Dear Falcon students and families,

This past week many of our current Gr. 10 & 11 students attended 2023-24 course planning presentations with administration. It was exciting to see some of our students starting to think and dream of what the future will hold as they began to explore their selections. All of our administrators and our counsellors will continue to work with those students who did not attend the presentation. If your student is in this position, please have them contact the office or Student Services to book an appointment with a counsellor or administrator to complete their selections for next year.

It was also amazing to see huge number of our students turn out to take in the first Bev Facey Career Fair on March 8 during Opportunity Wednesday. All of our presenters were either our parents or from contacts within our school community. Our students were simply fantastic, asking a lot of questions and getting vital information on a variety of careers that they were interested in. Based on the success of this event we are planning on future similar events moving forward.

This past week we completed the "Assurance Survey" with all of our grade 10 students. This survey is an important source of information that helps us by providing valuable feedback from our students and parents that we can use to guide many of our future decisions and goals here at Bev Facey. The "Assurance Survey" has also been sent out by mail to all grade 10 parents at the start of February by Alberta Education. I would encourage all our grade 10 parents to please take the time to fill it out, in order to help us with your insights and answers to the questions in the survey. The survey deadline occurs this Friday, March 17, 2023.

The registration process this year has changed slightly in how students will select their courses for the 2023-24 school year. The new process will allow our parents and their students to work together much more closely at determining their course choices. Please refer to the detailed article below for an in depth explanation.

I hope you all have an amazing week, and as always, if you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us.

Ken Wlos

Principal

Bev Facey Community High School

Once again, Alberta Education is surveying teachers, students and families through its annual Alberta Education Assurance (AEA) Survey. The survey acts as an annual check-up on the province’s education system. Every year, Alberta Education conducts the survey to gather information about the quality of education provided by Alberta schools and school authorities. The survey looks at various measures such as education quality, citizenship, family involvement, engagement levels, school climate and student wellness.

The AEA survey is sent to

· Small schools (fewer than 120 students in grades 4-12)—based on jurisdiction requests for more reportable survey data at the school level, the survey is expanded to include all students in grades 4 and above and their parents and guardians.

· Large schools (120 or more students in grades 4-12)—only students in grades 4, 7 and 10 and their parents and guardians are included in the survey. These grades are considered to be a reasonably representative sample of students.

Throughout February, Grade 10 students at Bev Facey completed the survey online at the school. Student participation was voluntary and completely anonymous. Students were assigned a random username and password to ensure survey responses weren’t linked to any individual student.

Additionally, parents and guardians of students in these grades are also asked to take a survey, either online or by mail. Alberta Education will send families information about the survey directly. As with the student and teacher survey, it’s anonymous and asks questions about your school experiences. If you have a child in grade 10 this year at Bev Facey, we encourage you to participate. The survey deadline is March 17, 2023.

Results from the AEA Survey are provided to Elk Island Public Schools each spring. The Division then uses the data to inform its four-year education plan, school education plans and strategies for continuous improvement. Each fall, the results are also shared with EIPS families and school communities in the Division’s Annual Education Results Report.

RELATED INFORMATION

AEA Survey: Parent letter

AEA Survey: Methodology for rate calculation

Assurance and Accountability: Alberta’s K-12 education system

Have your say! The 2022-23 EIPS Annual Feedback Survey: For Parents and Caregivers is now open

Elk Island Public Schools (EIPS) wants to hear from you about your experience with the Division and your school. Make sure to share your thoughts by completing the 2022-23 EIPS Annual Feedback Survey: For Parents and Caregivers—open from March 1-23. Please click on the button below to access the survey!

It is the time of year where we start the process of registering for next year’s classes here at Bev Facey. This last week we met with our current grade 10 and 11 students to provide information about courses, how to plan your path through high school, and the process of entering your requests for next year. As key stakeholders in your student’s education we value your involvement in this process.

Students have received the needed information, all of which can be found on our website under Registration Information. There you will find links to our 2023-2024 Program Guide, course request forms, high school planning page, and the Course Selections Presentation.

This year we are having students enter their course selections online at home with their parents/guardians. Parents/guardians will need to access the PowerSchool Parent Portal to complete the online request page. It will not be accessible through the student’s PowerSchool login. Before being able to enter course requests, parents/guardians will need to submit a correction verification form through the PowerSchool Parent Portal to update their student’s profile. Once this is complete access will be granted to the class selections page. If you require assistance with your PowerSchool Parent Portal login, please contact out main office either by phone at 780-467-0044 or email at general.bfh@eips.ca. Once registration pages open up on March 15, 2023, we are hoping to provide a how-to video on our Registration Information page showing the process of selecting course requests.

Important dates:

• March 3-10, 2023 – Information sessions for current grade 10 and 11 students
• March 15, 2023 – Course requests pages open to enter selections
• March 22, 2023 from 7:00-8:30 p.m. – Information and help session on entering course requests online held at Bev Facey
• March 23, 2023 – Deadline for entering current grade 10 and 11 student course selections

As always, we are here to support your student through the process of selecting classes. If they require assistance, have them book an appointment with either their guidance counselor in Student Services or grade level administrator. We are more than happy to sit down with them to discuss course selections for next year.

