The Symmes-D’Arcy Bouge Bouge Coast to Coast Challenge is being implemented in Physical Education class and begins today May 10th and runs until June 4, 2021.

During this time students will participate in physical activity each class to help our school virtually run from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia to Victoria, British Columbia.  

Along the approximately 6,600 kilometer journey, students will have the opportunity to learn about our beautiful country, discover unique fitness opportunities in each province, compete against other classes, win prizes and best of all have fun being physically active. 

For more information consult your Physical Education teacher or email jwhite@wqsb.qc.ca

Parents, Guardians & Students,

Earlier this afternoon, Premier Legault announced a number of revisions to the Covid-19 Sanitary Measures that are in place for our schools and centres. Below is a summary of the measures which take effect on Monday, May 10:

Schools and Centres in MRC Papineau and MRC Vallée de Gatineau (Region 07-A) will move from Red Zone Special Measures to Red Zone Measures

• Elementary Schools will reopen for in-school classes
• High Schools reopen with rotating schedules for students in secondary III, IV, and V
• Adult Education and Vocational Education Centres will reopen
• Schools and Centres these measures apply to:
  • – Maniwaki Woodland School
  • – Namur Intermediate School
  • – Queen Elizabeth Elementary School
  • – Maniwaki Adult Education and Vocational Training Centre

Schools and Centres in MRC Pontiac, MRC des Collines, and City of Gatineau (Region 07-B) will remain under Red Zone Special Measures with some modifications

• Elementary Schools will reopen for in-school classes
• High Schools remain closed; students will continue with distance learning
• Adult Education and Vocational Education Centres remain closed; students will continue with distance learning where possible
• Schools and Centres these measures apply to:
  • – Buckingham Elementary School
  • – Chelsea Elementary School
  • – Dr. S.E. McDowell Elementary School
  • – Dr. Wilbert Keon School
  • – Eardley Elementary School
  • – Greater Gatineau Elementary School
  • – Lord Aylmer Elementary School
  • – Onslow Elementary School
  • – Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School
  • – Poltimore Elementary School
  • – St. John’s Elementary School
  • – South Hull Elementary School
  • – Wakefield Elementary School
  • – D’Arcy McGee High School
  • – Hadley Junior High School
  • – Philemon Wright High School
  • – Pontiac High School
  • – St. Mike’s High School
  • – Symmes Junior High School
  • – Hull Adult Education Centre
  • – Pontiac Continuing Education Centre
  • – Western Quebec Career Centre

Schools in Region 08 (Abitibi-Témiscamingue) will move from Orange Zone Measures to Yellow Zone Measures

• All schools and centres in region 08 will be open for in-school classes
• Schools and Centres these measures apply to:
  • – G. Théberge School
  • – Golden Valley School
  • – Noranda School
  • – Anishnabe Adult Education Centre
  • – Western Quebec Continuing Education Centre in Val d’Or

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication

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
• The cases that were previously reported have all been resolved

Online Safely Webinar

• I have attached the slides that were presented by the WQSB earlier this week during a webinar regarding online safety
• LINK

ARC Calendar Competition

• The WQSB’s Anti-Racism and Community Building Group (ARC) is inviting student submissions for a calendar competition
• Here is a link to a video that we will be sharing with our students on Monday morning:
• https://vimeo.com/543735573

• I have also attached a flyer with more details including how to enter

Please remember that due to the extended emergency measures for our region, our school remains closed next week.  We remain incredibly proud of our students as they navigate the challenges with online learning. We are very hopeful that we will all be able to return to in-person learning soon.

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, and Adult and Vocational Education Students,

Earlier this afternoon, Premier François Legault announced that all schools and centres in the Outaouais region will remain closed through to the end of the day on Friday, May 7. As a result of this directive, all Outaouais schools and centres will maintain distance learning, and are scheduled to reopen to students on Monday, May 10th.

Please take note that these measures do not apply to WQSB schools and centres located in region 08, as they will maintain in-school learning; namely:

• G. Théberge School
• Golden Valley School
• Noranda School
• Anishnabe Adult Education Centre
• Western Québec Continuing Education Centre in Val d’Or

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication

Good Afternoon,

At a press conference earlier this afternoon, Premier François Legault announced that the emergency measures currently in effect for schools in the Outaouais region will continue through to Friday, April 30. Given this directive, schools will not reopen until Monday, May 3. Schools and centres will continue to maintain their schedules through distance learning.

Please take note that these measures do not apply to Western Quebec schools located in region 08 (Abitibi-Témiscamingue); namely:

• G. Théberge School
• Golden Valley School
• Noranda School
• Anishnabe Adult Education Centre
• Western Quebec Continuing Education Centre in Val d’Or

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication

Babysitters Course, Workouts with Lime Fitness and more to come

click here to sign up

Dear parents, guardians, and adult/vocational education students,

Earlier this afternoon, Premier Legault announced the following measures, which will be put in place as outlined below:

• All schools currently under red-zone measures will maintain the measures up to and including Friday, April 23; these schools and centres will continue with distance learning, as they have been since April 12
• Beginning Thursday, April 15, all WQSB schools in the Outaouais region will have the same red-zone emergency measures imposed on them and therefore, will be closed and will begin distance learning, which will continue up to and including Friday, April 23
• All schools following distance learning will do so as outlined below:
  • – Secondary Schools: follow their regular schedules via distance learning
  • – Elementary Schools: distance learning as determined by the individual schools; parents will be advised by school administration
  • – Adult Education and Vocational Training Centres will be online/distance learning
• Please note that the red-zone measures do not apply to our schools in Region 08, namely: G. Théberge School, Golden Valley School, Noranda School, the Western Quebec Continuing Education Centre in Val-d’Or, and the Anishnabe Adult Education Centre

A reminder as well to all that due to the scheduled teacher strike on Wednesday, April 14, all Western Quebec schools will offer distance education for all elementary and secondary students.

