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NewsLetter  |
MAY 1999
Dear Parents, Immediately following the Easter break, district administrators and teaching staffs were advised that our school district is in danger of running a deficit. Originally, the projected deficit for this school year was forecasted to be 2.7 million dollars. This deficit was to be covered using "one time money" accumulated from under expenditures in previous years. A more recent forecast indicates that the deficit for this school year will be 1.5 million dollars more than predicted. Our district does not have enough in reserve to cover this shortfall and it will be necessary to control expenditures immediately. Controlling expenditures now will hopefully prevent the District's incurring the larger than budgeted operating deficit currently being projected. The measures which are to be implemented are a 15% reduction in school's scale of issue non-salary budgets for this year and a reduction of Construction and Maintenance expenditures between now and August 31,1999. This may affect schools that have anticipated repairs, upgrades, painting, etc. (which are not health and safety concerns). It is hoped that these measures will soften the program cuts that our District will have to make next year. These are difficult times. We will be facing further retrenchment and more serious program cuts in 1999/2000. Sincerely K. deSouza
/ T. Brinsmead SCHOOL BOARD RESPONDS TO LUNCHROOM PROPOSAL You may be aware of an ongoing discussion regarding the district's current lunchroom practice. A committee of parents (Catholic Lunchroom Improvement Committee) presented a deputation to our Board of Trustees on March 24. The committee membership included individuals from nine schools within our district. This group of parents requested that the Board draft a change policy that would provide all schools within the District with a consistent "off the floor" lunchroom policy by the 1999-2000 school year. At a meeting of the Board of Trustees on April 28, District administration presented a response to the committee's proposal. This response was developed after a careful examination of the committee's proposal and consideration of our District's current lunchroom practice. After consulting with school administration from all of our 85 schools and reviewing all the information and data, it was strongly recommended that the District maintain its current practice. School communities feel very strongly that all parents who wish to have their children remain at school for lunch should have that privilege and that the adequate supervision the District has established, continue to be provided in schools. A complete copy of this report is available at our school for anyone who wishes to examine the contents. At Monsignor Hetherington School this issue was raised at our September School Council meeting. We discussed the issue under new business in October and under the old business in November. School Council revisited the issue at our March meeting. Your School Council has carefully onsidered this issue. Our conclusion has been to maintain the current practice.We agree that current lunchroom practice is not ideal. However, our current practice permits all of our students to stay for lunch at a very reasonable cost to parents ($55.00/year). Four Noon Hour Assistants and teaching staff supervise students. Your children are generally finished eating in about 15 minutes and those who require more time are able to stay until intramurals begin. We encourage children to finish their lunch before they go outside. You may wish to provide a place mat or napkin with your child's lunch. We are satisfied that the concerns of the Catholic Lunchroom Improvement Committee have been fairly heard. If you would like more information please contact the school. 1999-2000 BUDGET APPROVAL PUBLIC BOARD MEETINGS Tentative Dates May
12, 1999 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Catholic
School Centre Since these dates are tentative, please call Communications at 298-1366 to confirm these dates a day or so in advance. Everyone is welcome to attend these public meetings. Printed budget information will be available at the door.
