From the Principal...

September 27, 2024


Dear T.A.B Families,


This morning as I wrote this letter, the students were preparing for the Terry Fox Run/Walk. We are still optimistic about reaching our goal but do still have a way to go. If you would like to assist us by making a donation, it can be done by going to our website and opening the donation link. Thank you for supporting our students and demonstrating that together we can make a difference.


Monday September 30th has been declared “Orange Shirt Day.  “The orange shirt has become a symbol of hope, reconciliation and a commitment to a better future.” - Curtis Ennis. We would encourage all staff and students to wear orange that day to demonstrate their support for reconciliation and commit to the enduring truth that Every Child Matters.


Last evening our Guidance Staff presented information concerning the college and university applications process, it was well attended. If you were unable to attend, the information is posted on our website and linked below in the Student Success information section of this newsletter.


Our first School Council meeting will be held on Thursday October 10th in the cafeteria. At our first meeting we will need to elect a Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer. If you are interested in being nominated for one or more of those positions please let me know so I can add your name to the ballot. Our first meeting will be in person only and we will then make the decision about future meetings and virtual broadcasts. I am looking forward to meeting many of you that evening and getting to learn more about the T.A.B community.


On October 10th, staff will be emailing families the 5th week reports. All grade 9’s will receive this report, however only students in grades 10-12 with a grade that is 60% or below will receive a 5th week report. If you have any questions or concerns, please call or email the teachers. They will respond to your inquiry within 24 hours by calling you or email. If you have further concern, please do not hesitate to call or email me directly to discuss the situation so we can arrive together at a reasonable solution. 


Parent/Teacher Interviews are scheduled for October 17th and a week prior to that you will have an opportunity to schedule individual interviews.


From Student Success:

eLearning Opt Out Form:

Students are required to earn two eLearning credits to graduate from secondary school as part of the 30 credits required for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). * Students may opt out of this requirement using this Opt-out Form. This form is due on November 25, 2024 for students graduating this year).

40 Hours of Community Involvement 

Students can submit Community Hours using the following link: https://bit.ly/TABCommunityHours.

Please note that for graduating students, Hours are due to Guidance by April 1, 2025. In addition, the HDSB will no longer be recording Hours past the 40 required for Graduation.  Students who have completed additional Hours are urged to keep a record of these activities independently in case they would like to use them for scholarship applications, etc in their Grade 12 year.  

New HDSB process:  External Credits

Students who are completing courses outside the HDSB in the regular school year must complete the HDSB External Credit Declaration Form.  Final report cards are due to the Guidance office on the last day of regular classes in the semester the student is taking the course to ensure the course is included on the student’s Graduation Summary.  Please refer to the form for additional details.  

Grade 12 Post Secondary Presentation

Thank you to the parents, guardians and students who attended our Grade 12 Post Secondary Presentation on Thursday night.  The slides of this presentation are here.  Please note that this presentation will be delivered to Grade 12 students through Grade Assemblies in Period 5 on October 1 and 2.  Students with spares or eLearning classes will be invited to attend a specific day via their HDSB email account.  

Guidance Appointment Booking

If you would like to book a Guidance Appointment, please see the specific Counsellor Booking links below:

https://bit.ly/BookWithMcAllan

https://bit.ly/BookWithChenAllen

https://bit.ly/BookWithSvendsen

Just a reminder that the T.A. Blakelock website tab.hdsb.ca can be a helpful resource to parents/guardians and students for school related information and updates. Please check it frequently to stay informed. Also please be sure to follow us on social media - Twitter - @TABTigerLife and Instagram - @blakelocktigers.

Have a great weekend!


John Stieva
Principal

September 20, 2024


Dear T.A.B Families,


It has been another positive week with students settling into their classes, school activities and sports. I want to thank the students for the Club Fair, explaining the faces of the club and recruiting new members. Also a thank you to staff advisors who give of their free time so students can participate in clubs and teams.


This coming week we have one major event planned for Friday September 27th which is the Terry Fox Run and Walk. This year we will not be asking you to complete a permission form. Instead, we will assume that all students are allowed to participate unless you indicate otherwise by emailing me at stievaj@hdsb.ca to inform us that your child is not allowed to leave school grounds. There is a modified school schedule for that day, shown below and can also be found on our website. To complete the walk, we will have 3 food trucks here for students to purchase lunch. There are also activities planned to engage students to foster and build our sense of T.A.B community. A map of the prepared route is shown below. Please remind your child that they are representing the school in the community and we want to leave a positive impression with our neighbours.


Donations may be made by using the following link. We need your help to meet our goal of $20,000, thank you for your support.


The football team played their first game today at Bronte Sports Field today at 2:00pm! Go Tigers!


Reminder to please complete the Start Up forms that were sent on September 4th and Verification forms on September 16th. These are important forms that the school requires to have up to date  emergency information for your student, and to give permission to participate in school activities.


The T.A. Blakelock website tab.hdsb.ca can be a helpful resource to parents/guardians and students for school related information and updates. Please check it frequently to stay informed. Please be sure to follow us on social media - Twitter - @TABTigerLife and Instagram - @blakelocktigers and check the T.A. Blakelock High School website regularly for information and updates.


Have a great weekend!


John Stieva
Principal
T.A.Blakelock High School

September 13, 2024

Dear T.A.B families,

I want to start with an apology in that I did not write a newsletter last week. I understand from staff and students that a Friday newsletter is a tradition so I will for now maintain that expectation.


The past two weeks have been a very positive start to the school year. Students and staff have settled into the routine of a school day.


In the past week we have had picture day, teams are practicing and this coming Tuesday we will have a club fair. This is an excellent opportunity to gather information about clubs that run in the school, the times and days that they meet and the focus of the clubs. Please encourage your students to select one of interest to them and be involved, which generates a sense of belonging to the school.


