Welcome to all our new students who will be attending D’Arcy McGee and Symmes Jr. High for the first time. Since we cannot visit in person please take the virtual tour and get to know our awesome school.

Dear Families,

I hope you are all doing well. 

We want to first acknowledge the terrible tragedy that was discovered earlier this week on the grounds of the Kamloops Residential School in BC.  The senseless deaths of 215 innocent children has once again made us pause to reflect on the steps we can take to inch forwards along the path of reconciliation.  Our flags were lowered this week in memory of these young lives.

It was a very busy week – here is some information:

Covid-19 Update

• We currently have ONE active case of Covid-19 in our school

Vaccine Update

• I have attached some updated information to this email
• Students who are voluntarily receiving the first dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine must pre=register through Clic-Sante
• ( https://clients3.clicsante.ca/67026/take-appt )
• You must indicate the date of the vaccine (Symmes = June 14^th, D’Arcy = June 15^th)
• I have also attached the consent form for students aged 12-13 – please have your child return this to office 126 or email a digital copy to jpilon@wqsb.qc.ca
• In order to organize transportation and student supervision, we asked students to complete a form to let us know if they were planning to take the bus to the vaccination site – this was NOT a consent form and is being used for logistical planning purposes only
• Once we have a full picture of how many students will receive their vaccine through the school campaign, we will create our plan for the students who are remaining at school – I will communicate this with you next week

Heat in Schools – Virtual School Days

• Due to the extreme heat in the upcoming forecast, the WQSB has decided to close our school next Monday and Tuesday
• Students will participate in online learning and will follow their regular timetable as they did during previous school closures
• I have attached a letter from the WQSB to this email

Non-Teaching Professionals Strike

• As I communicated last week, the non-teaching professionals are exercising their right to strike on Wednesday June 9^th until 11:59am
• Because of our Wednesday schedule, periods 1, 2 & 3 have been CANCELLED
• Period 4 will proceed online

Summer School

• Please read the attached summer school documents
• If your child needs to go to summer school in order to be promoted to the next grade or in order to obtain a graduation requirement, we will reach out to you AFTER final marks have been calculated at the end of June

Library Books and Textbooks

• Please take a look at home to see if your child has any un-returned library and or text books that need to be brought back to the school
• They will have a barcode on the spine and a school stamp inside the book – we appreciate your help with the retrieval of these resources

Again – students are to remain home on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week due to the heat and the strike action.  We look forward to welcoming them back in-person on Thursday.

I hope you all have a restful weekend.

Take care,

Tara Laine

Principal

D’Arcy McGee High School ~ Symmes Junior High School 819-684-7472 x 437001

We have received information regarding the Covid-19 vaccination campaign for our students.

Please take note of the following:

• Students who will receive the Covid-19 vaccine through the school’s partnership with the health sector will travel by bus from the school to the Palais de Congres in Hull

• The date for all Symmes students to receive their vaccine will be AFTER LUNCH on MONDAY JUNE 14^th
• The date for all D’Arcy students to receive their vaccine will be AFTER LUNCH on TUESDAY JUNE 15^th

• I will be sending information out in the coming days about registering your child through Clic-Sante https://portal3.clicsante.ca/ 
• Parents will need to register their child through this portal but the “SCHOOL VACCINATIONS” tab is NOT yet active

I have attached the following documents to this email:

• Vaccine Information from the WQSB
• Q & A flyer from the Province
• Consent form for students age 12-13
• If you consent for your child to receive the first dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine, please compete the form and send the HARD COPY to school with your child – drop off in office 126 (Ms. Pilon – Attendance) OR email the completed form to jpilon@wqsb.qc.ca
• Please return the consent forms AS SOON AS POSSIBLE so that we can organize transportation

Additional Important Information:

• Students that are age 14+ will provide consent at the vaccination site
• The vaccine is not mandatory
• If your child is not participating in the school vaccination program, no action needs to be taken on your part
• Parents can choose to register their child independently and take them to the appointment themselves
• If your child is going to receive their vaccination through this campaign, they will be required to travel by school bus both to AND from the vaccination site – we are unable to coordinate students being dropped off or picked up
• Students MUST bring their medical card on the day of their vaccination

I will be reminding parents of this information and the procedures again in my Friday update.

