The Weekly – Friday, September 23, 2022

On By Havergal Upper School

Dear Upper School Families:

We are excited to have our entire Senior School out on trips last week and our Grade 7s returning from Kilcoo today. It has been such a pleasure to hear the stories from the trip and get feedback from the students. 

Today’s edition contains updates on the following: 

Best regards,

Cissy Goodridge, Head of Middle School 

Deirdre Timusk, Head of Senior School 

Latest News and Updates

Magnus Health – Updating Your Child’s Health Information

This is a reminder to have parents complete updating their child’s health information in Magnus Health by TODAY, September 23, 2022 so that we can ensure that we have the most up-to-date information for our athletic teams, excursions, food services etc. You can access Magnus Health from the Parent Portal by clicking on the Update My Child’s Health Information button  located on all of the landing pages, or under the My Household menu in the navigation bar. 

Important News about Online Learning Graduation Requirement

Havergal has opted out of the government requirement for mandatory online learning for our students. Please learn more about what this means by clicking on the letter from Dr. Samson below. If you would like your child to opt in to mandatory online learning credits you will find the “opt in” link at the top of the Parent Portal (note that this link will only be available to Parents with students in Grades 9-12). The link is live until October 7th. . PPM 167 Communication to Parents

Celebration Saturday, September 24, 2022

We are looking forward to seeing everyone at Celebration Saturday – a fundraiser for our wonderful Community Partners.  Join us on Saturday, September 24 from 9:00am – 1:00pm for House and Grade games, House Stalls, a Junior School midway, BBQ, Marketplace, a Silent Auction and more.  We hope to see you there!

Truth and Reconciliation Week, September 26 – September 30, 2022

The Havergal community is invited to recognize Truth and Reconciliation Week and Orange Shirt Day during the week of September 26. Orange Shirt Day is designed to promote understanding that every child matters and to commemorate the residential school tragedy, honour the journey of survivors and their families, and commit to the ongoing process of reconciliation. We will be sharing the purpose of the day, in developmentally appropriate ways, both in class and through other venues throughout the week. Students are invited to wear orange shirts on Friday, September 30. The following are Orange Shirt Day Retailers. When purchasing a shirt from one of these, the proceeds directly support Indigenous organisations and communities. Activities for the week will be published in the weekly announcements and will include: Meet the Student TRC council, Leadership Workshop with Mr. Nichols, Faceless Dolls Project with Mme. De Cecco, and more to come. On Thursday, we will have an Upper School Assembly with Riley Yesno, an Anishinaabe scholar (UofT), writer and advocate. Interested students are invited to sign up in advance to take part in a deeper discussion with Riley Yesno. Student sign up is available in the weekly announcements.

MS Gator Games

The Middle School Gator Games will take place on Thursday, September 29 from 5:30 – 7:30 pm. This event is a great opportunity to play some low organisational games with your child and meet other families in the Middle School. After a warm-up and two games sessions there will be some finger foods and drinks to enjoy with all participants. The event is run by the Sports Prefects and Sports Council and promises to be an entertaining afternoon of friendly competition and laughter! A registration email was sent on Wednesday, September 21st from Carla Di Filippo. The registration link can also be found HERE. If you have any questions please email Carla Di Filippo.

Unsanctioned Semis

It has recently come to our attention that there is a grade 9 unsanctioned semi-formal dance taking place this weekend at the Luxy Club in Vaughan. Please note that this is not a Havergal College sanctioned event. There will be no Havergal College staff supervision. We encourage you to speak to your child regarding safe partying and the possible risks of attending an unsupervised event. We are not able to vouch for any procedures or measures that may be in place at that event.

These events happen throughout the year and we can not guarantee that we will be able to let you know about each unsanctioned event. Havergal College will be hosting a Middle School dance on Friday, November 4, a COSSOT event (TBD) for Grade 9 and 10 students on Friday, November 18, a Grade 11/12 semi formal on Friday, January 27 and our Grade 12 Formal on Friday, May 26. 

Class of 2023 Grad Family Breakfast – RSVP Tonight!

