Stephen Lewis Secondary School Email: stephen.lewis.ss@yrdsb.ca Website: stephenlewis.ss.yrdsb.ca

Phone: 905-326-7994, 647-123-4567 555 Autumn Hill Boulevard, Thornhill, ON L4J 8X2

May 29, 2017 This is an information update from Stephen Lewis Secondary School.

Message from our Trustee

As we near the end of the school year, I want to thank you for all that you do to strengthen our schools and communities. This is a good time to celebrate your child’s achievements over the past year.

One of our goals in the Trustees’ Multi-Year Plan is to “continuously increase student achievement and well-being through a culture and caring and learning.” That includes a culture that emphasizes engagement and positive relationships among all the members of the school community – students, staff members, families and community members.

You, as parents/guardians, are our most important partners when it comes to education. The support you have provided to your child throughout this past school year will help to strengthen our schools and make a difference to your child’s learning.

I encourage you to continue engaging your child in learning throughout the summer, and to help them to see the connections between what they are learning in school and the world around them. There are so many opportunities to do this over the summer, whether that’s planning a budget with your child, enjoying the natural beauty in York Region, reading a book or visiting local sites. Whatever your plans are this summer, I wish you all a successful end to the school year, and a safe and enjoyable summer.

Linda Aversa, Trustee

York Region District School Board School Climate Survey for Parents As you may know, we are inviting parents and guardians to participate in a survey to support student achievement and well-being. The timeline for the survey has been extended to May 31, 2017. If you haven’t already had the opportunity to complete the survey, we would encourage you to please take 15 minutes to complete the survey online.

June 2017 Exam Schedule

Please note that the YRDSB will administer e-learning exams on Friday June 16. Grade 12 Exams will begin on Monday June 19. There are no grade 12 classes running on June 19th

Classes for Grades 9–11 will run as normal on June 16 and 19. Exams for Grades 9–11 begin on Tuesday, June 20th. Students should check their GAPPS account for their personal schedule, as well as the schedules posted in each classroom

Guidance Message - Graduating Students

If your child has applied to university in Ontario, June 1st is the absolute last day to accept an offer. If your child does not receive an offer by this date, please have your child come see Mrs. Stephenson in Guidance

Graduating students who plan to attend college or university in September should continue to check their OCAS and OUAC accounts and their email on a regular basis. College bound students should have received a response from the colleges that they applied to and can expect to receive communication about payment of fees, with June 15th being the earliest that Ontario Colleges can require payment of tuition fees. University bound students should expect a response from the universities that they have applied to by May 26th .

University bound students should verify the deadline for payment to secure a space in residence (usually June 1st).

A reminder that all offers are CONDITIONAL upon the receipt of final grades in July – students should continue to work hard to ensure the required final average.

Attention all ESL students, if you are interested in taking ESLB, ESLC, ESLD, ELSE for CREDIT this summer with the YRDSB. Please register in your career cruising account.

Summer School

The list of courses that students can register for is available at: http://www.yrdsb.ca/Programs/ConEd/Pages/Secondary-School-Summer.aspx. When you have registered online through Career Cruising, print off the registration and bring it to the Guidance Office for verification.

New Summer Course Pilot – “Youth Innovation by Design” – This course will focus on ways in which innovators identify problems, see them as opportunities, generate ideas, and organize resources to develop and take successful solutions forward into the world. The course will take place at, and in collaboration with, York University’s Markham Innovation Centre and Innovation York, in the Hwy 407 & Kennedy Road area of Markham (transportation is NOT provided for this course). Interested students should come to Guidance for the full information flyer. Only one class of 30 students will be selected. Applications to the program can be submitted at http://bit.ly/pilotinnovationcourse.

Become a Host Family

YRDSB operates a robust homestay program where hundreds of international visa students are placed each semester. These students are interested in a full immersion experience where they can improve their English skills and experience Canadian culture first hand. Our board is looking for families who wish to host an international student. Can you provide:

caring, comfortable accommodation for a student

an English speaking environment

opportunities for the student to participate in familylife and local activities

integration of an international student into yourfamily

a private room, 3 meals per day plus snacks (it isrecommended that Canada's Food Guide is followedto ensure that nutritious and well-balanced meals areprovided)

easy access to a public school in York Region on footor by public transit

Families are compensated $900/month to cover the cost of hosting

Board Policies and Procedures

Policies and procedures govern the operation of the Board and our school. To ensure they remain current, the Board reviews policies and procedures on a regular cycle. Seeking feedback from staff and community members, including parents/guardians, is an important part of the review process.

