Earl Marriott Secondary School

On behalf of the entire staff, I am delighted to welcome everyone back to school. I hope that each of you enjoyed a very happy holiday and are looking forward to a successful, productive school year.

I am very excited about the upcoming year and look forward to seeing you all on September 7.

The summer season is ending and now it is time to begin a new and exciting year at EMS. I hope that everyone has spent a summer of relaxation and renewal. The Summer newsletter will be sent on Friday, August 27th and is designed to assist you in making a smooth transition from the summer holidays to the new school year. The Summer newsletter is full of information to make the return to school a positive experience. Please take the time to read it carefully as it has all the information you need for the first few weeks of school and especially procedures for September 7, 2010.

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The following is a school-wide announcement that was given to students after lunch today:

Afternoon Mariners,

It is truly unfortunate what occurred today at lunch. A premeditated food fight has left the deck area in a mess. Eggs were launched outside. We have a few students with injuries and many who had their clothing stained.

It is unfortunate that a few immature people can impact so many.

We will be checking the two video cameras in the cafeteria. We will be looking for anyone who threw food. Regardless of who started it, by throwing even the smallest of food, you have perpetuated the fight and could have caused injury to others.

We will make a list of those who threw any food substance from the video.

We ask any student who threw food to report to the cafeteria after school to help clean up the mess. Please make sure you sign in so you have been identified as having helped clean up. We will have mops and cloths ready for you to help with the clean up. If you help with the clean up we will not follow through with suspensions, sending you to write exams at another location or withholding of transcripts. All of these consequences are common consequences for this type of behavior. Once again, please make sure you sign in so you have been identified as having helped clean up

Students who do not show up after school and have been identified as having thrown food substances on the video, will be suspended starting next school year, will have to write exams at another location and/or will have their transcripts withheld until which time we will ask you to come pick them up.

Please note:

The cafeteria/Deck will be closed for the remainder of the year.

Teachers, please note that Locker clean up will be postponed until further notice.

Peter Johnston
Principal

Click below for the Principal’s message regarding the August Newsletter. Please note, that a school start-up package will be mailed home to you this week. Included with this package is the newsletter, a fridge magnet, and student schedule. If you have not received the start-up package by September 3rd please give the school a call.

Students will be able to pay their fees and get their assigned locker starting August 31st, at the main office. Please see page 6 of the newsletter for specific times and dates.

If you would like to receive email notification of when future newsletters have been posted, you may wish to add yourself to our newsletter mailing list. You can do this by clicking here and entering your name and email address.

• Principal’s message regarding the August Newsletter
• Newsletter Mailing List

Dear Grad Parents,

Grad Camping Weekend
We would like to advise you that there may be a camping weekend planned by students during one of the upcoming weekends. This is not a School-Sponsored event.

Administration has spoken to all grade 12 students explaining that there will be an increased RCMP presence at common grad camping locations such as Harrison Hot Springs and Cultas Lake. It is the school’s expectation that all grade 12s are present for designated instructional days (Fridays).

Cuba
We would also like to bring to your attention that an independent travel agency has organized a trip to Cuba for some of our grads. This, as well, is not a School-Sponsored event and no school personnel will be participating.

All the best,
Peter Johnston
Principal

EMS staff and students displayed great school spirit today dressed in a myriad of very creative costumes. The noon hour costume fashion show was well received by our student population. Unfortunately, a marine flare was lit and dropped in the hall but due to the quick action of one of the vice principals, it was extinguished immediately, no damage was done, and there was no threat to students or staff. The school did not have to be evacuated.

Have a safe and Happy Halloween

Peter Johnston
Principal

The letter linked below has been mailed home to all parents/guardians of Earl Marriott Graduates. We would like the parents and all students participating in Grad events to be aware of the consequences if they are involved with drugs or alcohol during a school sponsored event. They face suspension from school and put their participation in future Grad events, including Commencement and Dinner/Dance, in jeopardy. It is a huge risk, then, with implications for students, families, and other members of the Grad class. It is our hope that students, fully aware of the consequences and the reasons behind school policy, will make good choices. Please download the letter found below that outlines school sponsored events and non school sponsored event.

• Letter to Grads

Thank you for your continued support,

Peter Johnston
Principal

Dear Parents and Guardians:

We apologize for any inconvenience to you in having to cancel the Parent-Teacher Conferences scheduled for yesterday afternoon from 3-6pm. We experienced a power outage shortly after 2pm and the information provided to us from BC Hydro was an estimate of 5pm before power would be restored. Knowing that public safety is paramount in a school building where natural lighting is not available in all classrooms and stairwells and that emergency lighting is limited to a short time frame, in consultation with the school district we decided to reschedule Parent-Teacher Conferences.

We have rescheduled Parent-Teacher Conferences for next week, Thursday, October 23, from 3:30 – 6:00pm. This will not be an early dismissal day. Thank you for your patience and we look forward to your attendance next week.

Sincerely,

Peter Johnston
Principal

The holiday season is upon us, as the last day of classes for all students is Friday, December 21st, 2007. Classes will resume on Monday, January 7th, 2008. Students, staff and families are no doubt busy preparing for this exciting holiday time.

At EMS, the month of October saw us work through some issues with students and possible threats to the safety of our student body. Linked below is the Surrey School District’s statement on threat assessment protocol. We are fortunate here at Earl Marriott Secondary to have a large number of staff members trained in the highest level of threat assessment. We have also embarked upon a major upgrade of video recording devices for the school. The new year will see significant upgrades to our current video recording system and will help to make our school even safer.

• Threat Assessment Protocol

During the break, parents are advised to continue to supervise their child’s internet usage. In my last Crowsnest I outlined the ongoing concerns of cyber bullying and inappropriate Internet usage. Please download the article linked below regarding Surrey School District reminders on Internet safety.

• Internet Safety

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