GHS Memo to Families Sept.11-26

• Monday, September 14th, 2026 - Cafeteria services resume
• Thursday, September 17th, 2026 from 7:00 - 8:00 pm - Curriculum Night
• Tuesday, September 29th, 2026 - School picture day
• Friday, October 9th, 2026 - PL Day - No school for students
• Monday, October 12th, 2026 - Thanksgiving Holiday - No school for staff or students
• Wednesday, November 11th, 2026 - Remembrance Day Holiday - No school for staff or students
• Thursday, November 12th - Wednesday. November 18th, 2026 - Midterm Exams
• Wednesday, December 9th, 2026 - PL Day - No school for students
• Wednesday, December 23rd 2026 - Sunday, January 3rd, 2027 - Christmas Break - No school for staff or students
• Monday, January 4th, 2027 - Classes resume for staff and students (Day 2)
• Monday, January 25th- Friday, January 29th, 2027 - Final Exams
• Friday, April 9th - Thursday, April 15th, 2027 - Midterm Exams
• Monday, May 3rd - Wednesday, May 19th, 2027 - Advanced Placement Exams
• Friday, June 11th - Thursday, June 17th, 2027 - Final Exams

We are still in the process of finishing the course change requests. Many level 3 and 2 students have been completed and all other requests should be finalized early next week. We appreciate your patience as this process can be tedious to ensure students are properly programmed. The course change request form is now closed.

Please be advised in advance of our midterm, final and AP exams dates for semester 1 and 2. Parents/guardians and students are to be very aware of these dates and to be sure that students are present for these exams.

• Thursday, November 12th - Wednesday. November 18th, 2026 - Midterm Exams
• Monday, January 25th- Friday, January 29th, 2027 - Final Exams
• Friday, April 9th - Thursday, April 15th, 2027 - Midterm Exams
• Monday, May 3rd - Wednesday, May 19th, 2027 - Advanced Placement Exams
• Friday, June 11th - Thursday, June 17th, 2027 - Final Exams

We have started the distribution of textbooks. We will continue this process this week and should have all textbooks distributed by the end of this week. If you have any textbooks from last year that you still have not yet returned, please do so as soon as possible to avoid getting a bill to replace them.

Gonzaga High School will continue to use the SafeArrival system this year starting on Wednesday, September 9th. This system reduces the time it takes to verify student attendance, makes it easy for you to report your child’s absence, and helps staff respond to unexplained student absences. To learn more about this system and how to set up your account, please see here.

If your child will be absent for only part of the day, please contact the main office. If your child returns to school after the 9:00 am bell, please have them sign in at the office, unless they are a Level 3 or 4 student and they have a free period and have permission from a guardian to leave the building.

Please note with the system:

• ABSENCE NOTIFICATIONS ARE UPLOADED AT 3:00 PM
• The notification may state afternoon because we are sending the notification at that time
• If your child was only out in the AM it will update accordingly
• IT WILL UPDATE POWERSCHOOL AT THAT TIME
• Call 1-(844)-408-9360 Or download the app, or set up an account on your computer
• Choose full day on the reporting system (if your child arrives late due to an appointment or other reason, they sign in at the office with a note or phone call from a parent and we will update their attendance on PowerSchool for the remainder of the day)
• Late arriving to school: For late arrivals you may choose to skip reporting the absence, and when your child signs in at the office with a note or phone call from a parent explaining their tardiness, we will update the attendance on PowerSchool accordingly.
• If your child is signing out early we accept a note or a phone call from a parent to allow them to dismiss early and we will update PowerSchool attendance accordingly.
• For a previous day absence, you may send a note in with your child or phone the school and we will update the attendance on PowerSchool accordingly.
• SafeArrival School Messenger works with PowerSchool but it sends home notifications separately from PS.

The upper parking lots are for staff use only. Students are NOT permitted to park in those parking lots. Students may park in the courts lower parking lot, the side parking lot by the field and the back parking lot by the cafeteria. We encourage students to carpool or avail of bussing as much as possible throughout the year as parking is very limited.

Parents/guardians are asked NOT to use the circular roundabout/drop off area in front of the school in the morning before 9:00 am. Buses cannot get up the roundabout if cars are there which is a safety concern for our students, especially in the winter months. Parents can drop children off on Smithville Crescent or use the staff parking lot.

