Chaplain... Welcome & Blessings
HEARTBEAT
ST. PAUL SECONDARY SCHOOL’S
Athletics
Fall Sports Kick Off
All The World’s A Stage
English Department Excursions
Welcome Breakfast
Faith, Food & Friendship
Looking Ahead
Dates to Remember
An Apple A Day
PIP Students Visit Chudleigh’s Farm
Co-operative Education
Experience Your Credits
Junior Awards Breakfast
St. Paul Secondary School
AUTUMN ISSUE, 2014
815 Atwater Avenue, Mississauga, Ontario L5E 1L8
Phone: 905-278-3994
Web: dpcdsb.org/PAULS
Fax: 905-278-1163
Trustees
B. Iannicca, Mississauga Ward 7 - 905-270-0536, bruno.iannicca@dpcdsb.org
M. Pascucci,Mississauga Wards 1 & 3, Chair of the Board - (P) 905-302-3096, (F) 905-890-0888,
mario.pascucci@dpcdsb.org
Superintendent
Mr. C. Blanchard
Principal
Ms. C. Murphy
Vice-Principal
Mr. A. Iarossi
Chaplain
Mrs. F. Pianta
Head of Student Services/ARD
Guidance Counsellor O - Z
Mr. B. Bonnah
Guidance Counsellor A - N
Ms. C. Lehecka
Youth Care Worker
Ms. V. Williams
St. Dominic Parish Pastor
Fr. Philip Jones
Heartbeat Editor/Layout & Design
T. Brugmans
Cover Photo
S. Periera
Principal’sMessage
In his letter to the Philippians, St. Paul writes:
Brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, and if there is anything worthy
of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you
have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of
peace will be with you.
I have no doubt that our God of peace
watches over our students as we begin
our school year anew. I am grateful to
our God that all of our students have
returned from their summer holidays
safely. I am grateful to our God that
they have returned with the energy, vitality and spirit of youth. That energy
and spirit permeates the building with
grace. I see that grace in our grade
nines as they joined our community
and participated in our continually
expanding Get Ready program. I see
it in our students as they settle into
their classes and return to a focus on
learning, and begin to bring life into
our extra-curricular activities. I see
that grace in our staff who demonstrate their leadership, generosity, and
commitment to your children as they
provide opportunities for their growth
in sports such as our basketball, volleyball, flag football or cross country
teams; or spend time with students
in clubs such as chess or Studio30 or
student council; or work with them
as they participate in our Terry Fox
activities, or outreach programs such
as Act Now, or our Thanksgiving Food
Drive or coat drive, or help Father Phil
and St. Dominic’s parish with their
Fall Bazaar, or celebrate a beautiful
school mass with our feeder schools
Queen of Heaven and St. Dominic.
The list goes on and on about what is
true, and honorable and commendable about the students and staff of St.
Paul as we settle into another school
year. I can only echo St. Paul’s encouragement to our students to “keep on
doing the things that you have learned,
and received and heard” so that you
will be successful this year, and enjoy
your success, and more importantly, be
accompanied by our God of peace.
Carmel Murphy, Principal
›››Chaplaincy
Our
Living
Faith
Glory to God for all things! I am happy to share that the start-up in
Chaplaincy has been exciting and reflective of our pastoral and Catholic Education themes for 2014-2015: exploring the paths of joy while on
the journey to Emmaus. Staff and students have enthusiastically offered
their time and prayers in various faith formation opportunities and outreach initiatives.
Our first semester at St. Paul’s has
welcomed some new ministries, as
well as the continued support of some
traditional ones. New to St. Paul’s, we
have Homeroom Faith Reps, who are
faith leaders in period one classes. As
liaisons with the Chaplaincy Department, their role is to direct staff and
their peers as we pray through the
liturgical seasons, as well as inform
students of on-going projects initiated
by other groups. We have introduced
a Morning Team to lead prayer in
Studio30. We look forward to having more students join. We also have
a Compassionate Care out-reach that
will help support students with bereavement.
