Parents and guardians are invited to attend our next school council meeting on Wed April 9th, 2014 at 7:00 p.m.

Our new school resource officer, Officer Hugo Conto will be in attendance.

All are welcome.

Mackenzie students placed 2^nd in Canada in the Cayley Math Contest and 8^th in Canada in the Pascal Math Contest.

In both the Cayley and Pascal  Contests Mackenzie students were Zone Champions!

Ninety-five students were recognized with distinction.

Congratulations to all students who participated in these competitive contests.

This week  we fondly say goodbye to Officer Chris Robert. As a result of completing his two year posting as a School Resource Officer, Chris will be moving into a new role with the Toronto Police Service. Chris leaves a legacy of strong community building and dedication to student safety.  We will miss Officer Chris and the genuine relationships he developed with staff, students and community.  At the same time please welcome Officer Hugo Conto, Mackenzie’s new School Resource Officer. 

Congratulations to the Mackenzie wrestling team and their coaches for their successful season that culminated with their participation at OFSAA this week.

The team showed great tenacity and character with top place finishes in the provincial competition as follows:

• Boys’ Team – 5th
• Girls’ Team – 11th
• Combined Team – 5th

Also of note are top individual finishes for the following students: 

• Phillip Le – 1st
• Katrin Spassov – 3rd
• Iva Mema – 4th
• Ivo Mema – 7th

COURSE SELECTION 2014-2015

Last week the guidance counsellors hosted information sessions for students regarding the course selection process for 2014-2015.  At these sessions, students received materials to guide them through the process.  This week students received their course selection sheets with their credit counseling summaries on the back.  Students had the opportunity to visit the many departmental lunch sessions that were offered to learn more about the different course offerings.   The guidance department has also been very busy meeting with students and parents to help with the course selection process.

On Wednesday February 19^th, Signature Day, there will be a special schedule and an opportunity for students to speak with their teachers and have approvals given for course selections.

Students must make their course selection online through www.myblueprint.ca/tdsb no later than February 21st, 2014.

New this year, is the Ministry of Education requirement that students complete their Individual Pathways Plan (IPP).  Students will be required to complete their annual IPP on-line and are able to access their plans on the myBlueprint.ca/tdsb website.

For all the latest Guidance news, please follow us on Twitter @WLMacGuidance

The City of Toronto has made changes to the traffic signage on Tillplain Road and some of the neighbouring streets. To support these changes and to ensure safety during peak student arrival and departure times, the Toronto Police Services will be commencing an education campaign this month. Included in the report card package that will be sent home on February 10th, is a yellow information card provided by Toronto Police Services which highlights the new parking restrictions. For more information, you are invited to attend our School Council meeting on February 12th at 7:00 p.m. where traffic safety will be on the agenda.

Semester Two begins on January 31st.

Students will receive their semester 2 timetables in their home form class on Friday January 31st.

If a student is absent on Friday, he/she should go to the main office on the first day back to school to pick up their semester 2 timetable.

CIMC/CSMC Awards

The Mathematics Department is pleased to announce the awards for the students in our school who excelled in writing the Canadian Senior and Intermediate Mathematics Contests at the University of Waterloo.
Our students were awarded 15 Certificates of Distinction for the CSMC contest and 19 Certificates of Distinction for the CIMC contest.

Congratulations go out to Kevin Xu, Bruno Maillete and Yunling Zhou who were awarded with medals as the top ranking students at our school.

The students who were awarded the Certificates of Distinction should come and pick them up from the Math Office.

We thank both our students and their teachers for their continuous efforts and dedication to make learning of mathematics fun and meaningful.

Night School applications are now available for Semester 2.  Please go to creditprograms.ca for course offerings.  Students are asked to make an appointment with their counsellors to register.  The registration deadline is January 24th, 2014.

Through a formal evaluation and accreditation process known as Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR), students enrolled in TDSB secondary Schools and Continuing Education programs may have their skills and knowledge evaluated against the overall expectations outlined in provincial curriculum policy documents in order to earn credits towards the secondary school diploma.

Please read the letter below for more information and for details of the Information Night on February 5th, 2014.

PLARletter