Winter Concert

Don't miss the upcoming Winter Concert on Thursday, December 5 at 7 pm. Join us for some free music. The show will feature our Rock Band, Jazz Band, Friday Choir, Junior Band, Senior Band, and various student features. You don't want to miss this wonderful evening of entertainment with our talented Garth Webb musicians and teachers.

Our music department is also asking for donations to help support our amazing music programs. You can donate online using this link or with cash at the Winter Concert. Thank you so much for your support!

Junior Semi Formal - Dec 12

Hey Grade 9s and 10s! Mark your calendars for December 12 because the Junior Semi-Formal is coming your way! This year's theme is Winter Ball, and it's all happening in the Garth Webb Cafeteria from 7:00 to 9:30 pm. Get ready for a night of great food, awesome music, and unforgettable memories. We can't wait to see you there!  

Tickets are $15 and available on School Cash Online.

DECA Business Club

Over 120 students attended the DECA Regional Competition at Brock University, St. Catharines on November 10, 2024.  Students competed in a business case study competition where they had to analyze a business scenario and provide realistic and creative solutions for how to improve a situation that is affecting a fictional business organization. The Garth Webb DECA team supervisors want to congratulate all students who put in the time and effort to prepare for this competition. 

Special mention goes to the following students for achieving strong results that qualified them to compete in upcoming DECA Provincial Competition in February 2025:

Grade 9s

Anna Gharibyan, Maria Polyanska, Rayna Singh

Grade 10s

Inaya Aslam, Reeva Jiyani, Allaya Omer

Grade 11s

Alina An,  Arthur Chao, Samantha Halim, Ira Parasnis

Grade 12s

Husni Al-Bustami, Sara Alsamman, Summar Alsamman, Olivia Goodstadt, Diya Kalia, Lydia Kwag, Joo-Eun Lee, Henry Moore, Menha Omer, Will Wang, Jason Van Wyk, Evelyn Zhu

School Council Fundraiser

Please Support Your Garth Webb School Council Fundraising Campaign

Our Goal: $15,000         

Raised to date: $6,088

Hello Garth Webb Families!

As we enter the final few days of our School Council Fundraising Campaign for the 2024-2025 school year, we want to thank everyone who has donated so far!

We are at 41% of our $15,000 goal and every donation counts! Help us reach this year’s goal by donating today.

All money raised through this fundraising campaign will be spent on things that will help build a better all-around education for our students in and outside of the classroom. 

Funds Raised Support the purchase of: 

• New technology 

• Musical instruments

• Enhancing our school environment (e.g. murals and gardens)

• Angel Fund

• Athletic teams

• Academic teams (including Robotics and EV)

• Awards and bursaries

• Breakfast Club

• And much more

Our Goal

We’re asking all GWSS families to consider donating with a goal of $30 per student though we appreciate any amount you can give. Help our students charge into the future. Tax receipts will automatically be provided for donations of $20 or more.

Our 2024-2025 campaign will end this Tuesday, December 3 which is Giving Tuesday. We are still only at 41% of our goal and 63% of last year's fundraising so please consider making a donation today!

Donations can be made online through this link.

Thank you for your contribution!

 Sincerely,

GWS School Council

Grad Photo Bookings

Attention Grade 12s! Be sure to book your grad photo sitting so you don't miss out on being in the grad composite and in the grad section of the yearbook. Grad photos are happening here at the school now and will run through December 13.

Click here to book your appointment today!

2SLGBTQIA+ Parent/Guardian Advocacy and Support Group

The December meeting for our group has been rescheduled from this week to Thursday, December 12 (7-8 pm). 

The goal of the group is to provide a safe space to share resources, expand our education, learn how to better advocate for and support our children, and to share our challenges and victories. We will work together to advocate for all students who experience social and systemic discrimination based on their 2SLGBTQIA+ identity. We have a zero tolerance policy for any kind of discrimination within our group. 

We are always happy to welcome new members so if you would like to attend our meeting on Thursday, December 12 or would like more information about the group, please email Kerri Lee at leeke@hdsb.ca. A link for the meeting will be sent to the group members prior to December 12.

