Hello Everyone,
I hope that you had a wonderful and restful holiday. The benefit of three weeks off, other than opportunities for vacations, is that many students seem to have been very ready to return to school. It is always a treat to hear the hallways buzzing once again.
Today is an important day as we honour Black Excellence Day. Our Social Justice 12 Students posted some of their learning on our social media sites. It is important to recognize the contributions Black Canadians have made throughout our history, and how much richer we are as a society because of it. In addition to reflecting on the past, days like these also give us pause to contemplate the future and our role in it. Recently, I have had the opportunity to spend considerable one-on-one time in conversation with a number of our Senior Students. While our generation (their parents) may have become a louder voice on issues of injustice than our parents were, I am incredibly heartened by this younger generation and their commitment to seeing a world with an even greater commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice and Belonging. I know many of us working in education feel fortunate to be able to travel this journey alongside these students, learning from them and their passion just as they learn from us.
There are also a number of logistical details that I’d like to share at the beginning of this calendar year. As we look to the future please note that the 2023-2024 school calendar (PDF) has been published and can be downloaded for your holiday planning next year. And knowing that you likely have missed this over the break, here is a brief reminder about parking and traffic. Please follow the rules of the road and city bylaws. We are seeing people parking on crosswalks, and letting students out in traffic which are both very unsafe practices. Please travel to the underground drop off to let your children out. Finally, do note that there is a full school Home Clothes day taking place on January 20 (cue collective cheer from the student body!)
After the holidays we are also excited to announce that we have jumped up to nearly $160,000 in donations toward our Let’s Get Moving Annual Appeal goal. Which means we are about 63% there! If you still haven’t participated (we are at 36% family participation) and were just waiting for the new year, you can always donate on our Parent Hub either by giving directly or converting a Parent Equity Unit to a donation. We are about to start on the conversion of our 3rd floor deck into an athletic deck, so we will share those images soon. Thank you for your ongoing support, and we can not wait to see all of the deck improvements begin!
Yours in Developing UA,
Ms. Sonja Kennedy
