Dear OLMP families,

This last week was a busy one with our Thanksgiving Mass and a celebration of the academic achievements of our students from last school year. We are blessed to have a tremendous staff willing to go above and beyond for our students. We are very proud of our student body and what a great start to the year it has been!

At this time of Thanksgiving, we pause to count our blessings.

From our OLMP family to all of you, we wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving; we are deeply grateful for our entire school community and your continued support of our school.

OLMP Catholic School

📣 Student absences can once again be reported through the Parent Portal on PowerSchool 📣

We’re excited to announce that the ability to submit student absences is available in PowerSchool!

PowerSchool can also continue to be used to view grades and report cards, pay fees, and update student information (including medical information).

You can view the EICS Parent Technology Handbook for further details on these items.

Our Elk Island Catholic Schools IT department is continuing to work on implementing additional features, so keep an eye out in our Smores for future updates!

To access PowerSchool, please click here.

Please take a few minutes to complete your child's demographic forms, medical forms, and all yearly consents (FOIP, tech use, field trips) on PowerSchool.

It is important that this information be kept up-to-date every year, especially if there is a change in medical status, parent/guardian/emergency contact information, and/or address.

If you need assistance with using PowerSchool - including completing and submitting yearly consent and demographic forms online - please visit the main EICS website for instructions and helpful video tutorials.

CPS will be on site to help facilitate a Lock Down drill at OLMP this Wednesday at approximately 10:15am. Please know the intention of this drill is to promote safety at OLMP and help prepare students and staff.

We will also be completing the required 3 Fall fire drills and 1 Shelter-In-Place drill over the next few weeks.

Grades 6 and 9 Immunization Day: Tuesday, October 17th

Prior to the immunizations, the AHS Health nurse for OLMP will be providing a brief 10-minute presentation to all Grade 6 and 9 students on Friday, October 13th.

The presentation to students around immunization is a brief overview of the diseases the eligible vaccines protect against, how to stay calm during immunization, and how only students for whom we have consent from a legal parent or guardian will be immunized at school.

Grade 6 students in Alberta are routinely eligible for a series of Hepatitis B vaccine and a series of Human Papilloma Virus vaccine.

Grade 9 students in Alberta are routinely eligible for a booster of Diphtheria/Tetanus/Whooping Cough vaccine and a vaccine that protects against 4 strains of Meningococcal infection. AHS will also review all immunization records and offer any other vaccines a student may be eligible for.

If anyone has any questions or concerns, please call Camrose Public Health at (780) 679-2980 and ask to be directed to the OLMP nurse.

https://myhealth.alberta.ca/topic/Immunization/Pages/school.aspx

• October 9: School closed for Thanksgiving
• October 13: Monday schedule
• October 16: Picture day (individual and class photos)
• October 17: Grades 6 and 9 immunization (morning) & School Council Meeting (7:00 p.m.)
• October 20: School closed
• October 27: School closed
• November 1: School closed (PD Day)
• November 2: Early dismissal (p.m. schedule)

Open Houses are a vital step for grade 10 -12 students as they research programs offered at various post-secondary schools.

They often include program-specific information sessions, hands-on demonstrations, campus tours, and opportunities to talk with faculty. It is highly recommended that students in grade 11 make this a priority this fall. Often schools waive the $120 application fee when applying at the Open House for our grade 12 students.

Please consider attending a few of the following:

Olds College: October 13th -14th

University of Alberta (Main Campus): October 14th

Lakeland, Kings University & Concordia University: October 21st

NAIT, Norquest & Red Deer Polytechnic: October 28th

MacEwan: November 3rd - 4th

Visit each school's website to register!

WISEST presents the SET Conference (a Science, Engineering, and Technology experience) for young women and gender-diverse students in Grades 10 – 12 who are curious about careers in science, engineering, and technology (SET).

• Gain insight into different career paths in science, engineering, and technology (SET) and related University of Alberta programs.
• Explore SET through lab tours and activities
• Get access to role models and mentors to learn what it is like to pursue science, engineering, or technology.

All young women and gender-diverse students in Grades 10 to 12 are welcome at SET.

Click here to register.

If you are interested in purchasing last year's yearbook, there are only 5 copies left!

Please contact Mrs. DeLong (julia.delong@eics.ab.ca) or Mrs. Twtichell (lorindatw@eics.ab.ca) to purchase your copy today.

Cost is $45.00.

November hot lunch is now available to order through the Parent Portal of PowerSchool - deadline to order is October 22nd.

Hot lunch will be served on Thursdays this school year. We will offer a beverage/snack on early dismissal Thursdays.

Upcoming Hot Lunches:

October 12 - Dominos Pizza

October 19 - Skyway

October 26 - Boston Pizza

Cross country running is a great way to be active and become part of the school culture early in the year. All students and abilities are welcome to join.

Students are expected to attend a minimum of 2 practices/week.

Upcoming X Country Meets:

Regional XC Meet in Bashaw: Thursday, October 12, 2023

Any questions can be directed to:

Mr. Reinhart - christopherr@eics.ab.ca

Mrs. Nagy - katherinen@eics.ab.ca

Click here for the full Cross Country Field Trip letter

It’s been a couple of busy weeks on the gridiron for the Royals!

On September 26th, we travelled to Caroline to face the Cougars. The Cougars are back in the Alberta Six a Side league for the first time since Covid. They have a bunch of young, talented players who are excited to have football alive in their community again. Our Royals were looking to show improvement from our previous game and did just that. The Royals came out on fire and defeated Caroline 67-0. Caroline will travel to Camrose on October 17th for a rematch.

This week, our Royals had their first home game of the season against the team from Westlock. Westlock came into this game with a record of 2-1 and were looking to continue their winning streak. Your Royals had other plans. With the offensive power of Tyson Chartrand, Ryder Power, and Hunter Schweitz, your Royals defeated Westlock by a score of 74-47. This win gives the Royals a record of 2-1.

The Royals' next game is this Tuesday, October 10th at 5 p.m. at the Harry Andreassen Field.

Come out and watch some high-impact football. GO ROYALS!

📷 credits: Jaycel Hernando

Fees have now been added to student accounts.

Fees can be viewed and paid through the parent portal in PowerSchool under “Forms and Fees”. If you have any questions, please contact the school or email lorindatw@eics.ab.ca

Families that need financial assistance can apply for our fee waiver program. Deadline to apply is December 11, 2023.

Fee Waiver Program Application 2023 - 2024

Starting at a new school comes with a lot of questions about what tools to use, the preferred types of communication, and who to contact.

Please read through the Welcome to OLMP Package for Parents 2023-2024 to find many of these answers. Our weekly newsletter is our prime communication with parents as a school.

For specific inquiries regarding your child, please contact their teacher directly.

Dear Parents,

Please make alternate plans for a pick-up/drop-off location as our staff parking lot is no longer available as an option. This area has become far too congested in the past and is an extreme OH & S concern.

*PLEASE STAY CLEAR OF BUS LANES AT THE BEGINNING AND END OF OUR DAY*

Please follow the flow of traffic in the student parking lot on the south side of our building. You will notice that there is no longer a "turn left" option (right turns only) when you exit the parking lot.

Alternatively, please also look at streets/locations other than the alleys that are close to our school where students can safely access our school site.

While we understand that this takes away some convenience, we are concerned about the safety of your children.

Thank you for you attention to this.