Tuesday 25 October 2016

Is it really June ???



Welcome to June!

Greetings to all.  Now that June has arrived we're into the home stretch of our school year.  I do want to caution everyone that 15 class days remain on our schedule and then we have five days of formal examinations.  Even though the weather has us all thinking about summer....the holidays are still one full month away!

As a friendly reminder to all parents/guardians/and caregivers....thank you for reminding your son/daughter that OT is a place of work.  School is not a beach club, or a night club, and we continue to expect OT students to dress appropriately.  Thank you for reinforcing this expectation at home.  A synermail message will be sent home at the end of this week to review expectations around dress while at school.


OTHS Achievements:

The past few weeks have seen many successes for OT students.  Here are but a few:

a) Math Competition Stars

Congratulations to OT students for their awesome achievements at the Halton Math Competition.  At the Senior Level OT students finished FIRST and THIRD against opponents from other Oakville locations  Our first place team was comprised of..... while our third place team included....

At the Junior level OT students once again were the class of the field.  Our Junior team members were Doug....

b) Rugby Rolls...

Once again OT has dominated on the Rugby pitch.  Both senior and junior teams won Halton Championships in comfortable fashion.  This week our senior girls and boys teams are representing GHAC at OFSAA (Ottawa for the Girls and Markham for the Boys).  Both teams are hoping to continue their excellent results against the rest of the province.
NOTE:  Our Senior Girls Rugby team had an excellent OFSAA Tournament finishing with a SILVER Medal.  While the girls fought hard they were narrowly edged by a very strong JF Ross team.  Awesome season girls.
The boys team began their tournament this morning.  Stay tuned for updates.

c) Baseball's a Hit.

For the first time in a number of years OT has fielded a baseball team....and an undefeated season has resulted!!!!  Congratulations to the players and coaches on an undefeated regular season run.  Playoffs are underway and everyone is hopeful of continued success.

d) Music Rules

Last week our tremendously talented musicians performed their Spring Concert in front of a full house.  Under the wonderful guidance of Mr. Clarke, Ms. Kang, Ms. Socha, and Ms. Malloch families and friends were treated to some amazing talent.  Music continues to grow at OT and we're all looking forward to continued success in the years to come.

e) Track and Field

Congratulations to the athletes who represented OTHS in Track and Field this year.  Our numbers continue to grow and OT is continuing to make more of an impact  across the region.  Last week one of our athletes achieved a remarkable feat.  Congratulations to Rachel Don-Wauchope for her GOLD Medal in the Midget Girls 3,000 m race at the South Regional Meet in St. Catharines.  Rachel heads off to the OFSAA Championship Meet this Saturday in Windsor.  Good luck Rachel.
Congratulations to our other athletes who competed down in St. Catharines as well.  It's a great accomplishment to  compete in Regionals.  Way to go Chris, Roberto, Jacob, and Ryan.


PROM

Our Senior Class Prom was a wonderful event at Liuna Station in Hamilton.  All students looked amazing and their conduct was excellent.  Congratulations to our graduating seniors.  You've made quite the impression over the past years and we know you'll continue to achieve great things in the years to come.  All the best.


EXAMS

Exams are almost upon us.  Please take care to note one change from previous years.  Exams will begin on a Wednesday this year.  Our Exam schedule has been released and all students should have marked the date and room location for each of their exams.  All exams begin at 9:00 a.m. and all students are expected in their exam rooms before the starting point.

If there are any challenges/problems/conflicts with your child's exam schedule please notify the main office as soon as possible.



Time for something different.....





Following 30 years with the Halton District School Board - including 20 years as a Teacher (History, Physical Education, Co-operative Education, and Guidance) and 10 years as an Administrator - I have made the decision to retire.

I am very interested in continuing to work in Education however .... it's time to consider some alternative opportunities.  Over the course of the next six months Laura and I will be re-locating to Niagara on the Lake and I will begin considering some options.  Foremost in my mind is the possibility of pursuing International School opportunities.  Whether in an Administrative capacity or perhaps as a Counsellor, I continue to enjoy working with young people in a High School setting.

Regardless, I know that I will continue to remain connected to education whether I'm coaching a basketball or football team as a community volunteer, or by returning to a school-based location in a far-off locale.  I look forward to a 'next phase' of life-long-learning via the challenge of an international school, and know that despite retiring from the HDSB I will continue to maintain close ties with education.

For now.....until next time.....

John