If your child is not eligible for the bus, we will be looking at the possibility of issuing courtesy seats. In order to issue a courtesy seat, it is important that all eligible students are seated first. Once we are aware of the availability of seats on each bus we can begin issuing courtesy seats. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please email completed Courtesy Seat Request Form to gillianbrowne@nlschools.ca.

Cafeteria service is planning on returning on Monday, September 14th, 2026.

We have students and staff at Gonzaga with severe life threatening allergies to: all fish products, all tree nut products, peanuts including peanut butter and all peanut butter products, and eggs. Nutella products will not be permitted. Also, since it is very difficult to distinguish between peanut butter and Wow / Soy butter, the NLSchools does not permit any food items containing these ingredients in schools. It will be very important for us to work together to help create a safe learning environment for all. If your child has a diagnosed allergy by a medical doctor, please contact one of our guidance counsellors, Ms. Tracy Gardiner, tracyanngardiner@nlschools.ca, or Ms. Catherine Rose-Jackman, catherinerosejackman@nlschools.ca, or Ms. Lori Hare, lorihare@nlschools.ca, to complete the necessary forms. Also, these forms must be completed each school year and can be found on the NLSchools website.

All NL Schools buildings are scent aware sites. Many of our staff and students are sensitive to certain products that can cause allergic reactions and respiratory distress. All staff, students, and visitors are reminded to not wear or use any scented/fragranced products while inside any NL Schools building.

Curriculum night is going to take place on Thursday, September 17th from 7:00 - 8:00 pm. Doors will open at 6:30 pm. Parents / guardians are free to move throughout the building until 7:00 pm. At that time, we ask that parents/guardians go directly to their child’s slot A class on Day 1 of semester 1. You will follow your child’s daily schedule for semester 1. Please have a copy of your child’s schedule. If you have any specific questions pertaining to your child, please email the teacher directly after your meeting.

Slot A (Period 1 Day 1) from 7:00 - 7:15 pm

Slot B (Period 2 Day 1) from 7:15 - 7:30 pm

Slot C (Period 3 Day 1) from 7:30 - 7:45 pm

Slot D (Period 4 Day 1) from 7:45 - 8:00 pm

Picture day will take place for all students on Tuesday, September 29th. Information on Graduation photos will be sent out when it becomes available.

Gonzaga will be using the NLSchools RYCOR system to be able to make forms available to be completed online by parents. Due to a few technical difficulties, this should be available next week. As soon as the problem is resolved, we will send out instructions for parents / guardians to complete the forms. Parents need to have their own parent PowerSchool account.

For more information on this system please go here.

Most students have been given student chromebooks in Grade 7. If a student declined a chromebook in previous years or is new to Gonzaga and would now like to request one, they need to fill out the Chromebook Agreement Form and return it to the main office. We will then request the chromebook on the student’s behalf and when they arrive from the district, we will contact the students.

Certain grade 12 students have Instructional Support classes in their schedules. These are free periods designed for study and preparation for their courses. Students are asked to go to the LRC or leave the building if they have permission to do so. Students are NOT permitted to remain on school grounds due to supervision concerns. If you are a parent/guardian of a Grade 12 student with a free period, please complete the following form if you give your child permission to leave school grounds.

Grade 12 Instructional Support Permission Slip.pdf

Please note, the Loran Scholarship deadline is October 15th, 2026 at noon ET. Applications are available online here and if you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Tracy Gardiner at tracyanngardiner@nlesd.ca.

We are working hard to schedule all tryouts and will be announcing tryouts and sign ups according to the sport competitions schedules. Thank you for your patience while we work through all the teams and practice location bookings. Interested athletes must sign up using the link in the bio of our social media accounts in order to attend tryouts https://linktr.ee/gonzagaathletics. Stay tuned to our social media for all athletic updates!

Gonzaga's 2025-2026 Yearbooks have arrived! If you have ordered a yearbook from last year, please pick up at the office.

Just as a reminder, vaping, smoking, and or drug use on school grounds is not permitted.

We would like to thank you for your continued support and if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact a member of the administrative team. We look forward to working with you and your children to ensure that they each find success this year.

Have a great weekend,

Andrew, Gillian & Peter