Next week on March 21 and 22, 2023 from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Bev Facey Community High School will be conducting Student-Parent-Teacher Conferences. This event will have our conferences in person in Bev Facey's North Gym, upper concourse of the cafeteria, and in a few select classrooms. Each conference will have a time period of seven minutes and we are asking all parents planning on attending to schedule conference times. Please use the online link that was sent out via email on Friday March 10 to book your appointments. **The Booking link will be active on Monday, March 13th at 8:00 a.m.

**If you have any questions or need help booking, please contact our front office.

**Now that we had such an amazing time welcoming grade 9 students and their parents at our February 16th Open House, we are excited to be accepting all new students! Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any other questions about our awesome school community, or to schedule a tour.

Bev Facey Math wants you! Represent us in the upcoming prestigious Math Competitions!

*The Totem Torus is a Team Math Competition held annually at Ross Shepperd where participants work individually and in teams to flex their mathematical problem-solving skills through fun and engaging activities. The contest will take place on Thursday, April 13th this year. Any students interested in participating, please check with Miss Wong a in room 233 for more information.

*The Euclid (Gr. 12) contest gives senior-level secondary school students the opportunity to tackle novel problems with creativity and all of the knowledge they've gained in secondary school mathematics. This year, the contest will be held on April 4th. The deadline for registration is Friday, March 10th. Any students interested in participating or who would like more information, please contact Miss Wong (Rm 233).

*The Hypatia (Gr. 11) and Galois (Gr. 10) are fun, engaging contests that encourage critical thinking as participants tackle problems that build to a larger, more complex task to solve in each question. This year, the contest will be held on April 5th. The deadline for registration is Friday, March 10th. Any students interested in participating or would like more information, please contact Miss Wong (Rm 233).

Monday - March 13, 2023

• Badminton Tryouts- 3:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. (South Gym)
• Sr. Lady's Handball Practice- 3:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. (North Gym)

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Tuesday - March 14, 2023

• Falcon's Team Minecraft - meets at lunch in Rm 161.
  
• Sr. Women's Handball - hosts Harry Ainlay & St. Peter the Apostle @ 4:45 p.m.(South Gym)
• Shelter in Place Drill - occurs during period 4 - classes continue as normal.
• Badminton Match- we travel to W.P. Wagner for a 3:30 p.m. match.

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Wednesday - March 15, 2023

• Opportunity Wednesday - Staff Collaboration day! Rewrites are available! Bus schedule pick up time is at 3:17 p.m.
• Facey's Cyber Offense Team - meets today at noon in Rm 216.
  
• Facey's Interfaith Alliance - meets today at noon in Rm 270.
• Sr. Handball travel to Sal to take on Salisbury & Harry Ainlay in a 4:40 p.m. start time.

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Thursday - March 16, 2023

• Jazz Band Rehearsals - at lunch in Band, Rm 142.
• Falcon's Team Minecraft - meets at lunch in Rm 161.
• C.A.R.E.- Facey’s Culture And Race Engagement Group meet at lunch in Rm 176.
• Facey’s Gender & Sexuality Alliance (Spectrum) meets today at lunch in Rm 218.
• Sr. Men's & Women's Handball travel to St. Paul the Apostle for an Invitational tournament.
  
• Facey's Cyber Offense Team- compete in the picoCTF Challenge.

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Friday - March 17, 2023

• Falcon's Team Minecraft - meets at lunch in Rm 161.
• Facey's Cyber Offense Team- compete in the picoCTF Challenge.
• Facey’s Gender & Sexuality Alliance (Spectrum) meets today at lunch in Rm 218! All are welcome!
• Sr. Men's & Women's Handball travel to St. Paul the Apostle to continue in their Invitational tournament.

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Saturday-March 18, 2023

• Facey's Cyber Offense Team- compete in the picoCTF Challenge.
• Facey's Archery Team competes at Provincials @ the Edmonton Boat and Sportsman show (2 p.m. in Hall D).
• Sr. Men's & Women's Handball travel to St. Paul the Apostle to continue in their Invitational tournament.

School of Skilled Trades

Join the School of Skilled Trades in-person to see what it's like to work in a skilled trade. Come and learn about our apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs firsthand by speaking with instructors and exploring our labs and equipment.

Advisors will be on hand to answer all your questions regarding admissions, apprenticeship, student services, and financial aid.

Saturday, March 11 - 8:30 am - 12:00 pm

NAIT Main Campus, U - Learning Resources Centre

Free Parking in Lot M

EIPS Summer School Registration

https://www.eipscontinuinged.ca/courses

EIPS Career Pathways

The K-12 Career Pathways Journey. Click the link below.

https://www.smore.com/0tm5w-eips-career-pathways

Student Opportunity Board

https://www.smore.com/r4b6c

Awards & Scholarships

https://www.bevfacey.ca/student-services/awards-scholarships

*Our Counselors would also like to draw your attention to the many Strathcona County Family Resources available within the community. Please check out the information and flyer below.**