Monsignor Hetherington students were treated to a wonderful presentation and visit with Greg Frers of the Grey Cup champion Calgary Stampeders. This special event, organized by the School Council special events committee, took place last Friday in our gymnasium. All students in grades four, five and six heard Mr. Frers speak about the C.O.R.E. characteristics students need to be champions in life. Mr. Frers told our students to come to school COMMITTED to work to the best of their ability. He challenged us to set goals and to overcome OBSTACLES that we all must confront. By persevering and conquering these obstacles students gather the strength of a champion. Mr. Frers told students to accept RESPONSIBILITY for the direction of their lives and to work hard to prepare for life. Finally, Mr. Frers told our students to focus on their EDUCATION. He challenged the audience to work at all they do in school and not to simply do the least amount of work to get by. These C.O.R.E. characteristics are the foundation for championship results! Before Mr. Frers Left he made a visit to our Division I classrooms and presented autographed pictures for each student. Mr. Frers also provided two Stampeder season tickets for a draw. Congratulations to Sarah Gavin in grade six on winning these tickets! Our school presented Mr. Frers with a Monsignor Hetherington School pin and a T-shirt to wear under his equipment. GO STAMPS! KOOL KIDS KLUB LUNCHROOM PROGRAM The Kool Kids Klub is currently looking into opening a lunchroom program. This will be determined upon interest and registration. Children will be eating their lunch in the Northeast Sportsplex building. If you
are interested in enrolling your child(ren) or want more information,
please call: COMMERCIAL SITE ACROSS FROM SCHOOL BEGINS CONSTRUCTION The vacant lot directly across from the front of our school will be developed over the next few months. Construction has begun on a commercial site and condominium development. You should be aware that the road in front of this construction site has been designated as a NO PARKING ZONE. BOOK FAIR It's time to stock up on summer reading material. We are having a spring Book Fair at the school. Tuesday, May 11 to Friday, May 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This Book Fair is a 'Buy One Get One Free' event which means when you buy one book you get another book of equal or lesser value FREE. Drop in to the library and visit the Scholastic Book Fair! ACHIEVEMENT TESTS AHEAD Our grade three and six students will be writing the provincial achievement exams in a few short weeks. If your child is in grade three or six please mark these dates on your calendar. Help your child to be ready by supporting good homework routines and ensure that he/she is rested and ready on the day of the test. KINDERGARTEN ORIENTATION There will be an important evening presentation for parents with children entering Kindergarten next September. This meeting will be held on May 13 at 7:00 p.m. in our school gymnasium. We will be ready to answer your questions about our school and the Kindergarten program. We look forward to meeting you! WARM WEATHER CLOTHING With the return of spring, students will want to wear comfortable and cool clothing to school. Cut-off shorts should be neat and tidy and should be about mid-thigh in length. Halter tops and belly shirts are not acceptable. As usual T-shirts are just fine as long as the printed material on these shirts is in keeping with our Catholic school philosophy. We still require that students have a pair of indoor shoes and a pair of outdoor shoes. This is particularly important when wet weather turns our playground to mud. Please be sure to label all shoes clearly for easy identification. (You may wish to take a look through our lost and found box before the end of the year to recover some winter items.) SATISFACTION SURVEY AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OF FEEDBACK Each year we are required to submit an annual result report. This report will include: §
School achievement test results including participation rates; We need your feedback to complete this requirement. Your careful response to this survey will help us to assess our performance and to make adjustments to improve communications next year. Please take some time to complete this questionnaire and return it to the school. We also welcome ongoing feedback throughout the year. Thank you! SACRAMENTS Congratulations to Stephan Marquez and Stephanie McCusker who celebrated the Sacrament of First Communion recently at St. Thomas More Church. A MESSAGE FROM THE CALGARY POLICE SERVICE TRAFFIC EDUCATION UNIT The Traffic Education unit is a specialized unit that deals with traffic issues concerning schools. Their goal is to work with schools and communities to help resolve traffic problems near and around schools. Traffic problems around schools are mostly caused by unsafe practices of parents dropping off and picking up their children. Common violations which occur are: double parking while your child enters or exits your vehicle ($30), jaywalking in a school zone ($25), U-turns mid-block or where prohibited by a sign ($57), failing to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk ($57), failing to stop for school patrols ($115) and the list goes on. Not only are these practices illegal they are dangerous. They teach your children habits that they will practice when you are not there. As police officers we have seen first hand the results of what can happen when children don't make right decisions concerning traffic or are unable to anticipate what you are going to do. We are asking you to practice safety over convenience. A traffic ticket is not the worst that may happen - you could kill someone. If you have any questions please contact me. Const.
Sandy Seager YMCA BABYSITTING CERTIFICATION COURSE The
YMCA Bishop McNally is offering an 8-week babysitting course
for youth ages 12 to 15. The course takes place on Mondays or
Saturdays for 2 hoursand covers a variety of topics including: Alberta Safety Council manuals are provided as well as certification upon graduation. For more information, please call YMCA Bishop McNally at 285-7444. YMCA DRAMA CLASSES Lights! Camera! Action! Youth
Drama Classes on Saturdays Come and see what the fuss is all about! For more information call 285-7444. PROVINCIAL ACHIEVEMENT TEST DATES Wednesday,
May 26 Thursday,
May 27 Friday,
May 28 Monday,
June 14 Wednesday,
June 16 Thursday,
June 17 Friday,
June 18 Monday,
June 21 Tuesday,
June 22 Wednesday,
June 23 |