All policies available for comment are sent to school council chairs, and are posted on the Board website along with information about how to provide feedback. The policies and proposals currently available for comment, and the response due date, include:

Homework (Working Document) Due: 9/7/2017

Reporting Children in Need of Protection (WorkingDocument) Due: 11/24/2017

Elementary Programs (Working Document) Due:11/24/2017

Human Rights: Code-Related Harassment andDiscrimination (Working Document) Due: 1/2/2018

Loan of Board Owned Equipment (Staff) (WorkingDocument) Due: 1/8/2018

Loan of Board Owned Equipment (Students)(Working Document) Due: 1/8/2018

The Minister of Education’s Directions to York Region District School Board included a requirement to develop a policy and process for receiving and investigating complaints of racism or any other prohibited grounds of discrimination. Board Policy #241.0, Human Rights: Code-Related Harassment and Discrimination is now available for comment.

To learn more, visit www.yrdsb.ca/aboutus/policy/.

Student Parking This is an important reminder for students who drive their vehicles to school. All vehicles must be registered with the main office. Student applications for parking privileges are available from the main office.

Students are reminded that student cars and parking lots are out of bounds during the school day. Any of the following will result in the loss of parking privileges: dangerous/careless driving; excessive noise; littering, loitering, or smoking in/around vehicles. Students are only to be at their cars when they are arriving and leaving. Gatherings in and\or around vehicles may result in loss of parking privileges for the vehicle owner. Thank you for your cooperation in ensuring the safety of all students

Attendance Reminder Please call the school to let us know if your child is or will be absent, whether it is for the entire day or for part of the school day. Please continue to keep our telephone number handy, (905)326-7994 ext 101. You may call 24 hours/day, or you can email us at stephen.lewis.ss@yrdsb.ca Please provide the following information:

-your child’s name, -the dates of the absence, -the reason for absence, -how to contact the parent/guardian if we have

questions. If a student has to leave during the day, he/she needs to have a written note AND is required to sign out at the attendance office.

Information Flyers Various information flyers for community involvement, community events and workshops are posted on our website.

Online Payments are being accepted We accept online payments for field trips, fundraisers, sports teams, yearbook, graduation, prom, Student Activity Fee, etc. Please use the following link to register. https://yrdsb.schoolcashonline.com

More information is available on our website We update our school website frequently. Please visit it at stephenlewis.ss.yrdsb.ca You can e-mail us any time at: stephen.lewis.ss@yrdsb.ca

Contact us:homestay@yrdsb.ca | 905 884 2046 ext 239www.yrdsb.ca/homestay

Become ahost family

Why not host aninternational student?

Families are compensated $900/month to cover the cost of hosting.

School year and summer placements are available.

Can you offer ...• a caring and secure environment• an English speaking home• a private bedroom• three meals (and snacks) daily• a home within reasonable distance

to a YRSDB school

Homes with basement bedrooms and tenants will not be considered.The homestay residence must be within York Region.

Cyberbullying Workshop Did you know that: 42% of Canadian youth have been targets of Cyberbullying? 60% of youth online have witnessed bullying? 43% of youth believe that talking to parents and teachers will not change anything? *Information from a joint study of 800 youth by child safety organizations MediaSmarts, PrevNet, and Telus

Join John Shep, the Caring and Safe Schools Consultant for the YRDSB, and Bully Free Community Alliance York Region where they will discuss:

● True and False: definitions of Cyberbullying and bullying● How to talk to your kids about Cyberbullying● Signs and symptoms of Cyberbullying? What happens when your child is Cyberbullying or being

the bully?● How to become advocates for anti-bullying in their schools and children's classrooms● What to do if your child is being bullied● Mental health and bullying● Social media tips● Bill C-13 - protecting Canadians from online crime act● Yes We Will campaign

About John Shep… John Shep is the Caring and Safe Schools Consultant for the York

Region District School Board, supporting initiatives in well-being, safe schools, anti-bullying and substance misuse. John helped establish a 150 student-per-day Breakfast Program and school-wide Wellness Days supporting the mental and social-emotional health of more than 2000 students.

