September 2025

Hello families. It has been so joyful welcoming our students back to school this week. We have seen so many smiling faces who are happy to see staff, friends, and the familiar halls of the school. For those students who are brand new to our school community - welcome! We hope that you love your school year here at St. Clement. Our book of the year is called "I am We: A Book of Community," by author Susan Verde. This book has themes of building community through acts of kindness, self-care, social justice, and offering our gifts and talents to each other. We cannot wait to share in the excitement of this school year with all the members of our school community - "I am not just me, I AM WE!"

-St. Clement Administration

We can't wait to meet our families! Please join us to meet your child(ren)'s teacher(s), see their classroom(s), and have a treat with us.

TEACHING STAFF

PYP- Staff

Kindergarten 0A – Alexandra Davis

Grade 1 - Elana McConaghie

Grade ½-Shannon Frost

Grade 2- Livia Huns

Grade 3A-Honorata Avison

Grade 3B-Janice Lees

Grade 4- Ashley Malkin

Grade 4/5-Monica Marshall

Grade 5 – Kelsey Rutkowski

PYP Music-Kristina Blake

MYP- Staff

Grade 6A-Michael Leskow

SUPPORT STAFF

Educational Assistants

Debbie Sommerfeld

Ammara Javaid Sheikh

Jay Dow

Christine Reddick

Fakhra Shaikh

Varuna Chadha

Out of Scope

FSLW – Celine Cyr

Light duty Custodian – Amy Cawagdan

Senior Custodian – Bob Senghera

Office Staff

Administrative Assistant-Karla Frolek

ADMINISTRATION

Learning Coach-Marisa Vesprini

IB Coordinator – Meaghan Jenny

Assistant Principal-Marisa Vesprini

Please join us for our first School Advisory Council (SAC) meeting of the year. All parents are welcome to attend. Our SAC does important work in collaborating with school administration, supporting events and initiatives, and in assisting the school financially. We appreciate our SAC! The meeting will take place Monday, September, 15, at 6:30pm, at the school, in the IB Learning Commons. We are also in a Casino year, which is a great source of revenue for our school. We thank you in advance if you can plan to volunteer. Our casino dates are November 7 and 8, at Argyll Casino. Watch for more information to come!

Our Learner Profile of the month for September is Risk-Taker. This means that we approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; we work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies. We are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.

To be a risk-taker is to be resourceful and to try new things. In our goal to develop lifelong learners, we hope that students develop this characteristic in their learning and their approach to life. At school, we encourage students to be open to making mistakes in their learning and to be ready to try new things. At home, ways to help your child develop the characteristic of being a risk taker is to encourage your child to try new things, to share his/her ideas even if they are different from others’, and to make mistakes and learn from them.I am brave when I try new things.

Ø The turnaround in front of the school is a NO PARKING zone during peak drop-off and pick-up hours of the day. There is no drop off or pick up in the bus zone in front of the school (turnaround).

There is no parking in the turnaround between the hours of 7:30-8:30 am Monday-Friday. Also, 2:30-3:30 pm on regular school days AND 11:30 am -12:30 pm on Thursdays (early dismissal).

Ø The turnaround can be accessed once the buses have left.

Ø Families are asked to keep traffic moving by using the turnaround to STOP, DROP-OFF/PICK-UP and GO (only once the buses have left).

Ø Please avoid parking at the entrance and exit of the turnaround so that buses can have easy access.

Ø For parents and guardians who wish to remain with their child(ren) in the morning, there is parking available across the street and next to the school sidewalk.

Ø Parents are asked to remember that there is no parking in the staff parking lot. Our staff parking lot is completely full, and we ask parents not to park there.

We feel it is important to bring this forward as we work together to assure all students are safe. Thank you for your understanding and patience to ensure that every student is safe to and from school. We are very thankful our school is part of the wonderful community. It is very important to us that we are all good neighbours and show kindness to one another.

Parents/Guardians who pick up their children at school are asked to be on time for pick up, and to meet their children at/near their designated doors, in particular for students in younger grades. In cases where an older sibling is the one picking up the child, please have that sibling report to the correct door on time. Children with no one to meet them will be brought to the office. Please let us know if an emergency has caused you to be late. Please communicate with your child's teacher, well in advance, or call the office, if you have changed the plan for pick up on a particular day.

In the weeks ahead, the children and staff will be practicing fire drills, lock downs and emergency procedures to ensure the safety of all within our school community. Staff will be aware of when these initial drills are taking place so that they can prepare the children of all ages within our school setting. Please inform your child that these drills will occur within the next month, especially to alleviate any anxiety or worries from our little ones.

Thank you for your cooperation!

Regular attendance is directly related to success in school. Please ensure that your child arrives on time so that they can be welcomed into the classroom learning experiences taking place each day. Students who arrive late are asked to report to the office to check in.

Families are required to contact the school if a child is late or absent. Please notify the school office at 780-462-3806 and leave a message if all lines are busy. Parents are also encouraged to download the "School Messenger" app, as attendance can be reported online, directly in the app. Please ensure that any changes to personal information are reported to the office to keep our records up to date. Students who have appointments and must leave the school prior to dismissal are asked to ensure the teacher is informed as well as the office staff.

Records of student achievement, student attendance, lists of fees/fee payment platform, forms, and more, can be found by logging into Parent PowerSchool, here: https://powerschool.ecsd.net/public/

We are happy to announce that several supplementary experiences will be provided to our students across the school year once again. These opportunities enable children to explore the curriculum and deepen their understanding of the world around them beyond the walls of the classroom. Families will be provided with written notification in advance of all field trips. A completed permission slip signed by the parent or guardian needs to be returned before a student may participate in the field trip. Just a friendly reminder, payment needs to be made one business day prior to the field trip through your PowerSchool account. No child will be denied participation in field trip experiences due to lack of funds if the situation is brought to the attention of the principal prior to the scheduled event. Confidentiality will be honoured.

Students are asked to dress for the weather, keeping in mind that all students receive at least one outdoor recess each day (one for JH and two for elementary). Elementary students should also bring a clean pair of non-marking indoor shoes to change into, especially as we move towards wetter and colder weather. These shoes can stay at school for the year. Labelling your belongings can help us return them to your child should they get misplaced at school. Thank you!

Please ensure you have communicated with the school office about any medical conditions or severe allergies that your child may have. If your child requires medication to be given at school or your child self-administers, a form is required. Please either come into the office or download the document off the school website and fill out a current medical alert form as soon as possible to ensure we have the most up to date information. Please note that a doctor’s signature is required on the form before any medication can be given/taken (self-administered) at school. Should a child become ill while at school, parents or guardians will be notified and asked to pick up their child. Thank you also for keeping your child home if they are unwell. We thank you for ensuring your child's safety and well-being!