Transcript of Opening Remarks from September 21 "Meet the Teacher" Event:
Oki, Tansi, Danit’ada, Aba-wath-tech, Bonjour, and Welcome everyone to Vincent Massey School for our meet the teacher evening. My name is David Pugh and I am the proud principal of this school. We have a tremendously diverse population of nearly 800 students from a large area of western and central Calgary. Some of them are born and raised here, some of them have only been in Canada for a few weeks. Regardless, we share a great learning community in a beautiful part of the world. I only actually speak one of the languages with which I greeted you, and if you are a native speaker of Canada’s other official language, or of the Blackfoot, Stoney, Michif, or Tsuut’ina languages of Treaty 7, you will be relieved that I will spare you any further bad pronunciation. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that this community and this place are part of Treaty 7 and, regardless of our backgrounds, we are all Treaty 7 people. With that in mind, we would like to acknowledge the traditional territories and oral practices of the Blackfoot Nations, which includes the Siksika, the Piikani and the Kainai. We also acknowledge the Tsuut’ina and Stoney Nakoda First Nations, the Métis Nation (Region 3), and all people who make their homes in the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta.
While we are a large and diverse community, our commitment – the commitment of this team - is to connect with every student as an individual. Research and, to be frank, common sense, tell us that students who feel a sense of connection and belonging will be more successful as we work towards our common goals, which are that your children are engaged in their current learning, prepared for future learning, and ultimately that they experience success in life. There are many ways that we support those connections – extracurricular and intramural sports, a selection of clubs, field trips, special activity days, our strong band and outdoor education programs, and a rich variety of option courses, all of which you’ll see evidence of in the building today. On a personal note, I feel incredibly fortunate to have landed at Vincent Massey – there is so much going on all the time and so many opportunities to have school be a fun experience.
That being said, at the core of our work are our regular classes. I’m still learning lots about this school but one thing that has been absolutely clear from day one is that we have an amazing group of teachers doing that work every day. You’ll have a chance to meet them this evening, so I won’t put them on the spot with one-by-one introductions right now, but I did want to spotlight our leadership team, starting with the learning leaders.
Mr. Court Rustymeyer works with our option programs, particularly outdoor education, and is also part of our well-being and student leadership team.
Mr. Andrew Cull is one or our math and science experts, is a leader in of our Grade 7 team and has been instrumental in moving forward indigenous learning in the building.
Ms. Teri Oberlin is a true literacy expert and has joint responsibility for humanities instruction, as well as being the other half of the Grade 7 leadership team.
Ms. Cheryl Ruttle also leads our humanities team and, as part of the Grade 8 and 9 teaching teams, has an eye on high school readiness and the needs of our older students.
Mr. Kyle Geraldi is master of all things athletic, leading our PE team and supporting our school well-being and student voice goals and is a coordinator of many of our extracurricular activities.
Mr. Cory Hall has a passion for construction and is another leader of our option classes. He also has an extensive background in guidance counselling and complex needs programs, and we draw on his expertise to support at-risk students.
Ms. Angela Weimer is our resource teacher and specifically helps students with identified special needs, as well as providing more general strategies and support as we collaborate to work with every student’s unique needs.
Last but certainly not least in our leadership team is Ms. Meghann Springett. As Assistant Principal, Meghann is the other half of the administration team, and we speak with one voice on the overall organization and leadership of the school. Meghann is a tremendously capable professional and I’ve been very fortunate to have her experience and support as I’ve transitioned into this role. We’ve quickly found that our philosophy of leadership and vision for middle school learning is very much aligned. If you are speaking to Meghann, you are speaking to me, and vice versa.
Please give a big hand to all these amazing teachers!
I’ve spoken about students and staff but there is a third critical part of our community and that is, you, the parents and guardians. I believe in strong partnerships with families and strive for clear, open, and frequent communication. If you have any questions regarding your child’s learning, your first point of contact should be the classroom teacher. For general information, we try to keep the school website up to date and accurate. You can also find a “parent cheat sheet” under the “Contact Us” section of the website, which outlines all the processes to get in touch and follow up on any questions or concerns you may have.
There are also more formal opportunities to get connected with the school. These include the School Council, as well as Parent and Band Associations. Obviously, fundraising efforts are a key part of their work and are important, as they bring much appreciated resources that support and enhance the learning experience of students. However, the School Council also has an important consultative role and is the best way to get fully informed about the overall administration, operations, and teaching philosophy at Vincent Massey. We have several key positions that need to be filled but there are other opportunities to get involved if you would like.
Remarks from Chris Le Bihan, chair of the Vincent Massey Parent Council Association.
In just a moment, I’m going to invite you to head to the first stop on your evening meet the teacher tour. Grade 7’s can go to their A Day option class, Grade 8’s can start in the North Gym with PE, Grade 9’s will start with their Math/Science teachers. Please remember that the purpose of this evening is to “put a face to a name” and understand the overall plans and expectations for each class. If you do need a personal meeting prior to the formal conferences, you should email the teacher to set something up.
Also, as you may have experienced in your own homes, we do have some of the inevitable early school year bugs working their way through the building and a couple of teachers are not here. In particular, I wanted to mention that Ms. Campbell, who is the humanities teacher for 7-1 and 7-35 is sick and we have recently confirmed that Mr. Hargreaves is not returning to Vincent Massey. Ms. Sydney Wilson has stepped into the role in the near term but, since she’s only just joined us, she isn’t with us tonight. All that to say that parents of students in 7-1 and 7-35 can join other members of the Grade 7 team in Rooms 4 or 23. I apologize for the inconvenience and disappointment, but our Grade 7 team does work very closely, so you’ll have a good sense of the overall plan and expectations for the year.
If you’re not sure where to go, please look at the posted signs or speak to one of the student volunteers in the hallway.
Enjoy your time in the school!
