Sports Day Gratitude!
We’re excited to share that our OHS Olympic Sports and Activity Day yesterday, June 26, was a huge hit! The day was full of fun and excitement as our students took part in various activities celebrating the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris. From the common lunchtime to the school assembly and the parents vs. teachers tug-of-war (which teachers finally won for once – sort of), the energy was amazing. Each grade proudly wore their designated Olympic ring color and looked great in their grade groups. The BINGO cards were a big success, helping students keep track of the stations they visited. A huge thank you goes out to our wonderful parent volunteers for making this day possible. Your time, effort, and dedication ensured our students had a blast. Thanks again to all the parents and community members who supported us. We’re looking forward to more fun and active events in the future!
Grade 6 Farewell a Great Send-Off!
Gratitude to all involved for organizing and executing an outstanding Grade 6 farewell ceremony. The collective effort, creativity, and dedication resulted in a truly remarkable event. Parents, thank you for your support and involvement, as your contributions were instrumental in making this ceremony a success. Teachers, your meticulous planning and guidance ensured that every aspect of the event was executed flawlessly. Lastly, to our incredible students, thank you for your enthusiasm and participation, which brought the ceremony to life. Together, we created a memorable farewell experience that will be cherished forever. All the best in your new adventures!
Staffing Updates for the 2024-25 School Year
As we approach the end of the school year, we wanted to share some important staffing updates for the 2024-25 school year. We have several staff members who will be leaving us and new faces joining our team.
Departing Staff
Support Staff:
· Diane Taylor - Casual Administrative E Secretary: Thank you, Diane, for supporting us through the end of the year.
Temporary Teachers:
· Barb Dressel - Thank you for supporting our Grade 1 students while Ms. Yannitsos has been on leave.
· Jenny Song - Thank you for supporting our Grade 5 students while Ms. Ross has been on leave.
· Hamreet Gill - Thank you for supporting our Grade 3 students while Mr. Glenney has been on leave.
· Jessica Babuik - Thank you for supporting our Grade 2 students while Ms. Bremner has been on leave. Congratulations on securing a contract at Queen Elizabeth School for Grade 2/3 next year!
Continuous Teachers:
· Dominique Borelli - Joining Vincent Massey School as a Grade 7 teacher.
· Kelly Riegert - Joining Twelve Mile Coulee School as the Resource/Student Services Learning Leader.
· Adam Eakins - Joining Capitol Hill School as Principal.
· Tonia Meier - Heading off on a new adventure in life but will still do some be subbing for CBE.
· Jennifer Schoenberger - Embarking on a new adventure, traveling the world.
We are grateful for the contributions and dedication of these staff members and wish them all the best in their future endeavors.
Joining Staff
We are excited to welcome the following new members to our Olympic Heights School family:
· Christine Hanas - Joining our main office as Administrative E Secretary.
· Erika Craft - Joining our Grade 5 teaching team.
· Gemma Epp - Joining our Grade 6 teaching team.
· Alicia Scherman – Taking over our PE responsibilities.
· Jessica Halsall - Joining our Kindergarten team.
We look forward to the new energy and expertise they will bring to our school community.
Accessing Online Report Cards through MyCBE
Families will be able to view online student report cards until July 26, 2024. Report cards for the 2023-24 school year may be viewed, downloaded and/or printed by families. Parents and Guardians can sign in to MyCBE to view student information, including report cards, comments from your child’s teacher, assignments and grades, and attendance information. For best access to information, log in to the MyCBE portal instead of using the PowerSchool App.
Moving Modular Classrooms
The school has received some emails regarding the removal of the four modular classrooms to help ease space concerns at over-utilized schools. It is important to understand that this is a system decision to relieve pressure at schools and communities with overcrowded buildings by relocating unused or available modular classrooms to other CBE schools. While Olympic Heights School will lose modular classrooms, it will not leave us with any space challenges for the 2024-25 school year and the following school years.
Our school was fortunate to receive portables when our population exceeded our capacity. Now that our school population has decreased and levelled off, we can help alleviate pressures elsewhere. Our four modulars will be going to a school that is at 136 per cent capacity with students being overflowed and taking transit to other schools over 20 minutes away. This proactive step is in response to the extraordinary and rapid growth in Calgary that is causing many schools to face space pressures. The CBE strives at a system level to keep school utilization rates around 85 per cent capacity. Schools below 85 per cent capacity to not receive full operations and maintenance funding from the province. The decision to relocate the four classrooms is expected to take our school utilization rate from 75 per cent to 92 per cent, maintaining some room for future enrolment growth.
Right now, CBE is working with engineering consultants to complete design work. We expect the modulars will begin to be relocated in late fall, with a target completion in early 2025. Once the modulars are removed, the area will be covered to be used as a part of the schoolyard again. As this work progresses, you will be updated with more information. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact accomodation@cbe.ab.ca.
Back to School Information
As we prepare for the upcoming school year, we want to inform our community that all Back to School information for the 2024-25 school year is available on our website at https://olympicheights.cbe.ab.ca/back-to-school. This webpage will be regularly updated with the latest details regarding students' return at the end of August. Please note that class placements and teacher assignments will not be finalized until the end of August. Families can expect to receive a welcome email from their child's teacher the day before classes begin on August 29. Additionally, please be reminded that the main office will be closed from June 28 at 12:00 PM through August 26 at 10:30 AM.
School Council | Wishing Our School Community a Wonderful Summer
On behalf of OHS School Council, we’d like to extend our warmest wishes to all families for a safe, relaxing, and fun-filled summer break, as the school year comes to a close. We hope you enjoy this time to unwind and create beautiful memories.
We’re also excited to announce the School Council roles and committee members for next school year. We have a wonderful group of parents who’ve stepped forward for the upcoming year and, as always, the more, the merrier, so please reach out to chair@ohsparent.com or to any of the parents below if you’re at all interested or curious about getting involved.
o Chair – Tori Wright
o Vice Chair – Alannah Turcott
o Treasurer – Katrina Ducs
o Secretary – Candace Van Acker
o Key Communicator – Sumantra Ghosh
o Volunteer Coordinators – Liana Phoenix, Nada Dasuki
o Fundraising Chair - Jane Radiff (Committee: Shaelyn Woods and Haley Shultz)
o Special Events – Laura Osadetz, Krista Leonty (Committee: Shadi Dayyani)
o Fun Lunch Coordinators – Michelle Herbst, Jane Radiff
o Kiss and Drop Coordinator – Michelle Herbst
o Communications Committee – Susan McInnis, Amanda Ghosh, Jenna Robertson
We’re looking forward to another fantastic year of collaboration and community building.
Enjoy the summer, and we’ll see you all in the fall.
Upcoming Dates
June 28 Appeals Day / Org. Day – Office closes at 12:00 PM
July 1 – Aug. 28 Summer Break
Aug. 26 Office re-opens for registrations @ 10:30 AM
Aug. 29 First day of classes for 2024-25 school year