TIGER News

Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year!

We are so excited to have all of our students with us this year. It has been a great first few days here at the school, and we are looking forward to a really great school year.

We have two new faces at the school this year. Mr. Kellen Morris will be teaching High School Science and options while Mrs. Zuk continues her maternity leave. Also joining us is Educational Assistant, Mrs. Cheryl Sawchuk. Welcome to you both!

September is always a very busy month for everyone. Getting back into routines for students, teachers, and parents can take some time. Our extra-curricular activities are also starting to begin. Please make sure to check the school calendar for information about upcoming events.

As always, we encourage parents to be a part of their child's education. Parents can stay connected with teachers through email, and also keep up with their child's academic progress through PowerSchool. Don't have the PowerSchool app? Check out the instructions here to access this information.

As we told parents last year, the BRSD Board of Trustees approved a change to the end time for our early dismissal days. Each school in Battle River will now have a half-day once a month to allow for school staff time to collaborate. At Hay Lakes, this means that our school day will end at 11:38. This is the time when our lunch hour begins.

What does this mean for parents?

- Bussing will still be provided to all students who take the bus.

- Students in elementary school will be given an opportunity to eat a snack before heading on the bus.

- We will have an alternating schedule each month. In the first month, we will have periods 1, 3, 5 and 7; and then the following month students will have periods 2, 4, 6, and 8. This ensures that high school students have a shorter core class each month.

In the past, the early dismissal has always been on the first Thursday of the month. The early dismissal days are still on Thursdays, but they aren't always the first Thursday. Here are the dates:

- October 5th

- November 2nd

- December 7th

- January 11th

- February 8th

- March 7th

- April 4th

- May 2nd

- June 6th

We are happy to announce that we plan to have all three of these programs up and running in the month of September. We will let parents know the exact dates soon, so stay tuned!

As part of its administrative procedures, Battle River asks that any parent who wants to be a supervisor for a field trip or a sports team becomes an approved volunteer, also known as an Agent of the Board. Parents will need to provide a current criminal record check and a child vulnerable sector check. As these documents can take a bit of time to obtain, we are encouraging parents who think they might be able to supervise trips throughout the year to begin the process of becoming an Agent of the Board early.

If you are interested, please email Mr. MacKenzie and he will provide you with all of the information you need, along with a letter for you to take with you when you go to the police or RCMP to obtain your criminal record.

Here are some upcoming important dates for the coming weeks:

September 8-9 - Senior High Volleyball Augustana Vikings Tournament

September 15-16 - Junior High Volleyball Tournament at École Camrose Composite High School

September 20 - Welcome Back BBQ - More details to come!

September 21- Camrose Cross Country Race

September 22-23 - Senior High Volleyball Tournament at École Camrose Composite High School

September 28 - New Norway Cross Country Race

September 30 - Junior High Volleyball tournament at Hay Lakes

Want to see an up-to-date school calendar? Go to our website to see our public calendar!

Here is the latest newsletter from our Career Counsellor - Carla Practicante. She will be at the school a couple of times a month to meet with high school students. She is able to help with the application process for post-secondary, as well as help students determine what they might need to get into certain programs.

Please check out the latest newsletter for the Camrose Family Resource Centre.

Parents can find information for many different resources and programs (both in person and online) within this document. These include Triple P parenting programs, information and sessions about helping students with their mental health, and activities and drop-in opportunities for students and parents.

Please don't forget to pay your current school fees for athletic programs, field trips, and other activities, as well as Division Technology fees, by following this link.

This is also the link that will let you order hot lunches as well hotdog, milk and ice cream cards!