News from Vanier - August 24-28

Dear Vanier students and families:

Almighty God:
We give you our school.
We give you all the teachers and staff who work here.
We give you all the children who study here.
We pray our school would be place of great discovery, adventure and creativity.
May it be a place where we love to learn and where we learn to love,
A place where everyone is respected and all are deeply valued.
We ask all this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

It has been a wonderful few days welcoming our students back into the building.  Our priorities have been focused on ensuring students feel safe and supported, building a sense of welcoming community within each class, and establishing the new health and safety routines.

We have been accommodating schedule changes for our Grade 10 through 12 students and, now that those have settled down, we are turning our attentions to commencing the academic program in each class.  Most teachers are now setting up their online classes in MS Teams and students should start being able to access those in the next days.

An online program is not required for our Grade 8 and 9 classes at this time, although we hope – sooner rather than later – to get all our students logged in to the portal so they can access all the software and communication tools to supplement the in-class learning.

This week at a glance:

Monday, August 24th

• Day 1 (for Senior School)

Tuesday, August 25th

• Day 2 (for Senior School)

Wednesday, August 26th

• Day 1 (for Senior School)
• X block = Period 1 (for Junior School)
• Class of 2020 Cap and Gown @ 6:30 pm – this is not a public event, but will be livestreamed for those who wish to view it.

Thursday, August 27th

• Day 2 (for Senior School)

Friday, August 28th

• Day 1 (for Senior School)

 
Covid-19 precautions

Our public health officials in Yukon have been constantly repeating the “safe six” precautions for addressing the Covid 19 pandemic.  You can see our operational plans here: https://www.vcss.ca/covid-19.html
At Vanier, we have been focusing heavily on the first three of these:

1. Maintain physical distancing – keep 2 metres (6 feet) away from everyone who’s not a member of your social bubble.
   
   In situations where physical distancing is not possible, masks are highly recommended.  We will eventually be supplying each student with reusable masks.  Until then, we have disposable masks available in many classrooms or in the front office.
   
   
2. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
   
   Hand sanitizing stations are located in many areas of the school and we require students to wash or sanitize their hands every time they move to a new room.
   
   
3. Stay home if you're feeling sick.
   
   Here is a bit more information about the symptoms of Covid-19 to watch for.  There are places you can turn to for advice on whether to attend school or when to return after feeling sick:
   • Yukon.ca has an online assessment tool.
   • Calling 8-1-1 will connect you to a medical professional.
   • Call your family physician for advice.
   • Phone the Respiratory Assessment Centre at 393-3083

 
Welcome to our new and returning staff!

• JD Caudle has returned from his parental leave.
• Bill Willoughby has also returned from his parental leave.
• Jolene Campbell, Counsellor, is with us for the year filling in for Ms. Ouellette who is on an educational leave
• Meghann Meadowcroft, Art, is back with us this year after spending a year at Holy Family Elementary
• Jody Peters, Music, is with us for the year filling in for Ms. Hart who is on an educational leave
• Colleen Segriff, Transitions 8 & 9, Scimatics 8, is with us for the year and comes, most recently, from Eliza van Bibber School in Pelly Crossing
• Joe Calnan, Industrial Arts, is replacing Mr. Tait who retired at the end of last year.  He taught most recently near Kingston, ON.
• Alethea Wallace, Vice-principal, replaces Ms. Gallant who is now the principal of Christ the King Elementary.  Ms. Wallace comes to us most recently from JV Clark school in Mayo and has also been a school principal in Alberta.

Please don’t hesitate to reply to this email or call the school at 667-5901 if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
​
Ryan Sikkes, principal and Alethea Wallace, vice-principal