Take care,  

Tara Laine

Principal

D’Arcy McGee High School ~ Symmes Junior High School

819-684-7472 x 437001

Every year the Symmes English Department asks the grade 8 students for short stories to be entered into the Symmes Selections Writing Contest. Here are the winners and the finalists in the competition CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL

The Winners

(in no particular order) are

The Monster by Xavier Brulé

A Ride To Remember by Anneka Schindel

The Plunge by Aili McNamara

The Finalists

(in no particular order) are

The Scaffold by Madeleine Walsh

A Forever Glow by Madison Tite

Hakuna Matata – The Alternate Ending by Cassandra Mantha

Dear Families,

I hope you are all doing well.

Here is some information for this week:

Covid-19 Update

• We currently have ZERO active cases of Covid-19 in our school

Vaccinations

• We were informed today that students will be bused to the Palais de Congres for Covid-19 vaccinations
• We do not yet know the dates for our students
• We expect to receive this information as well as consent forms for our students aged 12-13 in the coming days
• It is our understanding that students aged 14-17 will give their own consent at the vaccination centre
• As soon as I receive any additional information, I will share it with our community

Summer School

• WQSB is once again offering Summer School courses
• The full list of courses will be released next week and I will share the information at that time

Non-Teaching Professionals Strike

• On Wednesday June 9^th, the non-teaching professionals will again exercise their right to strike
• As a result, the WQSB has announced that schools will be closed until 12pm on June 7^th
• Because of our Wednesday schedule, periods 1, 2 & 3 will be cancelled and period 4 will be delivered virtually
• I have attached a letter from the WQSB to this email

Graduation Events

• We are looking forward to celebrating the achievements of our graduating class on Friday June 25^th
• Please expect to receive an invitation along with additional details next week
• Please understand that in compliance with the WQSB and Public Health, this will be an outdoor, drive-through event with designated time-slots for each grade 11 class
• We are confident that while this will not be a traditional graduation experience, it will be a memorable event for our students and their families

Please remember that starting on Monday May 31^st, all of our students at both Symmes and D’Arcy will attend school in-person, every day.

Have a great weekend!

Tara Laine

Principal

Symmes Junior High School/D’Arcy McGee High School

819-684-7472 x 437001

Dear Families,

I hope you are all doing well.

We were so happy to welcome our students back this week!  The students quickly adjusted to the routines of being in school and we were able to pick up right where we left off.

Here is some information for this week:

Covid-19 Update

• We currently have ZERO active cases of Covid-19 in our school

Vaccinations

• It was announced this week that adolescents between the ages of 12-17 in the province of Quebec will be eligible for Covid-19 vaccines
• These vaccinations will be conducted through a partnership between the health and education sectors
• I’ve attached a letter from the WQSB regarding this vaccination campaign
• Please expect more details to come soon – right now we do not know when these vaccines will be scheduled or the process that will be followed

Recent Provincial Announcements

• There were announcements this week regarding the emergency measures currently in place
• I will be participating in WQSB level meetings next week to learn how this will impact schools for the remainder of this year and next year
• I will share details following these meetings in my update next week

Graduation Events

• We are looking forward to celebrating the achievements of our graduating class at the end of June
• We have been working hard to plan a memorable event and have been consulting with our grade 11 students for their input, ideas and suggestions
• We were informed last night that unfortunately Public Health has not given their approval to have gatherings to celebrate graduations
• We know that the government has announced their “de-confinement” plans, but none of these plans account for gatherings for graduations
• The WQSB’s official recommendation is to have events similar to the end-of-year events that we hosted last year (outdoor, drive-by events)
• We will be discussing graduation events in detail with the WQSB next week and I will share with you any new information I receive
• For now, please save June 25^th as the day that we will recognize the amazing accomplishments of our grads
• There will be more details to come as we continue following the changing landscape
• Please be patient and know that we are doing everything we can to organize something great for our students – it is difficult to plan and share information as this situation is constantly evolving

Heat in School

• This was a hot week!
• We do not have air-conditioning in our building which makes for uncomfortable conditions for students and staff
• It was announced last night that we were allowed to have fans in classrooms – before today, we had not been allowed due to Covid-19 protocols
• We have set up fans in almost every classroom and have ordered additional fans for the remaining classrooms
• We will also be installing a cold water station in the portables
• Please remind your child to bring a full water bottle to school every day and to stay hydrated – students are not able to access water fountains due to Covid-19 protocols and must use the water re-fill stations we have in the building instead

Please remember that Monday May 24^th is a holiday and the school will be closed.