Grade 12 students and their parents or guardians are invited to the Class of 2023 Grad Family Breakfast on Friday, September 30 at 7:30 am. This is a celebration that signifies the beginning of a special year for both the Grads and their families. If one or both parents/guardians are unable to attend, students may invite another significant adult in their life. Students are asked to wear #1 Dress for the breakfast and may change into their orange shirts for Orange Shirt Day after the event. Deadline to RSVP is midnight tonight!

Athletics Updates – Schedule Information

Fall sports have started! Team rosters will be set by Sept. 26. You can find the fall athletics schedule on Veracross (click on the “Athletics Calendar”). As well, once rosters are made, the team and its schedule will appear on students’ Veracross home page. As always, you can use THIS SCHEDULE as well (I highly suggest to “favourite” this document). We welcome spectators to home games. Come support your Gators! 

Performing Arts Updates

Registration for all Upper School Performing Arts will be closing at the end of today. The director will be in touch with the participants soon about their first rehearsal.

Health Centre Updates

Please be advised that after illness or testing positive for COVID, students are able to return 24 hours after symptoms have improved (48 hours if symptoms are Gastro-Intestinal – GI – related). Students and employees are advised to wear a mask for 10 days after the onset of symptoms, and try to maintain distance when taking masks off and eating.

University Counselling Updates

University Visits: Universities have already started their visits to our school this week as both Notre Dame and UBC came to talk to our senior students. Please make sure you check out the University Visits page on the Guidance Portal to keep up to date on all of the upcoming visits.

International University Fair: Please join us in the BRH on Thursday, September 29th from 6:30 – 8:30 pm to meet with schools from the UK and USA. 

The Art and Design Schools Portfolio Day: Appleby College: Thursday, September 29th – 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about university portfolio requirements and share with university admissions professionals examples of their work for feedback. 

Special Recordings & Presentations: As promised on People & Program Night, here are some resources that are helpful regarding university applications:

Forum for Change Updates

Earth Prize

The Earth Prize is an annual $200,000 environmental sustainability competition for students around the world between the ages of 13 and 19 that rewards the teams whose projects and ideas have the most potential to address environmental issues. As part of the competition, participants get access to mentorship by university students from top universities around the world and exclusive learning content covering key environmental sustainability concepts and featuring young environmental change-makers from around the world. 

Interested students can create a team and come to the Forum for Change to help register. 

Duke of Edinburgh

Have you heard about the Duke of Edinburgh awards? It is an international award program for participants ages 14-24 that aids in building confidence, gaining teamwork skills, and developing resilience and problem solving abilities.

There will be a Duke of Edinburgh Information Session for students on Monday October 3rd during lunch (12-1pm) in the Ellen Knox library. If you think this would be a good opportunity for your child please encourage them to attend. All students are welcome. Registration for Duke of Edinburgh will close on October 10th. We hope to see your child(ren) there!

HCPA Updates

We still need volunteers for Celebration Saturday!  Click HERE to sign up.

The Silent Auction is Live!  Sign up in advance and bid now! We have some great items on the block such as HC Front Row Seats, tickets, and more.

Shop for litterless lunch bags at  Colibri – select Havergal College in drop down. Deadline Oct 3rd. 

Don’t forget the Gator Games Tug of War between the Grads and their parents at 11:10am on Saturday!!

Request from our Neighbours

Some of our neighbours have contacted us with concerns that members of our community are making illegal and dangerous u-turns on our surrounding streets; as well as mounting the sidewalks and driving on lawns. Traffic on Avenue Road and surrounding residential streets is exceptionally busy, especially at drop-off and pick-up. Please drive safely and courteously. Thank you!

Next Week at a Glance

Mon. Sept. 26 Boarder Prayers

Tue. Sept. 27 InterHouse Games in morning

Wed. Sept 28 MS and SS Club-Affinity-Alliance-Community Partners Fair

Thu. Sept 29 Truth & Reconciliation Assembly

Fri. Sept 30 Orange Shirt Dress Down Day

Fri. Sept 30 Grad/Family Breakfast @ 7:30 am 

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