In continuing the energetic faith
tradition at St. Paul’s, we have 25
students in our Youth Faith Ambassadors group, many of whom were
commissioned at a mass in September
of this year. Youth Faith Ambassadors
contribute to the overall faith life of
the school by doing things, such as
participating in school masses and
morning reflections. We also have the
ACT NOW (A Chance To Notice Our
World) social justice group, who have
already assisted the local Knights of
Columbus Thanksgiving Food Drive
and Coat Collection. There are many
more events to come including a
Candy collection for Canadian Food
for Children and Street Patrol. Five of
our Youth Faith Ambassadors and five
ACT NOW members will be attending the Food Sovereignty Conference,
organized by Development and Peace,
in November. We have already begun
the training of our Grade 12 Salesian
Retreat Leaders for this semester, and
look forward to journeying with the
retreat participants in late November.
All these ministries have joyfully lived
out the virtues of faith and empathy
through their humble participation and
commitment to service.
The retreat program is also under
way. In addition to the after-school
retreats, such as Salesians, all students in the Dufferin-Peel Catholic
District School Board participate in
grade-level retreats. Each retreat has
a theme and focus. For Grade 9, the
theme is Belonging with a focus on
the Beatitudes and virtues. The Grade
10 retreat examines the various types
of relationships young people develop
throughout their lives, and discusses
ways in which those relationships
help nurture a deeper connection with
Jesus. The Grade 11 retreat investigates the students’ understanding of
sacredness in the world, as themes
such as reconciliation, stewardship
and prayer are discussed. Finally, the
Grade 12 retreat allows students to
discern their vocation as they move on
to the post-secondary phase of life. All
these experiences consist of interactive
activities and time for reflection and
prayer.
In addition to school-based events,
students have also participated in
parish affiliated events. This year,
our school celebrated the opening
school mass with St. Dominic and
Queen of Heaven elementary schools.
What a blessing it was for elementary
school students to get a glimpse of the
future and secondary school students
to remember and honour their past
as all three schools witnessed and
worshipped together, as one community. We look forward to celebrating
together at the Advent mass.
At the St. Dominic Harvest Bazaar,
held in early October, nearly twentyfive St. Paul students volunteered
to set up tables, run activities at the
bazaar and take down tables for the
event. Students reported that they
enjoyed the opportunity to meet and
work with their peers and members of
St. Dominic’s parish.
I am truly grateful and amazed at the
way in which the staff and students of
St. Paul Secondary School continue to
inspire and raise up the greater community through their commitment and
faith. Please pray for our St. Paul family as they continue their work for the
greater glory of building the kingdom
of God.
Peace andblessings to you, all.
Mrs. F. Pianta
›››English
Grammar
Writing and
Speech Contests
We have currently received four different invitations for students to participate in both essay and public speaking
contests. These opportunities are all
too often left underrepresented and
many students would be successful
or at the very least have a successful
experience if they were to enter these
contests.
We have had many students participate in the Dufferin Peel Poetry Slam
which will be announced shortly.
All members of the English Department endeavour to keep students
informed of the many writing, essay
and public speaking contests which
are available to students. If you have
an interest in this area, see Mr. Kay in
the English Department. We have an
InfoBoard near Room 212.
English, ELL and
Drama Department
Events & Excursions
This semester will once again be a
very busy one for opportunities to
appreciate theatre in
Literature
the Greater Toronto Area and beyond
for St. Paul students. By the time this
newsletter is at press, the students of
Mrs. Bentivoglio, Mr. Kay and Ms.
Tobin will have ventured to Stratford
to see the musical Crazy For You.
About the Musical: Sent to Deadrock,
Nevada, to foreclose on a derelict
theatre, banker Bobby Child falls for
its owner’s daughter, Polly Baker. Can
he reconcile the demands of duty and
love – and his own dreams of dancing?
“I Got Rhythm,” “Nice Work if You
Can Get It” and “Someone to Watch
Over Me” are just some of the gems in
this dynamic musical’s dazzling score.
See the Stratford website at www.stratfordfestival.ca for more information.
