I hope you had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend ahead. We are grateful for many things as we head into Thanksgiving. Please read below for a few updates.
We were thrilled to welcome our guests to our Reconciliation Garden Blessing Ceremony on Wednesday, October 12th. Nearly 100 people came to the event with special guests Elder Starlight from the Tsuut'ina Nation, Elder George Pambrun from the Metis Nation of Alberta Region Three, Elder Desi Rider from the Bearspaw First Nation, and Elder Vern Hunter from Chiniki First Nation. We are grateful they took the time out of their schedule to be at our school.
The construction of the garden could not have occurred without many people. Metis knowledge keeper Kalyn Kodiak helped the Indigenous Studies students create the realized plan. Michelle Aris & Lara Bartsoff volunteered their time to bring the drawings to life through countless work hours. Fortis Alberta donated the two benches but also provided much guidance to us throughout the process. Keegan Patey and his construction crew, including James Cousins, spent a ton of time creating the forms for the concrete work and pouring the concrete.
We are grateful for the financial sponsorship of Chop Steakhouse, Banks Family Auto, and Rob's No Frills, all of who gave to the project. To Westmark and Mattamy Homes, thank you for the donation of the boulders you see. Bluegrass and Extreme Pita donated supplies and snacks throughout the project's construction.
To the students and staff who gave countless hours, thank you. To Ms. Williams and Mrs. Stachniak, thank you for your commitment to seeing this project through.
As we have mentioned, may the garden be a reminder to us of the work we still have to do to move forward with reconciliation.
2. Turkey Bowl Food Drive
Congratulations to both the WH Croxford and BCHS communities for raising over $3000 worth of food at the annual Turkey Bowl! Our Football Booster Club organized the event and helped contribute to a great local organization. Thanks to everyone involved. Well done!
3. Graduation Meeting - Thursday, October 20th
This a reminder to our graduating class of 2023 that we will be hosting a parent information night at 6:00 PM next Thursday night. The meeting will take place in the gymnasium. See you all there!
Have a great weekend,
Ryan Reed
Principal | Bert Church High School
Open House Season!
With startup over at the school, our gr. 11 and 12 students may be thinking about their next steps. October is a busy month for post-secondary institutions getting ready for the next wave of students to hit their campuses. To help our parents and students prepare, please see the list below of popular BCHS graduate destination open houses. For the most up-to-date information on the post-secondary of your choice, make sure to keep an eye on their website.
Bert Church High School will host the ELAA post-secondary event at our school on Wednesday, November 30th, from 6:30 - 8:00 PM. This event brings many post-secondary institutions to one spot to help students explore possibilities. Mark your calendar.
How to prepare for Post-Secondary! Thanks to Ms. Tiemstra for putting together a helpful document for all of our gr. 11/12 students to consider their next steps for post-secondary!
GRADE 11 TO DO LIST
Semester 1 (September – December)
Begin or continue with extracurricular activities. It might not help you to be admitted into a program, but it will help you to apply for scholarships. Post-Secondary schools love students with leadership, drive & community involvement experience.
Take school seriously – marks from grade 11 are looked at for early admission to a lot of programs.
Talk to your School Counsellor to choose the right courses and prerequisites you will need for your university program of your choice.
Research careers you are interested in using myBlueprint , talk to professionals or relatives in that career.
Attend Post-Secondary fairs at your school or nearby schools, also attend Open Houses of your top 3 or 4 places.
If interested in USA schools, register for an Int’l sitting of the SAT exam offered five times per year. Visit www.CollegeBoard.org for dates.
Semester 2 (February – May)
When you find a school program you are interested in – become aware of the program’s admission courses as well as school specific scholarships. Choose a second choice school that offers your program and make sure of its admission courses.
If you are looking outside of AB, make sure to take note of that provinces’ admission deadlines and processes.
Pick your Grade 12 courses to ensure graduation and admission to Post-Secondary.
Attend any career fairs and industry fairs in the field of your interest. See if there are any summer volunteer or work programs.
See if the schools you are interested in offer Campus Tours or Student for a Day Programs
Discuss costs for post-secondary education with your family. How will you afford it? Savings? Scholarships? Student Loans? Working?
Look for a summer job or volunteer opportunity especially in the area of your interest. Make sure to update your resume from CALM class to include current information.
Read the Bert Church Charger Connects to know when events are happening & when Lunch N’ Learns are being offered by School Counsellors: Scholarships 101, Applying to University – Using Apply AB, various Post-Secondary schools coming to present, etc.
Alberta Post Secondary Event
Nov. 30th, 2022 6:30 - 8pm @ Bert Church High School
Out of Province Post Secondary Events
October 19th, 2022 6 - 8pm @ Winston Churchill High School - Calgary
October 20th, 2022 6 – 7:30pm @ Cochrane High School
October 26th, 2022 6 – 8pm @ Crescent Heights High School – Calgary
GRADE 12 TO DO LIST
Semester 1 (September – December)
Narrow your choice of university programs to a handful. Know these programs’ application dates and scholarship deadlines. Keep your information organized in one place.
Narrow your choices or Program or School to a maximum of 3 (2 in AB and 1 outside of province if wanted)
-remember to indicate choice 1 and choice 2 for each University so that you only pay the school fee once.
Start filling in your information into ApplyAlberta – it saves automatically so you can go back into it
Start looking at scholarship spreadsheets or databases, preparing common information. Give your references plenty of time to write letters of recommendation.
Create your myPass account so that you can look at your diploma exam marks in February and be able to sign up for rewrites or transcripts.
October 1st – 5th
You can now start applying to Post-Secondary programs. Academic averages are set and you can start applying to secure an early admission.
Use ApplyAlberta - remember to add every possibly useful course at a 20 level and 30 level into marks history and add every school you attended in highschool, remembering summer school or virtual schools.
Go into myPass – transcripts and send to the schools you have applied to IF they are not in AB.
Letters of admission or conditional acceptance start to arrive.
Keep track of the emails and paperwork that is sent to you from the schools – make note of next steps and deadlines.
Semester 2 (February – July)
Continue applying for scholarships, bursaries
Letters of admission or conditional acceptance continue to arrive. If it is a program of 1st admitted – 1st Qualified they will continue to accept students until all seats are FULL.
Apply for residence (if you didn’t do that when initially applying) as it is on a first come, first served basis.
Consider federal and provincial student loans and start application with all supporting documents. Applications open in April/May and have to be submitted in June.
Confirm your admission acceptance, pay the “hold your spot fee” by the deadline and attend any how to create your 1st year schedule workshops.
Thursday was Twin Day at BCHS, with many students and staff coming to school in twin attire. Staff especially stepped up, dressing in all monotone to honour Mr. Kirk! Thanks for organizing leadership kids!
Our Sr. Girls hosted league leader Springbank on Wednesday night and lost a close battle. The girls have completed the tougher part of their schedule and are looking to finish up the league strong in the coming weeks. Keep up the great effort kids!