The Western Québec School Board remains committed to keeping all stakeholders as up-to-date as possible. While recognizing the fact that there have been many measures and consequently letters with updates such as this one, it is fundamentally important that you have the information regarding directives and measures as soon as we are able to provide it. Please note that all of our communications are available our westernquebec.ca website; the most current memos and letters are featured on the main page as a large red banner.

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication

Dear parents, guardians, and adult and vocational education students,

On April 14 from 12:01 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., teachers in Québec are planning to exercise their right to strike to express their dissatisfaction with the way in which the negotiations of their collective agreement with the government are unfolding.

As most of our students are transported by school buses which often make several trips to several schools, this strike will have major repercussions on bus schedules and daycare services in the morning. Therefore, on April 14, Western Quebec schools will offer distance education for all elementary and secondary students. In addition, all Adult Education and Vocational Training centres will be distance learning. Distance learning will begin at 9:45 a.m. on the 14th. This decision aims to avoid logistical confusion that could compromise the health and safety of students. In addition, schools will not be able to accommodate students without the supervision required to comply with Public Health Directives.

All daycares, with the exception of the emergency daycare at Lord Aylmer Senior Campus, will be closed on April 14, 2021. The emergency daycare will open at 9:45 a.m. on April 14, 2021.

Sincerely,

Mike Dubeau, Director General

Ruth Ahern, Assistant Director General

Dear Families,

I hope you are doing well.

Here is some information for this week:

Covid-19 Update

• We currently have TWO active cases in our school

Emergency Measures

• I have attached the letter from the WQSB detailing the school closure for next week
• I have attached the hybrid schedule for grades 9, 10 & 11 students that we will follow once we return to in-person learning
• We are committed to supporting your children academically during this time
• All classes will continue virtually and will start on time
• If your child is going to be absent from a class, please inform our attendance secretary Ms. Jessica Pilon (jpilon@wqsb.qc.ca)

Invitation for Tutoring

• We are offering some free tutoring opportunities for interested students
• If you would like to book a timeslot, please click the following link:

Grade 11 Feedback

• Earlier this week, all grade 11 students were emailed a form to complete
• The purpose of this form is to gather feedback and ideas on how we can celebrate their achievements during some end-of-year activities
• These activities will be separate from their final year-end celebration
• As I’m sure you all understand, we will not be able to hold a traditional graduation ceremony given the ongoing circumstances related to Covid-19
• Our planning has begun to organize a memorable experience for students and families
• We will communicate with all of you as we get closer to June

Other Information

• Parents are encouraged to go on MS Teams with your child to see posted work/assignments/deadlines
• I accidentally sent the wrong link to our school website last week – sorry! Here is the correct link:

• Friday April 16^th is a PD day – no virtual classes

We realize that the recent changes and disruptions to educational services can be difficult for students and families.  Please reach out to us if there is anything we can do to support you during this time. 

I hope you are all able to enjoy some sunshine this weekend.

Take care,

Tara Laine

Principal

Symmes Junior High School/D’Arcy McGee High School

819-684-7472 x 437001

Students, Parents & Guardians,

Earlier this evening, Premier Legault announced that the emergency measures for Gatineau and MRC des Collines have been extended through to April 18. As a result of this announcement, schools listed below will maintain distance learning up to and including Friday, April 16.

• Buckingham Elementary School
• Chelsea Elementary School
• D’Arcy McGee High School
• Eardley Elementary School
• Greater Gatineau Elementary School
• Hadley Junior High School
• Hull Adult Education Centre
• Lord Aylmer Elementary School
• Onslow Elementary School
• Philemon Wright High School
• Pierre Elliot Trudeau Elementary School
• Poltimore Elementary School
• South Hull Elementary School
• St. Mike’s High School
• Symmes Junior High School
• Wakefield Elementary School
• Western Quebec Career Centre

Extended Measures

• Secondary students at the above-listed schools will maintain their schedules through distance education
• Elementary students at the above-listed schools will have learning activities and schedules determined by individual schools
• Students at the Western Quebec Career Centre and the Hull Adult Education Centre will maintain their schedules through distance education

Students at all other WQSB schools (except for Maniwaki Woodland, whose parents have been advised of a specific measure) will move forward with the revised measures that were announced on April 6; please refer to the Measures Applicable From Monday April 12 Onward memo located on the WQSB website, to obtain the details of these measures.

Sincerely,

George Singfield
Secretary General and Director of Corporate Services & Communication