June Community Newsletter

June Community Newsletter

Greetings:

June is here and we are looking forward to witnessing and celebrating the learning and accomplishments of our students over this past semester/year. With the month of June, there are many distractions and excitement with the summer months ahead, and we encourage our students to remain focused over the next few weeks so they can finish the year off strong. Our next school community newsletter will be shared with families in August as we head into the 2025-26 school year. Thank you to you, our families, for your ongoing partnership and support!

Sincerely,

Brian Goodram, Principal

Important Calendar Dates:

Date:	Event(s):	Audience:
Tues. June 10th	Athletic Banquet (Leander Boat Club)	Student-Athletes
Thurs. June 12th	Quiet Days Begin (no extra or co-curricular events)	All
Tues. June 17th	EQAO Math (Day 1) Note: EQAO Day 2 will occur during Final Evaluation period	Grade 9 Students enrolled in sem. 2 Math
Wed. June 18th	Last Instructional Day	All
Thurs. June 19th	Period 1 Final Evaluation (9am)	All
Fri. June 20th	Period 2 Final Evaluation (9am)	All
Mon. June 23rd	Period 3/4 Final Evaluation (9am)	All
Tues. June 24th	Period 5 Final Evaluation (9am)	All
Wed. June 25th	Make-Up Evaluation Day   Commencement (3pm; FirstOntario Concert Hall)	Students requiring evaluation accommodations Class of 2025 / families
June 26th and 27th	PA Day (no school for students)	All

Shouts Out / Good News:

HWDSB: Be You. Be Excellent:

Back in the fall, there was a photoshoot for promotional / celebratory poster displays of what makes Westdale and HWDSB amazing…..our students! This past month, a group of students attended a launch event at the Education Centre with the Director of Education to reflect on the photoshoot experience and how the tagline, Be You. Be Excellent, and HWDSB’s values (Dignity, Trust, Compassion, Joy) resonate with their peers. We look forward to displaying the posters within the halls of our school in the months ahead.

Relay for Life:

Thank you to Ms. Francisci, Ms. Peace and the student-leaders on the Relay for Life team for their leadership with the event on May 1st and to the many students, staff, and community members who supported the event. Although the weather did not cooperate, the event was a success as the students united together to support cancer fundraising and over $10,000 was raised! As shared on the Relay for Life website, “the event is more than just a fundraiser, it’s a chance for you to send a powerful message of solidarity to your community”. Mission accomplished for our passionate Westdale students and staff!

Mental Health Week:

Thank you to Ms. Venizelos for her vision, planning, and leadership with the Mental Health Activities the week of May 12th and to all the staff who supported this event throughout the week…..there are too many to name! The thoughtfulness of the activities through the week allowed students and staff to connect, laugh, and celebrate with one another. Events like these not only build community, but serve to equip us with some strategies and memories to support our mental health and overall well-being!

Ontario Robotics Skills Competition:

Congratulations to Westdale’s Robotics team, appropriately named “Guardians of the Allen Key”, who placed 15th in provincial competition. The students represented Westdale admirably, both in designing and building three robots for a complicated task, and for embodying the spirit of fair competition on the field. Amazing work! Thank you to Mr. Wilson for his work with the students and for his leadership in this valuable field of learning.

Unified Sport:

In mid-May, Westdale hosted teams from Bernie Custis and Glendale secondary schools for Unified Sport. The teams competed and encouraged one another in a one-day basketball tournament.  Unified Sport joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team. Inspired by the principle that playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding, this initiative has benefitted the larger student body here at Westdale. Thank you to Ms. Adachi and Mr. Francis’ Leadership class for organizing this wonderful event for our student-athletes!

Westdale Music Goes to Ottawa:

Thank you to Westdale’s music students for being amazing ambassadors of Westdale. In late May, the music department and 30 students toured Ottawa. Students were treated to sold out performances (Atlantic Jazz Collective and National Arts Centre Orchestra) and had a performance clinic at the University of Ottawa with the conductor (Douglas Burden), who attended Westdale some 50 years ago. Additionally, the group visited the Museum of Art, the Canadian War Museum, Science & Technology Museum, toured the Supreme Court and performed at a Federal institution. Thank you to Mr. Abell for his ongoing leadership in promoting and celebrating music here at Westdale.

Other News: 

Continuing Education:

HWDSB Continuing Education is excited to offer summer programs in support of your child’s education. From learning a new language to enriching and developing literacy and numeracy skills in free, fun activities, combined with art, coding, or sports-based programming. The deadline to register for the Summer Non-Credit programs is June 9th, at 11am. Please visit the following link for further information: Summer Programs | Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board and contact [email protected], should you have any questions.

2025-26 School Year Calendar:

For your planning, the 2025-26 School Year Calendars have been approved by the Board of Trustees and submitted to the Ministry of Education for final approval. The secondary school year calendar is available on HWDSB’s website: School Year Calendar | Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board  The first day of the 2025-26 school year is Tuesday September 2nd. Given the importance of regular school attendance and the demonstration of learning through culminating activities and final evaluations at the end of each semester, we appreciate families being mindful of our school year calendar when planning family events.

School Council:

As we head into the last School Council meeting of the school year on Tuesday, June 17th, we are thankful to our Co-Chairs, Claire Rivlin and Catherine Roberts, for their leadership and service and to our collective Council for their time and advocacy this school year. We will be sharing an outline of our work this year with our school community later this month. As we prepare for the 2025-26 school year, we look forward to welcoming new and returning members to our Westdale School Council. Elections for School Council will be held within the first 30 school days and will occur at our first School Council meeting, tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, September 30th at 6pm, in the Library/Learning Commons. We will share additional information, including School Council nomination forms, in our Summer Communication in August.

HWDSB Program Strategy Review:

Westdale families, we want to hear from you! As part of HWDSB’s Program Strategy Review, we are seeking your input to help shape the future of learning in our schools. Whether you’re a parent, guardian, or caregiver, your voice can help guide the programs that support every student’s success. Join the conversation and help us refine the HWDSB’s program offerings, together. Click here to participate in the survey: https://hwdsbreviewparent.malatest.net/

Student Parking:

As we have limited parking available on-site for staff and visitors (including parents/guardians), there is no student parking available anywhere in our Westdale lot. Students are expected to park in approved areas on side streets. If your student drives to school, please remind them of this expectation. We appreciate your cooperation.

Home-School Partnerships:

At Westdale, we value our relationships with families and are here in service of our students and community. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to our school staff should you have any questions or if you need any support. June is a busy and exciting month, with culminating activities, final evaluations, and school celebrations (e.g., Commencement). We want to ensure our families are informed and equipped with the resources needed to support the success and well-being for all our students. We hope you have found these Community Newsletters informative this school year and we look forward to our continued work together!