Tuesdays @Ten

December’s Tuesdays @Ten session will be taking place on Tuesday, Dec 3. This month's topic will be Scholarships and Financing Post Secondary Education.During the presentation, we will share information on the various scholarships that exist, resources available to help support applications and a quick summary on OSAP.  A link to the meeting will be shared prior to the date. 

Course Selection 2025/2026 School Year

Student Services will be running Grade presentations around the course selection process for the 2025/2026 school year during the week of December 16. Information around the process and considerations will be shared with families in the coming weeks. Students will be able to select their courses using myBlueprint throughout the month of January.

Grade 12 - Post Secondary Applications and Graduation Requirements

This past month, Student Services met with all Grade 12 classes.  As a follow up to the presentation, we wanted to share the information below with students and their families. This message is a reminder of some important information as you navigate the postsecondary application process and completion of the final graduation requirements.

Community Hours

Students need to submit 40 community hours no later than May 1, 2025 for completion of the Ontario Secondary School Diploma. Students can submit their hours HERE. If needed, they can complete our recording form found HERE.

Online Learning Requirement

Students are also required to take two e-learning credits to graduate. However, students can opt out by returning this form to Student Services.

Post Secondary Applications - University

Students can apply via the Ontario Universities' Application Centre using their OENs (Ontario Education Number) and personal email account. An OEN can be found on a student’s report card. The due date for applications is January 15, 2025.

Post Secondary Applications - College 

Students can apply via ontariocolleges.ca using their personal email account. The due date for applications is February 1, 2025.

Scholarships

Information will be posted on the Grade 12 Google Classroom stream as well as in a document in Classwork. Information can also be found via the HDSB website: HDSB Scholarship Resources.

More details and resources on the above information can be found in our Grade 12 Presentation and Resource Slide Deck: Grade 12 Presentation 2024.

HDSB Guide to Post Secondary

The transition from secondary school to post-secondary is a significant journey and one that is both exciting and potentially overwhelming at the same time. The HDSB has put together this guide to help students and families navigate. Click here to check it out.

Community Hours: New in the 2024-2025 School Year

Students who complete more than 40 community involvement hours are encouraged to maintain their own record of completed community involvement hours. Secondary schools will no longer track and collect documentation for the completion of community involvement hours beyond the 40 hours required. Students can maintain a record of completed involvement hours through a digital or hard copy portfolio should they wish to have proof of hours for future scholarship, award and/or special program opportunities.

Community Involvement Recording Sheet

Submit Your Community Hours

National Scholarships - Grade 12 Students

Information around scholarships will be shared via the google classroom throughout the year.  Please note that most National Scholarship deadlines are in the fall where has community scholarships are in the Spring.  Please feel free to investigate these Scholarships to see if you are eligible.

Deadlines:

Queen's - Deadline typically early December

Schulich - School Nomination Jan. 30

Western National - TBD but usually mid-February

HDSB Scholarship Page

Volunteer Club

Volunteer Club dedicates to provide more volunteering opportunities to our students. Our goal is to make the information more accessible for everyone. We post opportunities weekly with all of the information included in our google classroom! If you want to learn more about our club and wish to find more opportunities, please join our google classroom through code: dtpah5l.

 You can also find us on instagram (@gwss.volunteer), LinkedIn (GWSS Volunteer Club), and Twitter (@gwss_volunteer)! If you have any question, feel free to email us at gwssvolunteerclub@gmail.com.

Opportunity for this Week:

Need help finding volunteer opportunities? Create a login for VolunteerConnector to find organizations in Halton looking for student volunteers! See link below to register.

VolunteerConnector

2025 Prime Minister’s Awards

Consider nominating an educator for a 2025 Prime Minister’s Award

This award is a chance to thank a teacher or early childhood educator who is inspiring children in all areas of life, from science and math to schoolyard interactions.

Who can nominate: Students, parents, colleagues, principals, supervisors, community leaders, or people with direct knowledge of the nominee's contribution can nominate a person.

 Prime Minister’s Awards recipients (for Teaching Excellence, Teaching Excellence in STEM and Excellence in Early Childhood Education) will receive a certificate from the Prime Minister and National recognition and promotion of their best teaching practices  

Check out the 2024 Prime Minister’s Award recipients for Teaching Excellence, Teaching Excellence in STEM, and Excellence in Early Childhood Education!

