Parent Communications
Athletic Letter to Parents
After working in collaboration with our school division’s senior administration team to carefully consider the guidelines set out by the Alberta Schools Athletic Association (ASAA), we are extremely excited to announce that we will be moving forward with providing our students with the opportunity to participate in STA Athletics. Our athletic programming will take place both before and after school and will be called STA Intraschool Athletics. Our students will be provided with the opportunity to develop their athletic skills by practicing and scrimmaging against one another. At this time, it has been decided that there will be no game play that will take place between STA and any other school. Having said that, our programming will officially begin with Volleyball tryouts on Tuesday, September 15. Coaches for all of our Intraschool Athletics teams will select enough players so that intrasquad games can take place. Once teams are made, practice and game times for all sports will be scheduled and advertised on the STA Gym Calendar.
All students wishing to try out for our Volleyball teams need to pre register by clicking on the link posted below and by completing the Google Form.
The following COVID related rules and expectations will be adhered to on an ongoing basis and until further notice.
- Participant tracking will take place.
- Guidelines stating a maximum number of 50 people attending an indoor event will be strictly enforced throughout the tryout process and season play.
- Students will be required to sanitize their hands prior to entering the gym and following their session.
- Students will be required to wear a mask while changing into the appropriate athletic wear and when directed by their coach.
- Equipment will be sanitized at the end of each session.
- Until our tryout process is complete we will not be allowing people to enter the gym to view practices and scrimmages. This decision has been made in an effort to adhere to physical distancing expectations. This expectation will be relaxed once the season begins and we will communicate this change to parents when it is appropriate to do so.
If you have any questions about this information, please feel free to reach out to me at gerry.doll@rdcrs.ca or to any member of our school administration team.
Sincerely,
Gerry Doll
Athletic Director
August 27 Message from STA Administration
August 27, 2020
Dear Parents,
As the first day of school approaches, we want to make you aware of a few final details
regarding school start-up:
1. You will receive a brief introductory email from your child’s homeroom teacher on
Friday, August 28th. This email will also be sent to your child’s RDCRS Google email
account. Our staff have invested significant time and attention into creating each of our
class lists for the 2020-2021 school year. If you do not receive this email, please ensure
that your child reports to their designated entrance by 8:30am on their assigned
staggered entry date. A STA staff member will be present at each entrance to direct
them to the appropriate teacher and location.
2. Thank you for not contacting our staff this weekend, as we want to give them time to
spend with their families and prepare for the first day of school.
3. Please send your child with a mask that they can wear into the school.
4. Our cafeteria will be open starting on August 31st, but will be offering limited
breakfast/lunch menus.
5. Lifetouch Studios will be present at the school to take individual student photos on
September 3 and 4th. Appropriate COVID protocols will be followed.
Thank you for your attention to these items and we look forward to welcoming our students back to our hallways and classrooms starting on Monday, August 31st.
God Bless,
STA Administration
August 2020 Greetings and Start Up Information
Dear Parents,
Aug. 24, 2020
Greetings parents and students of St. Thomas Aquinas Middle School (STA). My name is Ian Stang and I am extremely excited to be joining you all as the new principal of STA. Although I am familiar with the STA community, I recognize that I have much to learn about the Saints traditions and best practices. I look forward to working with you all in an effort to learn from you and alongside you so that together we can continue to proudly proclaim our Catholic christian faith and continue to achieve academic excellence. I have spent the past five years working as a high school vice-principal, and have had the distinct privilege of serving both St. Joseph High School and Notre Dame High School in this capacity. Prior to working as a vice principal, I taught for 13 years at the middle school level. I am honored to be returning to STA; I attended STA as a student and spent time here working as a student teacher back in 2002.
Myself, Mr. Mike Kelly and Mrs. Kristie McCullough will make up our school administration team for the 2020-2021 school year. Mike is very excited to be returning to the hallways and classrooms of STA. He will be entering his 5th year as vice principal of STA and his 10th year as an administrator with Red Deer Catholic. Kristie will be joining us for her first year at STA, but will be entering her 6th year as a vice principal with Red Deer Catholic. I have no doubt that the wealth of experience and the energy that our Admin team will bring to the halls of STA will serve our community well as we work alongside you to navigate all of the challenges that school re-entry will bring.
The information below is designed to provide you with details associated with school start-up in an effort to help ensure that our transition back to full time classes is a smooth one. As we move closer to the first day of classes, more information will continue to be provided. We look forward to meeting you all in person next week, and we wish you all continued safety and rejuvenation as the first day of school approaches.
May God Bless you and Keep you,
STA Administration Team
If you haven’t already done so, please take a moment to read the Parent/Student Re-Entry Handbook which will hopefully help to answer many of your questions. This handbook, created by our school division, provides roles and responsibilities that we all need to take to ensure we have a safe transition to school.
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What safety protocols have been put in place? |
All protocols being enacted are based on safety guidelines developed by Alberta Health Services and the provincial government.
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What are the staggered entry dates? |
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What does the first day of school look like? |
Your child’s teacher will communicate with you on August 28 with respect to their TAG and where to meet on the first day. Please see attached map for TAG meeting spaces and entry doors. Entry Doors Map |
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Can I bring my child to school on the first day? |
You are more than welcome to drop off your child on the first day, but we are asking that you say your goodbyes at the vehicle and have your child proceed to their TAG gathering area for attendance. |
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What supplies does my child need? |
We are asking that all students bring minimal supplies to school, as they will need to keep everything in their backpack. Supply List |
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Will my child have a locker? |
Students will not have access to a locker, so they will need to ensure that their supplies are all kept neatly in their backpack. |
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If my child forgets his/her lunch or supplies can I drop them off? |
At this time, the division has mandated that parents are not permitted to come into the school, unless a prior appointment has been made. Although this will not be easy, it is critical to minimize the amount of people in the building to maintain safety for our staff and students. |
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Will the cafeteria be operating? |
Yes. We encourage pre-ordering of lunches to help minimize students needing to gather to get food. More information to follow. |
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What will lunch recess look like? |
Lunch recess will be staggered to minimize the number of students congregating. The Grade 6/7 students will go out first followed by the Grade 8/9. |
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What safety measures are in place in the classrooms? |
Teachers have physically distanced student workspaces in the classrooms. Students will be taught proper handwashing, sanitizing and masking procedures on a regular basis. Masks will be worn by staff and students at all times when physical distancing can’t be maintained. |
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Will my child still have options? |
The delivery of option classes will be modified in an effort to reduce the number of cohorts that students are a member of while at school. Option classes will not begin until after our staggered re-entry dates. |
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What does PE look like? |
PE class will be offered both in the gym and outside. At this time students will not be required to change for PE class; however, proper footwear must be worn. |
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Will there be a Meet the Staff evening? |
This evening will be replaced with individual teacher-parent conversations. These conversations will begin the first week of school. Moving forward, your child’s classroom teacher will communicate the process that they will use for scheduling these conversations. |
This year’s division theme could not be more fitting, “Trust in the Lord with all of your heart.” As we continue to navigate this unprecedented time, may we all find comfort in knowing that we can place our trust in God. We are excited to see students in the hallways again. Even though there are many questions, we feel that we are safely ready to welcome your children back through the doors of St. Thomas.
Thank-you for taking the time to read this lengthy communication and as previously mentioned, further details regarding the 2020-2021 school year will continue to be provided as the first day of school approaches. We look forward to working alongside you to meet the needs of our students and to successfully navigate all of the unique challenges that this school year will bring.
Sincerely,
STA Staff