Alison Hunt, a grade 12 student from St. Charles College found out recently that she was the successful grant applicant for a $20,000 French Immersion scholarship from the University of Ottawa. After applying to the University for their International Development and Globalization program, Hunt received news that she was going to be receiving $5,000 a year for the next four years as long as she takes 60% of her courses in French. A French Immersion student for all of her schooling, Hunt didn’t really think about applying for any sort of French Immersion related scholarships. Her teacher, Rick Emond suggested to her that she might want to consider this option. Thankfully Hunt took his advice and her parents couldn’t be happier. “They are really excited for me,” Hunt said. “They know this is a fantastic opportunity for me and are really proud of me, especially since neither of them even speak French.” Hunt attributes a lot of her scholastic succes to Mr. Emond. “ He (Emond) has been there for me right from day one in Grade 9 and has encouraged me to stay in French Immersion right into Grade 12”. Emond says that he has always been very proud of Alison’s accomplishments as she has always been a very mature student who always went beyond what was required and always took extreme pride in her work. “Allison has always seen the importance of the Immersion program and never complained about the work that was involved,” Emond said. “She deserves this and part of me is envious of the opportunities that lie ahead of her as there is no doubt in my mind that she will make a difference in the world – when people talk about our students being our future, Alison will be one of the ones leading the way.” Hunt hopes to eventually work for a global charitable organization such as “Right to Play” and feels that continuing in her French will allow her more successful career opportunities.
Category: Student Achievement
SCC Junior Boys Soccer Win AA NOSSA Championship
The St. Charles College junior boy’s soccer team took the AA NOSSA championship in North Bay this past month. The Cards were made up of some very talented soccer players this year and cruised along during the regular season until they lost in the semi-final game 2 – 0 to Lasalle in the city finals. The Cards expected a much better fate with the team they had. However, the boys finished high enough in the standings to qualify as the AA NOSSA representative. The boys avenged last year’s loss to West Ferris in NOSSA by beating them to capture the championship this year by a score of 2 – 0. Brad Guthrie scored the opener for the Cards while Chriss Rossi clinched it with a goal in the second half. The defence was solid being anchored by Peter Khouri and Blake Leclair who move up to senior while defensive standouts Walter Kosher and Brad Williams return to junior next year. Goalkeeper Michael Michelle kept a clean sheet in net. The boys look forward to the opportunity to defend their NOSSA championship next year and capture the city championship as well.
St. Christopher’s Grade Three Class Making a Difference Across the Globe
The Grade 3 class at St. Christopher Catholic Elementary School spent the afternoon counting the grand total that they raised for the Ryan’s well foundation. They were excited to discover that they surpassed their goal and raised an amazing total of $318. Money was raised through a classroom bake sale and collection jar. They students were very proud that they were able to make a difference and were thrilled that the money will be going towards building a well in Africa.
And the Winner is…
On June 8, 2010, the three winning schools for 2009/2010 were presented with their prizes at the Board meeting. The winning schools of the SCS Conservation CHALLENGE for 2009/2010 were:
1st prize – Corpus Christi School
They (Principal/Lead Teacher and several lead students) were presented with a $1,500 cheque and the CHAMPION banner by Mr.Jody Cameron, Board Chairperson!
2nd prize – Immaculate Conception School
They (Principal/Lead Teacher and several lead students) were presented with a $500 cheque by Mr.Jody Cameron, Board Chairperson
3rd prize – St. Charles School
They (Principal/Lead Teacher and several lead students) were presented with a $500 cheque by Mr.Jody Cameron, Board Chairperson
With its ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility and stewardship, the Sudbury Catholic District School Board (SCDSB) once again launched the School Conservation CHALLENGE for the 4th consecutive year, in September!
In 2006, Senior Administration approved the creation of a contest/challenge that would enhance the effectiveness of the Dearness Conservation Program in addition to acknowledging “Environmental Champions” within our schools! Thus, the “SCDSB School Conservation CHALLENGE” was born.
The selection of the CHAMPIONS for the School Conservation CHALLENGE is based on a point system using the three following categories:
1. An unannounced site visit during the school year.
2. An interview with the Principal of each participating school.
3. Submission of reports and other relevant materials by the participating school.
The school that has attained the most points using these three categories is deemed the winner – the school wins $1,500 to put towards a greening project at their school and a banner that they can display with pride for the next year! Two runner-up schools receive each a prize of $500 for greening projects as well!
Previous winners include Pius XII School (2006/2007), Immaculate Conception School (2007/2008) and St. Francis School (2008/2009).
Congratulations all Award Recipients
It was a great night for Aboriginal students from St. Benedict CSS, Marymount Academy, and St. Charles College. Students from all three Catholic Secondary Schools walked away with awards ranging from excellence in athletics, extra-curricular involvement, academic achievement and cultural recognition. “It’s a wonderful way for the community to come together to support our students’ achievements” Shelly Frappier, Native Studies Teacher from St. Benedict CSS stated.