Download the Nomination package here. The nomination deadline is January 15, 2025.

NEW HDSB Multi-Year Strategic Plan

The HDSB has a new Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP)! The 2024-2028 MYSP will guide our work throughout the next four years to support students’ academic success, well-being and growth. Shaped by the collaborative efforts and voices of our community, each of the six commitments within this plan works in tandem to create supportive and effective learning environments. Stay tuned for more updates as we bring this plan to life inside and outside the classroom. Learn more here.

HDSB Bullying Response Protocol

Garth Webb, along with all schools in the #HDSB, is committed to taking immediate and proactive action to prevent and address all incidents of bullying to create safe, inclusive and welcoming environments for all students.

Our Bullying Response Protocol guides us to address every incident of bullying quickly and with care. Through our online reporting tool, students and families can confidentially report bullying. Visit the HDSB website to learn more about the Bullying Response Protocol, access the online reporting tool and explore resources for families to support bullying prevention.

Together, we can create a safe school environment for all. Learn more here.

Navigating the Chaos Support Group

• Do you find your school life chaotic or overwhelming? Do you often feel like you don’t know where to start? Are these challenges getting in the way of your goals? If so, this group might be for you.

• Navigating the Chaos is a small virtual group intended for students who experience difficulties managing their approach to tasks and assignments and navigating the sometimes chaotic day-to-day of secondary school life. 

Navigating the Chaos Self-Referral Form

Productivity Over Procrastination Support Group

• Do you often put things off until the last minute? Do you find yourself scrambling to complete tasks, despite your best intentions? Does this cause you stress or impact the outcome? If so, this group might be for you. 

• This small virtual group is intended for students whose primary difficulty is procrastination. 

Productivity Over Procrastination Self-Referral Form

An Important Message from Halton Region Public Health

Translated into the following languages: 

اَلْعَرَبِيَّةُ (Arabic)     Français (French)     हिंदी (Hindi)     ਪੰਜਾਬੀ (Punjabi)     中文 (Simplified Chinese)      

Español (Spanish)     اردو (Urdu) 

Students in Grade 9 to 12 for the upcoming school year must have up to date immunization records on file with Halton Region Public Health. This letter explains how to report your immunizations to Public Health if you have not done so already.

In Halton Region, many students do not have updated immunization records, either because they missed receiving routine vaccines, or because parents/guardians have not reported their children’s immunizations to Public Health.

In Ontario, the Immunization of School Pupils Act (ISPA) requires that children who attend school be immunized against nine diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, meningitis (meningococcal disease), whooping cough (pertussis), and chickenpox* (varicella - *immunization required for children born in 2010 or later).

For the 2024-2025 school year, Halton Region Public Health will review the immunization records of all Halton secondary students. Parents/guardians will be notified if their child’s record is not up-to-date. As directed by the ISPA, students may be suspended from school if their immunization records are not updated by October 2024. If your child is unable to be immunized for medical reasons, or if you choose not to immunize your child, you must submit vaccine exemption documentation to Halton Region Public Health. For more details about this process, please visit halton.ca/immunize.

Immunizations required for school attendance are free, safe, and effective.

Halton Region Public Health is asking parents/guardians of all students born in 2007 to 2010 (Grades 9 to 12 in the upcoming school year) to complete the following steps:

1. Review your child’s online record by visiting halton.ca/immunize.*

2. Book an immunization appointment with your health care provider if your child has missed any vaccines, or visit halton.ca/immunize to schedule an appointment at a Public Health Community Immunization Clinic (available throughout summer 2024).

3. Report vaccines to Public Health. Parents/guardians are responsible to report every vaccine their child receives to Public Health, because health care providers do not report immunizations they provide. Report vaccines by visiting halton.ca/immunize.  

To learn more about immunizations (including translated resources) visit ontario.ca/vaccines; or download A Parent's Guide to Vaccination at canada.ca/vaccines.

