Hi Team!

The learning journey for reconciliation does not stop on September 30th,The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Thank you all for joining us for the BTPS student day. I know you will continue to discuss and learn on your own and in your classrooms. A huge thank you to Katrin Heim, James Trodden, Heather Rentz, Linda Koski, Bruce Pugh, Michelle Webb, Crystal Tower, and Curt Orbeck for the organization of the successful day. As well, thanks to our students who did the intros and thank yous as well as staff who facilitated some of the sessions. It did take a team to pull off this amazing day.

Here is a great video on 5 Things You Need to Know About Truth & Reconciliation that a staff member shared with me. We are continuing to collect resources and I appreciate that you continue to share them with me.

October 5, 2021 is International Teachers' Day. Thank you to all of our teachers who build connections, support, engage, and teach our students each and every day.

World Mental Health Day is October 10, 2021. It is so important to bring awareness to mental health issues. So many of us are impacted. As BTPS employees, we have resources and support through Alberta School Employee Benefit Plan Employee Wellness (ASEBP) for their personal wellness needs or those of family members. There is also access to the Employee and Family Assistance Program offered through Homewood Health or call 1-800-663-1142.

I was thrilled to listen to Katrin Heim on the High Performing Educator podcast. Her episode is here. Her passion for students is evident throughout the podcast!

Last week was also Jody Pollard's last days with BTPS. We wish her well! Her smile will be missed in BTPS Central Office.

October is Women's History Month. There is so many learning opportunities to pursue in the month. Here is some information about gender equity as we continue to strive to balance the scales in this area. If you have not watched our Women in Leadership BTPS videos, you can find them on our youtube channel. Becky West in her interview indicated that she is striving for a world where there is equity of opportunity and equity of salary.

I hope you all have an incredible Thanksgiving. May your weekend be full of all the things that bring you joy. I want to thank the Board for giving the day in lieu on Friday for National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.

Enjoy the week,

Rhae-Ann

With Thanksgiving on the horizon, during the month October, we will have a Gratitude focus. Mark you calendars for Oct 5 & 26 as we will be hosting The Nest Project's series "Moving Towards Gratitude".

Please see the poster below and sign up for this free opportunity if you are interested. I look forward to seeing you online for this event!

Plan a long walk for this CBC podcast, "The Road to Reconciliation," featuring Bob Joseph and Maurice Stizer as they reflect on whether Canada has finally reached a moment of national reckoning following the discovery of 200 children in unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. Interviewed by journalist Piya Chattopadhyay, Joseph and Stizer speak to the long-awaited action plan in response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and the generational impact of unmarked graves being investigated and found across Canada. More importantly, they share their views on what genuine reconciliation should look like for individual Canadians and their governments.

theybuildbridges@gmail.com

He was also on our BTPS podcast:Spotify, Apple, BTPS Website