Hello Independent Students (Adult Learners) and Parents/Guardians of our under 18 students, I can hardly believe we are already into mid November. I would like to share a few important updates with you. As many of you are aware, we are a continuous enrollment school. This means that we have ongoing registration all year long. Despite this fluidity, there are certain processes and procedures that still apply to DC. Our teachers use PowerSchool and you are able to view updated attendance and grades when you log in to either the student or parent portals. For any specific attendance or grade related questions, please reach out directly to the Assistant Principal or Guidance & Student Services Learning Leader that supports your respective site. Contact information can be found here: Discovering Choices - About Us - Staff Individual Program Plans (IPPs) and Student Support Plans (SSPs) for students that joined us in September are now ready for your review. Teachers should be in touch with you to arrange a meeting to review these documents. It is important we incorporate student and guardian voice in the creation of these documents. On November 28th we will be hosting a meet the teacher / student progress conference. Given that most of our students are over 18, these look a little different from a typical school. However, the essence is still the same. This is a non instructional day and parents are free to connect that day to meet with teachers in person or online between 9:00-2:30. This is also a good time to review IPPs, SSPs, and to have Success In Schools meetings. Please email your respective Assistant Principal to setup a time. Please also note that you do not have to wait for official conference dates – you are always able to reach out to teachers if you have any questions or need an update. There are a number of great learning opportunities available at all of our sites that I’d like to share with you, along with key contacts: Students can participate in “In Person Phys Ed” at the MNP center on most Fridays as well as monthly field trips to various rec centers (climbing center, mini golf, batting cages, curling, etc.). Please contact Jillian Pickerell: jlpickerell@cbe.ab.ca for more information. We have a partnership with the Esker Foundation and our students may participate in art classes both at their site and at the Esker Foundation with practicing artists within the community. Please contact Carmen Pederson: cmpedersen@cbe.ab.ca for more information. All of our sites have a wide range of offerings in Career and Technology and Option classes including: Photography, Foods, Fashion Studies, Robotics, CommTech, Drama and Dance. Please reach out to your respective Assistant Principal to learn more about the offerings at your specific Discovering Choices location. Also, students that know an additional language may be eligible to complete a language challenge exam and earn 15 credits toward their diploma. The following languages courses may be challenged: Arabic, French, Cantonese, Mandarin, Punjabi, Spanish, Ukrainian, Filipino, Italian. Please contact Emmett Cook: emcook@cbe.ab.ca for more information. At Discovering Choices we do a fantastic job at including student voices in our decision making. There are a number of different student groups that meet regularly depending on each site including: GSA, Indigenous Students' Advisory Group, Youth Council, and In the Lead. Please reach out to your Assistant Principal for more information. These various groups offer leadership development for students and allow for student voices to be included in school decisions. Historically, Discovering Choices has not had a School Council or a School Society. In a typical K-12 school, these two groups are mostly comprised of parents. However, given that the average age of our students is 18+; independent students are also eligible to be a part of these groups. - School councils exist to advise the principal and the Board of Trustees on school matters.
- School societies are a formal group incorporated under the Societies Act for the purpose of raising funds for the school. A society is a separate legal entity from the school council and may fundraise through casinos.
School council and school society meetings must be kept separate and distinct. Meetings of the two groups may be held on the same date as long as the meeting of one group officially comes to an end before the other meeting begins (e.g., school council meeting 7-8 p.m. and society meeting 8-9 p.m.). Meeting minutes should also be recorded separately. If independent students and guardians are interested in coming together, I would welcome the formation of these groups. Our meeting would be on Dec 3 at 6pm on TEAMS. -Join the meeting now Meeting ID: 241 487 603 837 35 Passcode: hj6tw2Wm Please reach out if there’s anything I can help with. Have a great day. Best, Patrick Tomczyk, PhD Principal | 