Activity-wise we are looking forward to the Terry Fox Walk/Run fundraiser for cancer. Based on the amount raised in the 23/24 year, the organizers believe that we can raise $20,000.00 this year. Given the generosity of our community, that appears to be a realistic goal.


We have been fortunate in that we were able to fill all our teaching vacancies for both semesters. Welcome to all our new staff and students to one of the best schools in Ontario.


School Council dates for 24/25 meetings are: Oct.10, Nov.14, Feb.21 and Apr.24. All meetings will be in the lower level of the cafeteria and start at 7:00pm. If you are interested in serving in one of the executive positions of Chair, Secretary & Treasurer, please inform me by email. Voting will be held at our first meeting on Oct.10. Prior to the meeting I will be conducting a brief tour so you can see the renovations that have been completed and are already being used by students. If you are interested in the tour, please meet me in the cafeteria at 6:30pm.

School Council meetings are designed to acquaint yourself with the school, ask questions and make suggestions. To make the meetings interesting and of value to you, let me know “what you would like to know”.


With a new school year in full swing, Oakville Transit would like to update and remind students
of the services they could benefit from:


Please feel free to call or email me if you have questions or wish to express a concern. I hope everyone has a great weekend.


John Stieva
Principal

Thomas A. Blakelock H.S

September 6, 2024


Dear Blakelock Families,

I am excited to begin my first year here at T.A.B as the new Principal. I have heard lots of positive comments about T.A.B, its programs, students & staff and a very supportive community.  As you may know, I have come from Iroquois Ridge where I was the Principal for 6 years. I look forward to the opportunity to meet many of you at school functions and Parent’s Night.

This past summer has been busy construction-wise. Science labs are being totally renovated and the expectation is that two labs will be completed by September 12 and three others by the end of October. This amount of construction during the first weeks and months of school will require a considerable amount of flexibility both from students and staff.

 
Welcome to grade 9 students as together we start a new school together! Always a few days of trying to find your way and occasionally getting lost but all part of navigating a new building. Welcome back to grade 10-12’s and if you see me or others who are new to the school looking a little lost, we probably are, but we are depending on you to point the way. Kindness, compassion and respect are the foundation of a positive school climate, making high school enjoyable every day.

Tuesday September 3rd is a Professional Activity Day where staff spend the day getting ready for the return of students. Staff have a full day of learning as well as time to prepare their classrooms.


For students in our C.P.P program, September 4th is a full day with a regular schedule. For all other students we will be operating under a special schedule. Grade 9 students are expected to arrive at 8:15am and will spend the morning with the Link Crew Leaders in various activities to welcome them to T.A.B. Students in grades 10-12 will arrive at 12:00pm and all students will attend all four classes in the afternoon with a shortened schedule. Buses will run on a regular schedule, any students grades 10-12 who take a bus and will be here in the morning are welcome to wait in the cafeteria. Please note that the servery will not be open and there will be no food service this day.


For students who are bussed to school and require further information about bus stops or schedule, please contact www.haltonbus.ca or call Halton Transportation at 1-888-803-8660.

Updated student timetables for the 2024-25 school year will be emailed to student HDSB email accounts by September 1st.  


Students can request course changes via this Google Form:   https://bit.ly/TABCourseChanges2024-25


Please note that many courses have waitlists.  If a request for a specific course has previously been submitted and it does not appear on the timetable, the student has been added to the waitlist for that course.  Guidance will contact the student if/when a space is available.  


Guidance Counsellors will be unable to process requests submitted via email. The Guidance team is meeting with new students and also working to process course requests as quickly as possible.  Your patience is appreciated.  


Guidance Counsellors for the 2024-25 school year are listed below should you have additional questions:  


Ms. Christine McAllan - Students with last names beginning A - B.

Ms. Shu Yen Chen-Allen - Students with last names beginning C - Mc.

Ms. Diana Svendsen - Students with last names beginning Me - Z.  


Once the school year begins, students can also visit the Guidance office if they have additional questions.  


Timetable change requests for Semester 1 will be processed up to Thursday, September 12, 2024 at 4pm.  


The online appointment booking calendar will be available for student/parent booking beginning on September 16th.  Additional information will be provided to students and families closer to this date.  


On September 4th we will be emailing families the first of two yearly start up google forms. These forms are to authorize photo use, and participation in outdoor activities and walking excursions.  Please read through them carefully and submit electronically no later than Sept. 23rd.  In class, students will receive a permission form to be returned to their homeroom teacher as soon as possible.  This is an intramural form to participate in school activities including the annual Terry Fox Run.  The second start up google form is the verification form to verify and correct personal information including addresses, phone numbers and emails.  This form will be communicated later in September.  


Student card photos have been scheduled for Tuesday Sept.10th. All students must have a student card to be admitted to school functions after school or during the evenings. 


Please submit $20.00 on School Cash Online for the School Engagement Fee. These funds allow us to offer students extra curricular activities, support clubs with start up fees, bring in speakers for student assemblies, offset the expenses for whole school events. We greatly appreciate your support and generosity in supporting your school.


Looking forward to another great year!


John Stieva

Principal

T.A. Blakelock High School



August 30, 2024


To Students & Staff:


Recently the Ministry of Education issued the following directions concerning the use of cell phones in Secondary Schools.

All members of the school community must not use mobile devices during instructional time except under the following circumstances:

Grade 9-12 students personal mobile devices should be stored out of view and powered off or set to silent mode during instructional time, except where you have received permission from the classroom teacher.


In consultation with students and staff we will be developing school expectations for use of personal mobile devices and possible consequences if these guidelines are not adhered to by students.