About Bully Free… Bully Free Community Alliance is a grass roots

not-for-profit organization dedicated to our community, by advocating and providing education, awareness, and other supports with respect to bullying in the interest of the civic, social and moral welfare of the community.

Wednesday May 31st, 6:30 - 8:30 pm Sir William Mulock SS, 705 Columbus Way Newmarket

Tickets and childcare for school age children are FREE but we ask that you register at Eventbrite.ca to help us prepare.

This workshop is brought to you by Crossland Public School Parent Council, Mulock High School, YRDSB, Bully Free Community Alliance York Region and the Newmarket Parent Network.

How do you know if your child is experiencing Cyberbullying? Would you know what to do if they were?

© KEV Group Inc. 1 School Cash Online – Parent Registration

Stephen Lewis Secondary School is accepting online payments through

School Cash ONLINE!

School Cash Online provides the following benefits: • A convenient fee payment option that saves time• Reduces paper• No more need to send cash or cheques to school• A quick way to register. It takes less than 5 minutes to register.

Parents that opt to participate will receive notification via email of student fees owed (both required and optional), and can make secure online payments by credit card or Interac and receive a receipt.

To view a presentation about the program, go to http://www.kevsoftware.com/movies/ParentRegEnglish/.

Follow the easy steps on the next page to

register and get started!

© KEV Group Inc. 2 School Cash Online – Parent Registration

Step 1: Register

a) Click on the School Cash Online button on our school’s website at http://stephenlewis.ss.yrdsb.ca/ and select the “Get Started Today” button.

b) Complete each of the three Registration Steps

*For Security Reasons your password, requires 8 characters, one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter and a number.

Step 2: Confirmation Email

A registration confirmation email will be automatically forwarded to you. Click on the link provided inside the email to confirm your email and School Cash Online account. The confirmation link will open the School Cash Online site prompting you to sign into your account. Use your email address and password just created with your account.

Step 3: Find Student NOTE: A STUDENT NUMBER IS REQUIRED This step will connect your children to your account.

a) Enter the School Board Name b) Enter the School Name c) Enter Your Child’s Student # and Last Name d) Select Continue e) On the next page confirm that you are related to the child, check in the

Agree box and select Continue f) Your child has been added to your account

Step 4: View Items or Add Another Student

If you have more children, select “Add Another Student” option and repeat the steps above. 5 children can be added to one parent account. If you do not wish to add additional children, select “View Items For Students” option. A listing of available items for purchase will be displayed.

NEED HELP? If you require assistance, select the GET HELP option in the top right hand corner of the screen or contact School Cash Online – Parent Help Desk at 1-866-961-1803 or parenthelp@schoolcashonline.com.

June 2017

***BRAND NEW- NAVIGATING Social Media and Technology for Youth with Learning Disabilities- Join

is for a one session workshop presented by Integra that will explore the ever changing world of social

media and technology and discuss the potential risks in navigating the social environment for youth with

LD’s and/or ADHD. Tuesday June 6/17 from 7 to 9 p.m. at 4600 Bathurst St. – Lipa Green Centre.

HIGH CONFLICT DIVORCE- A workshop for parents wanting to develop strategies and techniques to deal

with a High Conflict situation and help to lessen the impact of that conflict on their children. This

workshop is not for individuals in an abusive situation. Wednesday June 21/17 at 9600 Bathurst St. –

Lebovic Community Centre – suite #242 from 7 to 9 p.m.

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO DATE- a one session workshop for men and women in midlife ( 40+) who have

been single for 2 or more years and are looking for information on how to nurture a lasting relationship.

Topics include: dating myths and facts, the 5 stages of dating, the difference between the dating

behaviours of men and women. Wednesday June 21/17 at 4600 Bathurst St.- Lipa Green Centre from 7

to 9:30 p.m.

INTERNET DATING IN MIDLIFE- A one session workshop for men and women who are single, over the age of 40 and wanting to explore the world of internet dating. Topics include: writing a profile that works, recognizing online dating “red flags,” and how to move an online relationship offline. Wednesday June 28/17 at 4600 Bathurst St.- Lipa Green Centre. from 7 to 9:30 p.m.

As with all of our programs, registration is required. Our groups and workshops are open to

all members of the community regardless of cultural, religious and/or racial background and

we offer a sliding scale for those who require reductions. For more information or to register

please call Shawna Sidney at 416-638-7800 Ext # 6215 or go to our website at

www.jfandcs.com/groups