Community Update-September 16

Community Message-September 16, 2024

As we begin the third week of back to school, we have a few important updates to share with you.

School Council
Our first School Council meeting will be held on Monday, October 7^th at 6:30 pm.  All are invited to attend.  If you would like to be a member of School Council, please be sure to complete the Nomination Form that was sent home last week and return to the school.

Secure School & Fire Drills
Each year, staff and students participate in a variety of drills to prepare them in case of an emergency.  We will be conducting the following drills over the course of the year:

Lockdown – A potentially serious violent situation at the school

Hold and Secure – Safety situation in the neighbourhood, not related to the school

Shelter In Place – A potential environmental or weather-related hazard outside the school

Bomb Threat  – Includes planning and preparation in the event of a bomb threat

Fire-When fire alarm sounds or smoke is seen, requiring evacuation of the building

In the event of emergency requiring staff and students to evacuate the building for a prolonged period of time, we would safely move students to our Emergency Evacuation Site located at:
St. John the Baptist School
115 London Street, South
More information about Secure Schools can be found here.

Access to School
The school closes to students and community members at 2:55 pm.  If you need access to the school after that time (i.e. your child forgot something and needs to be picked up), please report to the office.  If the office is closed, we ask that you return the next day.  There is no access to washrooms after school hours for public use.

For parents/guardians picking up children from daycare, we ask that you enter the through the front doors and exit through the front or rear doors.  There is no exit to the playground through the Kindergarten Area, as that gate is locked for safety reasons.

Plans of Care
If your child has a prevalent medical condition (Diabetes, Anaphylaxis, Asthma, Epilepsy), you will be receiving important communication this week.  Please be sure to review the Plan of Care that we currently have on file at the school.  If there are any revisions, please notify the school.  If the plan is unchanged, simply return the cover letter confirming that the plan is accurate and up-to-date.  If your child has a serious medical condition, not listed above, that we are unaware of, please notify the school so we can create a Plan of Care for your child.

Professional Activity Day
A reminder of the PA Day on Friday, September 20.  There is no school for students!  Staff will be participating in a full day of Professional Development and Training sessions revolving around the HWDSB Mutli-Year Strategic Plan and the new K-2 Acadience Reading Screener.

Terry Fox
Our annual Terry Fox Run is set for Friday, September 27.  Event information was recently sent home for families.  There are a variety of ways to donate (online, cash, SchoolCashOnline).  You can find our school page here.

Meet the Teacher
As previously communicated, our Meet the Teacher event has been postponed until the September Staffing Process is complete.  An update will be provided to families shortly.  Please stay tuned!

Raise the Dough
Our first fundraiser is here! We are “Raising the Dough” for AMC Athletics! On Wednesday, September 25^th, order from Domino’s using the attached promo codes to donate $5 to our athletics department.