD 69 Board of Education acknowledged that its efforts in 2010 to be transparent with the community about enrollment challenges and possible solutions involving school closure scenarios, had the opposite effect to the Board’s intentions, and therefore did not serve the needs of the Board nor of the community. The Board has now approved a series of recommendations in support of its commitment that any decisions about school reorganization will be reached only after a comprehensive engagement with the community. This process of engagement will provide School District 69 community members access to multiple opportunities to understand the impact of student enrollment on funding and educational programs and services, and to share their ideas with the Board. To this end, in March 2011, the Board has initiated a comprehensive process to create a forum for discussing all the important perspectives related to this issue, and will defer any decision on potential school closures until the spring of 2012.[2]

The school changed from having grades 9-12 and is now Kwalikum Senior Secondary School with grades 8-12 as of 2015.

Oceanside Communities for Quality Education (OCQE) was formed in response to a considered closure of the community's only high school. OCQE has participated in three public presentations to the communities affected as well as a forum to garner input from community members. Many ideas, supported by expertise in the Qualicum Beach, can have a beneficial impact on enrollment at KSS.

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