St. Mary's Catholic School

Today we commemorate the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles and other disciples following the Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ (Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2), and it marks the beginning of the Christian church's mission to the world.

We continue to celebrate with Easter Joy that Christ is Risen!!!

"The Spirit, the living memory of the church, reminds us that we are born from a gift and that we grow by giving, not by holding on, but by giving of ourselves." - Pope Francis.

The week was kicked off with Grad Cap and Gown Liturgy at Holy Trinity. A huge thank you to the Holy Trinity Choir for sharing their musical talents as well as Father Damien for celebrating mass with the grads. What a powerful message for our Grads to look upward in their faith journeys as they begin a new chapter of life.

The celebrations ended on Friday with the Graduation banquet at the Social Centre. What a beautiful conclusion to the week with the grads dressed up and looking amazing. There are so many thank you's to parents and staff for all your work decorating, and organizing, but we want to especially recognize the tireless work of Mrs. Kelli Geibelhaus and Mrs. Margaret Michaelchuk for therr work as the Grad Coordinators.

We are so proud of all our graduates and we can't wait to see what adventures they embark on.

As you are well aware, exam week at St. Mary’s is right around the corner. We know that our students and staff have worked hard this year and we are so proud of them. Final exams carry a significant weight of the students’ final mark and as such are written according to the schedule below.

Non-Government Exams will be up to the professional judgment of the instructor, which is usually posted in their Course Outline and follows EICS Guidelines of not being weighted unreasonably. Exams are also structured to be written in half of the allotted time, therefore you will notice that all of the non-government exams are scheduled for 8:30-11:30 and created to be completed on an average of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

All option classes will have their final exams written in class before the last day of instruction for the semester. Exam week is from Thursday, June 15th to Tuesday, June 27th.

All students are expected to be here and prepared to write exams beginning at 8:30 a.m. and students must remain in their exam until 10:00 a.m. If after 10 am, the student is able to be picked up or walk home with parent permission, please remind them to sign out at the office and then leave the school grounds. Students wishing to remain at the school may stay in the exam room for the rest of the morning and then study hall for the afternoon. It would be the expectation that any remaining students be prepared to use this time for quiet study. If you wish to give permission for your child to leave following their exam, please sign and return the permission that will be given out in June.

Some students prefer to study at home. Students in junior high (7-9) require written consent to be given to acknowledge that parents are aware that their child is leaving and not in school. These permission forms will be sent home in June to be collected before exam week starts Some junior high and high school students do stay in school because of rural bussing and for extra help. If they wish to remain on-site, they must remain in the study hall classroom. Students in grades 10-12 do not require permission to leave after their exam during exam week.

If you have any questions about Exam Week please do not hesitate to contact the school.

St. Mary's is looking for people in the Vegreville area that may have expertise in music or speaking a second language, who may be willing to share their gift with our students. We are looking to provide some lessons to our student body during our FLEX sessions during the 2023-2024 school year. If you or someone you know may be interested please don't hesitate to reach out to the office and let us know, we would be delighted to hear from you.

• May 31: Year End Mass @ St. Martin's of Tours Parish
  
• May 31: STMY Open House 5-7pm
• May 31: SAINTS Spirit Day (Wear your SAINTS School Apparel)
• June 7: Early Dismissal/Staff Meeting
• June 14: Last Day of Regular Classes for All Students
• June 16-27: Exam Week (See Schedule above)
• June 28: Professional Development Day - School Closed to Students

Congratulations to the following Junior High Track Athletes who won a medal at the EIAA competition. Alec Strydom won silver in the 100 m and 200m. Sam Strydom won bronze in 100m and 200 m. Brianna Backhouse won gold in discus. Bailey Sanford won silver in discus and shot put. Marlee Ogrodnick won bronze in shot put. Thank you to all of the athletes who participated.

Congratulations to the Sr high track team on winning the 1A zone championship this year. St Mary’s finished 4th out of 41 schools losing only to three 3A schools. A huge shoutout to Keely, Britney, Eboni, Cameron, Selby, Jeff and Drayden, Jade, Kayden, and Brayden who all qualified for provincials and will represent the SAINTS at Foote Field in Edmonton!

Congrats to Kylie, Jake, Adrian, Mark, Sophia, Romy, Kristine, Cassandra, Brenden, and Melflavio for being confirmed this week by Bishop Smith and Father Robert. What a memorable day and one we pray will stand out as a pillar of your faith.

You are formally invited to attend our Year end Mass at St. Martin of Tours Parish @ 9:00am next week. We would love to have you join us as we celebrate the sacred mysteries!

Email: stmy@eics.ab.ca
Website: https://stmy.eics.ab.ca/
Location: St Mary's Catholic School, Vegreville, AB, Canada
Phone: (780)632-3934
Twitter: @stmarys_veg