For the past six years, aboriginal students across the Sudbury area have been honoured for their accomplishments during the school year at the Aboriginal Secondary School Awards Banquet. The banquet honours achievements in a number of categories and encourages community, family and peers to come out and support our youth. “It makes me feel very proud when I see former students of mine up on stage being honoured for graduating secondary school” explained Verna Hardwick, Native Language Teacher at St. David and St. Raphael schools. Verna Hardwick and her Ojibwe language students sang the opening honour song, said the opening prayer in Ojibwe and closed the evening with a closing song.
Special thanks to the wonderful staff of the United Way and Gezhtoojig Employment and Training who sponsor this event, in conjunction with local school boards and community agencies.
Congratulations to all award winners and graduates!
Corpus Christi Wins Annual Battle of the Books
Congratulations to the Corpus Christi Battle of the Books Reading Club on their fine performance at the final competition on May 19 as they placed first in a field of 16 teams from around the Sudbury District. Students demonstrated great teamwork skills and amazing memories as they responded to questions about books they’ve read throughout the school year. Many thanks to the Sudbury Public Library for hosting the event and Chapters for sponsoring the event.
St. Anne Staff “Pied” for School Challenge
Students at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School were issued a challenge. The school takes part every year in the Jump Rope for Heart Event but Vice Principal Laura Stirrett felt that this year, they could do more. Stirrett set a few fundraising goals for the students and asked them to try to outdo what they had done in the past. If they met these challenges, then certain staff members would have to take part in some interesting challenges of their own.
The goals set for the students were as follows:
Bronze challenge – if the students raised $1000, then Vice Principal Laura Stirrett and Custodian Daniel Sauve would have their hair spraypainted different colours for the day.
Silver challenge – if the students raised $1500, Vice Principal Laura Stirrett and Custodian Daniel Sauve would have pies thrown in their face as well as have their hair spraypainted.
Gold challenge – if the students raised $2000, then the the Vice Principal and Custodian would have their hair spraypainted, pies thrown in their face… and would be subjected to a silly string attack.
Platinum challenge – after these challenges went out, Vice Principal Laura Stirrett threw down the final gauntlet and said that if these challenges were not only met but surpassed and the school raised $3500, then the students could subject not only herself and the custodian, but St. Anne Principal Guy Mathieu as well!
Well, the students surpassed all fundraising challenges and managed to raise an amazing $6300 in just one week. To the delight of students and staff, top fundraising students took the opportunity to spraypaint hair, throw pies and spray silly string at the Principal, Vice Principal and Custodian without consequences. In the gym the students screamed with excitement as the three staff members could do nothing but sit and take the abuse. Congratulations to all of the students and staff at St. Anne for taking on such a great challenge with fantastic school spirit!
MMA Flag Football Teams Played Strong in Toronto Tournament
It was a great two days of football for the Marymount A and B teams on May 13 and 14 as they took part in the 2010 Danny Bob Invitational Girls Flag Football Tournament in Toronto. Despite the teams’ football season already being over in November, the girls ran a few practices at the beginning of May and headed to Toronto to take part in this tournament for the second year in a row. The Marymount A team included senior girls and the B team was comprised mostly of Grades 8, 9, and 10 girls. Twenty teams took part in the two days of football and other Sudbury teams included girls from Lasalle Secondary and Notre Dame College. At the end of the tournament, the Marymount A team finished strong and took home the Second place trophy. Danny Bob, organizer of the event was thrilled with the Marymount contingent and told the Regals’ coach, Matthew Wiecha that he was impressed with the strength of the A team and the spirit and work ethic of the B team. He also invited some of the Marymount players to join him for tournaments in Florida, the Domenican and other parts of the USA as he coaches a traveling girls flag football team that is made up of players from all over the province. Coach Matthew Wiecha was thrilled with the teams’ performances againstt all of the teams and is already looking forward to next year’s tournament.
Knit One, Purl Two… Learning New Skills at S.C.C.
“I’m a knitting machine,” student Andrea Van Bekkum exclaimed when asked about her new found skill. The St. Charles College Lifeskills class invited teacher Elizabeth Szilva’s mother, Betty Szilva in to teach the students the skill of knitting. “In conversation with my mother, I got the idea that knitting might be a great experience for the kids,” Szilva said. “It is a lost art – and can be a great way to work on the students’ fine motor skills, expand their socialization skills and also learn how to deal with frustration.” They then came up with a class project to create a “crazy quilt”. Each student works on their individual piece and then Mrs.(Betty) Szilva takes the finished pieces home and crochets them together. For those that can, the students sit around in a knitting circle and their teacher explains that this is also a great exercise in working on their conversation skills. For other in the class, different adaptions are made to allow them to participate in the knitting, for instance those that need arm support sit in front of a desk in order to better support their arms. Students who require even more assistance dictate their knitting instructions to the teacher or educational assistant working with them and the staff member carries out their knitting task. Mrs. (Betty) Szilva inspired some of the more reluctant boys to start knitting by telling them the story of famous Montreal Canadian goalie Jacques Plante who learned to knit from his mother and later used this skill to relax himself between games. The students are allowed to take their piece home to work on and have recruited help from their mothers and grandmothers. With a huge grin, student Brandon Brown laughed when asked about his new-found skills. “I like knittin’,” Brown replied, and continued on with his needles and wool, eager to continue on his project.