Cougar Tracks
Friday, September 10, 2021
Cougar Corner
Hello SWH Cougars!
It’s been another busy week at Heights. The weather has been beautiful through the first days of school and it has allowed our students to get outside and enjoy the sunshine! Our grade 9 Leadership team has been hard at work planning next week’s grade 7 Week of Welcome! They have planned lots of fun activities for our students…it should be a lot of fun!
Volleyball and Cross-Country teams are underway, and they are excited to get back to school sports. It’s been great to see so many student-athletes back in the gym and outside.
As a friendly reminder, please ensure that if you need to speak to a staff member, you contact the school to set an appointment.
Finally, if you would like to request a course change, please fill out this Timetable Change Request Form. Please note that not all requests can be granted.
Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the beautiful weather!
How to Report an Absence and/or Late
Should your child be unable to attend school, please call or email the school office to report the absence or late arrival.
If your child is absent or late, and you have not called or emailed the school office, you will receive an automated phone and email message after attendance is taken in the morning, as well as in the afternoon after lunch.
Email Absence Reporting
From our school website (www.sherwoodheights.org), please click on the "Quick Links" tab on the right hand side, and then on "Report an Absence".
You will then be directed to a drop-down box under "Send to", and then you will click the first one that says: "Student Absences - Mrs. Johanna Ryan", and then fill out the rest of the fields.
Please submit your absence email prior to 8:30 AM on the day of the absence.
Please include the following information in the email:
- Your child’s full name
- When your child will be absent or late
- When your child is expected to return to school
Telephone Absence Reporting - Call 780-467-5930 to report an absence.
Please include the following information in the phone call:
- Your child’s full name
- When your child will be absent or late
- When your child is expected to return to school
Homework - If your child missed school due to an excused absence, please contact their teachers directly via email to make arrangements to receive their missed work. You can find their direct email(s) on the "Quick Links" tab on the right hand side, and then under the "Contact Us" tab.
Mask Reminder
- Any and all visitors to EIPS schools and buildings must adhere to EIPS’ mandatory masking requirement.
- To temporarily suspend Motion 116/2021, Option 2, and require mandatory masking for all staff and students, kindergarten through Grade 12, effective September 3, 2021.
Please carefully read the EIPS Operations Guidelines 2021-22 and EIPS Operations Frequently Asked Questions documents that were sent out to families.
AHS - COVID-19 Immunization Clinic
AHS has sent out a letter to all parents in Strathcona County to eligible students in Grades 7-12, who are born before 2009 or earlier. Please complete the form and return it to Mrs. Ryan in the office if you are wanting the vaccination.
Please Note: Only students with signed consent forms will receive the vaccine.
Student Supports at SWH
Mental Health has been identified as an EIPS priority this year and in response, Sherwood Heights has introduced several new ways to access student support.
Mme Katharina Staub will be supporting IMPACT students and families this year. She will provide mental health, social, academic and behaviour support and will work with the IMPACT team to develop ISPs. She can be found in the counselling office upstairs and contacted at katharina.staub@eips.ca or by phone at 780-467-5930.
Mrs. Jessica Moen is in the new role of Family School Liaison Worker (FSLW) this year at SWH. Mrs. Moen’s primary role is to facilitate connections among family, school, and community to assist with positive growth. She works as part of the multidisciplinary team to help our families set goals, integrate interventions, plan strategies and arrange resources that will help students be successful in school, at home, and in their community. She offers support services in a variety of formats (individuals, families, and groups), in a variety of settings (school, home, community settings) and is the primary connection with many community agencies. Mrs. Moen can be found in her office (FS114) across the hall from Mr. Gobbels science lab and contacted at jessica.moen@eips.ca or by phone at 780-446-3222.
Mrs. Jess Miskiw is our School Counsellor this year. She will provide mental health, social, academic and behaviour support for all students. Mrs. Miskiw will also be the primary contact for ISP and special programming-related questions. She can be contacted at jess.miskiw@eips.ca or by phone at 780-903-7992.
Referrals for ALL student support services can be done using any of the following ways:
Scan the QR code posted around the school and on the Student Support Bulletin
Fill out the Need To Talk form
Email jess.miskiw@eips.ca
Visit us in person in our offices
Let the Student Support Assistant, Mrs. Lisa McDonnell (found in the library), know that you need to speak to someone.
Required Forms - Please ensure you fill in these forms ASAP!
The division has developed a series of forms all families are required to review and submit at the start of the school year to support school operations. All forms are available through your PowerSchool Parent Portal. If you have trouble accessing your Parent Portal account, please contact your child’s school for assistance.
Note: Forms in PowerSchool often don’t display properly in Internet Explorer. Please use a different browser to review and complete the forms for your family.
Please refer to an email sent from the district on August 25th for more information on the following forms;
- COVID-19 Alberta Health Daily Checklist Acknowledgement (Due: August 31, 2021)
- Pre-existing Medical Conditions (Due: August 31, 2021)
- Correction and Verification Form (Due: September 22, 2021)
Athletics Spectator Information
In order to limit potential spread of COVID-19 during EIPS athletic events, spectators are not permitted at practices and games at this time. We ask that when dropping off or picking up student athletes outside the school, parents and guardians maintain a 2-metre distance from other families.
This will be consistent in all EIPS buildings as we follow the Metro Athletics guide.
Please note that we are currently working on our network capabilities so that we will be able to live-stream the games.
Save Your Newspapers!
Upcoming Dates and Events
September 24 - AHS COVID-19 Immunization Clinic
September 24 - Cougar Mile - Periods 2 to 6
September 22 - PowerSchool Correction Forms Deadline
September 28 - School Council Meeting
September 29 - Orange Shirt Day
September 30 - National Day for Truth and Reconciliation - No School
October 4 to 8 - Read-in-Week
October 5 - World Teacher's Day
October 6 - Early Dismissal at 2:00 p.m.