*For students who are new to the HDSB and from outside Ontario:

Students over 16 years, or parent/guardians/ custodians of students under 16 years, can either take their home country vaccine records in person to the Halton Regional Headquarters Building at 1151 Bronte Road in Oakville. 

OR a digit copy/photo can be emailed to accesshalton@halton.ca 

AND - request an Immunization Identification Number and Online Account access by emailing: vaccinerecords@halton.ca

For the email Subject Line, use --> "HDSB Student Outside of Ontario Vaccination Record Submission"

In the email body, please attach:

a photo or PDF of the student's vaccination record from their outside of Ontario jurisdiction, and include the following student information in the email: Student full LEGAL Name, which would be the name on their passport/ birth certificate.

Student Date of Birth, written with Month Day, Year - For example January 1, 2021

The HDSB School the student(s) are attending - For example: Garth Webb Secondary School

Click here for further information.

ROCK Workshops

Advanced Caregiving Workshop

Thursday in-person group running January 9-30 from 10:30-12:00 in Burlington 

Friday virtual group running January 10-31 from 10:30-12:00

The Advanced Caregiving workshop is a psycho-educational, prevention and early intervention clinical group developed to support caregivers in learning advanced skills for supporting their loved one with their mental health. Advanced Caregiving workshops are 90-minute sessions, delivered over 4 consecutive weeks and will introduce mental health recovery principles, Emotion Coaching, Validation and Behaviour Coaching skills.  

ROCK Your Self Esteem

WINTER REFERRALS OPENING as of November 26, 2024

Activities and crafts designed to increase feelings of self worth, self-compation, self-confidence, and much more! Join us for this 6 week, 2 hour long group on Wednesday evenings in Milton. For more information contact ROCK's ASN @289-266-0036.

 FIT

WINTER REFERRALS OPENING as of November 5, 2024; running February 5 - March 26, 2024 Wednesday's from 6:00-8:00 p.m. virtually. 

Caregivers can register on Bookwhen to receive a callback from ASN to register/create a Caseworks file: 

FIT is a unique, gender-affirming, psychoeducational group program originally designed and facilitated by mental health counsellors at Central Toronto Youth Services, now being offered through Queer@ROCK!

The primary goal of this intervention is to give families the tools they need to help trans, non-binary, and gender questioning youth feel fully supported in their homes.

This Families in Transition offering is a virtual group for the parents/caregivers of youth aged 13-17 who identify as trans, gender diverse and/or questioning.

Embrace and Empower 

WINTER REFERRALS OPENING as of November 6, 2024

Folks 13 to 17 years of age

Youth can register on Bookwhen to receive a callback to coordinate screening.

The Embrace & Empower program, in partnership with Speqtrum, focuses on exploring the historical and social influences that can impact queer and/or trans youth, their body image, body perception, identity and relationship with food. Embrace and Empower utilizes group-oriented peer-to-peer discussion and strategy-building activities to encourage body acceptance. Throughout the program, participants will explore identity, ancestry & queerness, queer and trans representation in new and old media, discuss queer and trans bodies around the world and unpack how food & body can be empowering, connecting and nourishing.

Here & Queer

WINTER REFERRALS OPENING as of November 4, 2024; February 4 - March 25 on Tuesday's from 6:00-7:30 p.m. In Oakville. 

Here & Queer is the raddest space for 2SLGBTQIA+ youth agesd 13-17 to build those friendships and master those social skills that keep them soaring! Brace yourself for a warm and welcoming community, where you can have fun, learn social skills, and feel safe to be you.

Upcoming Key Dates

Nov 11 - Dec 13 Grad Photos

Dec 3 HDSB Pathways - 4 - 10 pm (@IRHS)

Dec 3 Tuesdays @Ten

Dec 11 CP Day (late start @9:30 am)

Dec 12 15th Week in Danger Reports Emailed

Dec 20 Last Day of Classes in 2024 (early dismissal at 1:15 pm)

Dec 23 - Jan 3 Winter Break

Jan 6 First Day of Classes After Holiday

Jan 7 Tuesdays @Ten

Jan 22 Last Day of Classes for Semester 1

Jan 23 - 29 Semester 1 Exams

Jan 30 Exam Review Day

Jan 31 Professional Activity Day – No Classes