The superintendent's update provides information on various events happening at different schools in the district in February. These include a family literacy night at Begbie, a town hall meeting about the budget at DPAC, a principal from Queen Mary's being selected as an outstanding principal, Greenest City community grants being announced, and celebrations of the Lunar New Year at Jamieson. It also lists upcoming events the superintendent will be attending, such as meetings at Templeton and Britannia and a visit to Tecumseh Elementary.
21. Upcoming events
• February 18 – met with the Superintendent of
Aboriginal Student Achievement, DeDe DeRose
at Templeton and Britannia
• February 19 – ACE-IT tour
• February 22 – Talking Stick Festival (Van Tech)
• February 25 – Visit to Tecumseh Elementary –
• February 27 – Pink Day (multiple events)
Editor's Notes
Britannia Secondary was recently the starting point for the kick off of Free the Children's  Give Where You Live educational program featuring Marc and Craig Kielburger. The new national program is designed to teach young people how to translate their passions and ideas for their community into real change.
On the evening of Thursday, February 7, parents were invited to Begbie Elementary where they got to view some of the fine work produced by their children. The Begbie Family and Literacy Night included a wide range of presentations, including singing, dancing, poetry, art work, and shoebox theatres.
On February 7th, DPAC held a public town hall meeting at Hamber Secondary to discuss budget issues and other matters of interest to parents in the school district. Congratulations to DPAC for hosting this informative event.
Queen Mary’s principal, Kathy O’Sullivan was selected by the National Selection Committee to be one of Canada’s Outstanding Principals, a prestigious award from The Learning Partnership. We wish Kathy congratulations on being recognized with this prestigious award. She is an exemplar for all outstanding principals. As a true ambassador of our system I know that our students, staff and colleagues join with all of us in expressing great admiration and appreciation for Kathy. She is a most deserving recipient as one of Canada's Outstanding Principals.
On February 7 th , With Chairperson Patti Bacchus, Mayor Gregor Roberstson, Vancouver Foundation President, Faye Wightman and staff and students. Where the Greenest City Community Grants were announced highlighting the grant for the Fresh Roots garden at Van Tech.
The Inside Out: Stories of Identity project aims to connect students from different parts of the city by showcasing their images and stories in various communities. On Friday, February 8, local firefighters helped Project Coordinator Angela Brown and Strathcona students post their stylized photo posters high above the play area at Strathcona Elementary.
Thinking about what you want to be in the future isn ’t always easy. But for future career planning, it can be very important. That’s why earlier this month, David Thompson’s entire Grade 8 class got to participate in a large career conference that featured dozens of guest panelists from industry sectors that ran the gambit from Fine Arts to Trades and Technology.
Friday, February 8, marked the final day of Gladstone ’s Hunger Games, a three day games-based extravaganza organized almost entirely by Gladstone's senior leadership students that encourages teamwork and philanthropy.
Lunar New Year is a very important time for many of our schools. This year, Jamieson Elementary hosted a moving and colourful assembly to mark the beginning of the Year of the Snake .
It is official. This month, Southlands Elementary was certified as an International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (PYP) World School. The certification comes after years of hard work by many VSB and school staff. It also marks the 1,000 th IB school in the world.
The TL annual winter conference was held at David Thompson Library on February 12. It featured guest speaker Eric Meyers, Assistant Professor at the School of Library, Archival and Information Studies (SLAIS) at UBC plus several workshops and a cajun cuisine!
District staff and trustees were treated to an informative morning at the new Musqueam community centre on Tuesday, February 12. We were welcomed by Chief Wayne Sparrow, Elder Bob Guerin, Mary Roberts, Freda Campbell, Faye Mitchell, Laara Mixon, April Campbell, and others. During the half-day event, the VSB was given an orientation to the history, traditions and protocols of the Musqueam people as well as an overview of the band ’s educational challenges and goals. The information provided, the tour of the archival area in the beautiful building and the food was greatly appreciated. Â
At Britannia, students and staff gathered in a circle on Wednesday, February 13 to feast on wild salmon and bannock as part of the elementary school ’s annual feast. Students learned the dos and don ’ t ’ s of a traditional aboriginal feast.
Over the past few weeks, students at Laurier Elementary have had a wonderful time enjoying lessons in Dragon Dancing and Kung Fu.
Gladstone Secondary recently played host to the Vancouver district regional wrestling tournament. Nine VSB teams took place along with 6 teams who traveled from as far away as the Sunshine Coast to participate. Students and staff at our schools have expressed concern that their sport is to be eliminated from the 2016 summer Olympic games in Rio. See - Recent story in the Courier.
On Thursday, Feb 14, Chairperson Patti Bacchus, Premier Christy Clark, Principal Alex Grant and many other students and PAC members gathered at the new University Hill Secondary for the school ’s official opening. Following the ribbon-cutting, senior U-Hill students got to ask the Premier questions at an informal town hall style event.
District staff met with Dean Blye Frank and the UBC Faculty of Education on Thursday February 14 – we discussed many ideas for collaborative action.
On Friday, February 15, Point Grey Grade 12 students filled room 400 upstairs for a student forum where they discussed a range of topics including technology in the classroom, what makes a great teacher and plenty of other important educational topics.
Sagkeeng’s Finest - Winners of Canada’s Got Talent at Van Tech Accelerated Credit Enrolment to Industry Training (ITA)