Haultain's New Principal

I learned today that Haultain's new Principal is a lady by the name of Colleen O'Connor (sp?)- we also have a new secretary named Cindy Dong. Feel free to meet them at our first Council/Association meeting in September. I'll post the date for that shortly.

Off to new opportunities! Congratulations, Trevor!

(Posting from Trevor Barkley, in an email sent to Haultain families on August 23.)

Dear families:

I have composed many messages during my career; some for grade six farewell ceremonies, some for orientation evenings, some for opening assemblies, and some for start of the year inspirations. I find this communication particularly challenging, filled with mixed emotions.

After six wonderful years as principal of Haultain Memorial School, I find myself saying farewell to a dedicated, wonderful group of students, staff, and parents. This news is something I wish I could have shared with you before we left for summer.  However, my appointment as the new principal of Sunalta School was only made official this week.

While this new opportunity brings many fantastic possibilities for me, and there is tremendous excitement and honour in being selected to take on this new challenge, it also marks the end of six wonderful years at Haultain; years that served as my first experience as a school principal. These six years have included remarkable enrolment changes, housing two schools in one building, a community engagement process, navigating a parent association blog, a school closure, uniting a community under one school roof, high standards and resulting high achievement, a Fraser Institute award, Ends reporting, learner profiles, personalisation, and much, much more. These accomplishments were possible because of the deep dedication of parents, students, and staff alike, creating a tremendous place for students, each and every day.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my work at Haultain and am especially proud of everything we, as a school and a community, have been able to achieve on behalf of students. I know that this work will continue under the leadership a new principal once he or she is appointed. At this time, I do not know who the next principal will be.  However, I do know that they will be very fortunate to work with and learn from each of you.

I thank you for making my work so enjoyable and rewarding, and for making my job as principal so easy. The Haultain “community” is a remarkable one, and I am fortunate to have been involved with such tremendous families. I wish all of you the absolute best!

Sincerely,

Trevor Barkley

Hi, Haultain parents! It's that time of year again. We're close! September 4th is fast approaching!

Things to keep in mind:

• We will have a new principal at our school this year. As soon as I find out who it is, I'll let you know. (Or if someone finds out who it is, and it's not posted here on the blog, please give me a holler and I'll post it asap.)

• Chery, Cindy and I met to go over the Association's financial report last week, and we're looking good - however, we have to make sure we get as much parent input as we can on how we spend all our casino money - so please think about coming to join us in the library for our next meeting. (Dates will be posted on the calendar at the bottom of this page.)

• Speaking of financials and casinos, we still need volunteers for our upcoming casino. If you have questions about it, please contact the Association via the link above and to the right (use the feedback link provided) and we'll get back to you right away. The date will be posted on the calendar below, and I'll make sure to post the date on a blog entry again shortly.

• Also, the Council/Association Annual General Meeting is coming up fast - please consider taking the time to fill a vacant position on our Council or Association - volunteers are what makes Haultain such a great school for our kids. It doesn't take a lot of time, but it's sure worth a lot to our school.

Enjoy the last week of summer holiday!

3 Things To Do Now to Prepare Your Child for School!

City Tv correspondent, Graeme O'Neil, chats with Today's Parent Magazine's Sandra Martin about things to do now to get your child ready for school.  Martin suggests three important tasks: begin establishing a sleep routine, review the route to school and plan lunches.  To watch the three minute clip, go here.