I hope you all have a wonderful long weekend!

Tara Laine

Principal

Symmes Junior High School/D’Arcy McGee High School

819-684-7472 x 437001

Dear Parents and Guardians,

The provincial government has announced that it will begin the vaccination of adolescents aged between 12 and 17 years old. This campaign will involve a partnership between the health and education sectors. WQSB administration is presently meeting with the health sectors in Regions 07 and 08 to plan the vaccinations of our students. Region 08 principals have already begun planning with CISSSAT (Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de l’Abitibi-Témiscamingue). Planning for Region 07 schools is slated to begin before the end of next week.

Please note that as detailed vaccination information becomes available, you will be advised. For your reference, please see the link below from the Québec Opération Vaccination Covid-19 website, as it provides an overview of the vaccination process for 12-17 year-old adolescents.

• More information on the Quebec Government Website

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication

Dear parents, guardians, adult and vocational education students,

The Fédération des professionnelles et professionnels de l’éducation (WQSB Education Professionals affiliated) has informed the Western Québec School Board of its intended strike action, scheduled to occur from 12:01 am to 11:59 am, on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

As a result of this strike action, morning classes will be cancelled at all Western Québec schools and centres. All schools and centres will resume classes at 12:01 via distance learning (as per individual school schedules).

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services and Communication

Dear Families,

I hope you are doing well.

Here are some updates for this week.

Covid-19 Update

·         We currently have ZERO active cases of Covid-19 in our school

Return to School

·         In-person teaching and learning will resume next week

·         Grade 9, 10 & 11 students will attend following a hybrid schedule (attached – the previous version had a small typo, please discard and use this one instead)

·         Grade 7 & 8 students will attend every day

Safety Procedures and Protocols

·         Students will use the same designated entry points that they used prior to the school closure period

·         We will continue to provide medical masks to students

·         You may choose to purchase your own medical masks for your children – this is fine, but NO CLOTH masks will be permitted

·         Students and staff are required to be masked at all times while in our building or on school property

·         Please continue to monitor your child for symptoms and do not send them to school if they are not feeling well

·         I have attached the symptom protocol to this email

Non-Teaching Professionals Strike

·         The WQSB non-teaching professionals will be exercising their right to strike next Wednesday, May 19^th – in the morning only

·         The WQSB has made the decision to cancel classes until noon on that day

·         Because of our Wednesday schedule, periods 1, 2 and 3 will be cancelled

·         Period 4 will be delivered to all students virtually

·         I have attached a letter from the WQSB regarding the strike to this email

“Getting Organized” Webinar

·         Connexions is hosting a free webinar on June 1 for parents and students to help them get organized for end of year evaluations

·         They will be offering tips and strategies on how to get organized, take notes, manage time and reduce stress

·         Please see the attached flyer for more details

We are really looking forward to welcoming everyone back into the building! This will be another period of transition for everyone, but we are confident that we will adjust quickly.  It will be a busy end to the academic year and we are committed to supporting our students.  Please reach out to us if there is anything we can do to help.

Take care and enjoy the weekend!

Tara Laine

Principal

Symmes Junior High School/D’Arcy McGee High School

819-684-7472 x 437001

Dear Parents, Guardians, Adult and Vocational Education Students,

Earlier today, Premier François Legault announced that the Outaouais region will move from Red Zone Special Measures to Red Zone Measures; the implemented changes will go into effect for our schools and centres on Monday, May 17; namely:

• Students who attend elementary schools will continue in-school learning as they have been since Monday, May 10
• Students who attend secondary schools in the Outaouais region will return to classes at school beginning on Monday, May 17; please note that students in secondary III, IV, and V will return to an alternating system, as was in place before the schools were closed
• Students who attend Adult Education and Vocational Training Centres will follow distance learning where possible; evaluations, workshops and labs will take place on site

Please note that there are no scheduling changes in any of our other schools or centres.

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication