Cougar Tracks
Friday, September 3, 2021
Cougar Corner
Welcome back Sherwood Heights families,
We hope the start of the school year has been great for all of you! Three days in it is evident that there is a real energy in the building and we are grateful to our staff and students for helping us have such a great start up! As we are a new administrative team, we are appreciative of all the support we have received and the warm welcomes.
The Cougar Corner is going to be our weekly communication tool for parents and students to help you stay in the loop as far as all things Sherwood Heights!
As we head into the long weekend, here are a few reminders we would like to share:
- This year, doors will open at 8:20 a.m. Please be mindful of this particularly as the weather starts to turn!
- When dropping off your student, please ensure you are doing so in the designated drop areas. Staff parking lots are not to be used for student drop off.
- While we are an open campus, meaning students can leave the building at lunch, they must be back to school for 1:09 p.m. for their afternoon classes.
- Please ensure your student brings a water bottle to school every day.
Have a safe and relaxing long weekend!
Mask Update
In light of the alarming rise of infection rates, Elk Island Public Schools’ Board of Trustees held a special meeting on September 2, 2021 to discuss the Division’s COVID-19 measures. The Board voted as follows:
- 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.
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)
2021-22 Staffing Assignments
Admin Team
Mr. Amit Mali – Principal & Grade 9 Administrator
Mme Tandy Atchison – Assistant Principal & Grade 8 Administrator
Mrs. Jess Miskiw - Assistant Principal & Grade 7 Administrator
Guidance Team
Mrs. Jess Miskiw – Guidance Counselor
Mme Katharina Staub - IMPACT Guidance Counselor
Mrs. Jessica Moen – Family School Liaison Worker
Teachers
Mrs. Taylor Burton
Mrs. Therese Dach
Ms. Cora Dallyn
Ms. Kristin Davies
Mrs. Meghann Elgert
Mrs. Amanda Fayed
Ms. Angelina Fleck
Mr. Warren Foley
Mr. James Gieringer
Mr. Jesse Gobbels
Mr. Armin Gottstein
Mrs. Karen Hauca
Mrs. Maya Hodgson
Mr. Don Hui
Miss Rayel Komant
Mr. Rob Koning
Ms. Erin Malec
Miss Lynn Mekechuk
Mme Tessa Nally
Mr. Brad Olsen
Ms. Katie Oszip
Mr. David Parr
Mme Kari Provencher
Mr. Mathieu Rivard
Mme Katharina Staub
Mr. Des Uniat
Mr. Darcy Verrier
Office Staff
Mrs. Candace Lyles – Business Manager
Mrs. Lisa McDonnell – Administrative Assistant
Ms. Sheryl Raivio – Registrar
Mrs. Johanna Ryan – Attendance Administrative Assistant
Librarian
Ms. Eilene Dela Cruz
Educational Assistants
Mrs. Averil Geoghegan
Mrs. Charlotte Kirkby
Mrs. Kyla Loewen
Mrs. Michelle Shiloff
Ms. Jennifer Todoschuk
French Monitor
Mr. Remmy Khan
Lunch Supervision & Canteen
Mrs. Lisa Braun
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.
LEGO Club!
Do you love building with LEGO? Are you in grade seven? The noon hour LEGO Club will be having a meeting for interested students. Come to Room 215 on Wednesday, September 8th after the noon eating time. At the meeting we will discuss how the club works, when it runs, and how many students may join. Did you know? LEGO is the world’s largest producer of rubber wheels. They produce more than Bridgestone, Goodyear and all other car tire manufacturers!
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.
Save Your Newspapers!
Science 7 is asking all SWH families to hold on to their Sherwood Park Newspapers until November. We will be holding a competition to see who can build the strongest stool out of newspapers!
Upcoming Dates and Events
September 6 - Labour Day - No School
September 8 - Staff Meeting / Early Dismissal at 2:00 p.m.
September 10 - Picture Day
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