Ms. Tobin and Ms. Bomben will be
escorting their classes to see Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night on November
25 at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto. Also in November, the students
of Ms. DiCarlo’s Grade 11 English
will have the chance to see Hamlet at
the Winter Garden Theatre. Finally,
Ms. DiCarlo, Ms. Allilovic and Mrs.
Bentivoglio will be taking their classes
to a showing of Shakespeare’s MacBeth at the Winter Garden Theatre,
presented by The Classical Theatre
Project.
Members of the English Department
attempt to select performances that
will help the experience of literature
come alive. Please know that
with all trips we try to keep the
curriculum our priority, along
with fair costs and a safe and
enjoyable experience. Please
support your son or daughter’s
participation in these educational excursions.
Speaking
The OSSLT/EQAO
Literacy Preparation
The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test and the St. Paul Literacy
Committee: This year St. Paul Literacy Committee is co-chaired by Mrs.
Bentivoglio, Ms. Vono and assisted
by Ms. Scozzaro and Ms. Kelly. The
committee is comprised of teachers
from the school. The Committee will
develop strategies for the OSSLT test
which will be taking place on March
26, 2015.
All of our Grade 9 and 10 teachers are
committed to making sure that their
courses support the OSSLT initiative
and that the students are prepared for
the test.
The OSSLT is a large-scale assessment
written by all Grade 10 students in Ontario public and separate schools. The
OSSLT has been in place since 2000.
Its purpose is to assess the reading and
writing skills attained by all students
who have completed the Grade 9 curriculum. The test is set by the Education Quality and Accountability Office
(EQAO), an arms-length agency of
the Ontario Ministry of Education. It
is important to reduce the anxiety that
many students feel going in to the test.
Parents and students are encouraged to
visit the website of Education Quality
and Accountability Office (EQAO);
it is a useful website and it provides
strategies and samples in order to help
students prepare for the test. [www.
eqao.com]
›››Athletics
Welcome
Back
to another exciting
year of Wolverine Athletics! Sports at St. Paul
are in full gear with the
Cross Country team,
Girls Flag Football,
Varsity Girls Basketball, Junior and Senior
Boys Volleyball winding down and ready to
enter the playoff races.
The gym this year has
been packed with student support, cheering on our Wolverine
teams. It is exciting
to see such pride and
support for our teams.
Junior and Senior Boys
Hockey team tryouts
will be taking place
soon getting ready for
another thrilling season.
Discipline, Dedication, Determination
Boys Basketball tryouts will be starting to
get underway and Girls Volleyball tryouts
are taking place shortly.
Boys will be playing several teams in
the area over the next month. Good luck
Juniors!
Get involved in Wolverine Athletics, tryout for teams and get involved. Let’s show
some school spirit and Wolverine pride!
Senior Boys’
Volleyball
Cross Country Team
The Senior Boys volleyball team started
their season with a win against Applewood
on September 30. Winning all three sets,
the Senior Boys showed teamwork and
strength. They then went on to defeat Gordon Graydon also in 3 straight sets.
This year’s St. Paul Cross Country Team
is bigger and more vibrant than ever! Under the coaching direction of Mr. Costigan,
Ms. Bueno-Marcial, Ms. Bomben, and Ms.
Di Carlo, students are discovering their
love for long distance running through dynamic training sessions and scenic running
routes around the community.
Congratulations to the members of the
team who competed in the first Cross
Country Meet of the year in September at
Erindale Park, hosted by St. Marcellinus
Secondary School. Everyone represented
St. Paul proudly with their positive energy
team spirit (and for some, their courage)
in conquering their fears of racing for the
first time ever.
The team participated in the Heart Lake
Invitational Meet in October before competing in the ROPSSAA Cross Country
Championship at the end of the month.
Junior Boys’
Volleyball
This year the St. Paul Junior Boys Volleyball team is off to a great start! With many
players new to the sport and in their first
year at St. Paul, they have represented the
Wolverines well as the season begins.
Their first home game against Applewood
was a close one, with each team winning
one set, and a loss in the last set by only a
couple points.
The team then went on to beat Gordon
Graydon in 2 straight sets. The Junior
The team participated in two tournaments
this year at Eden S.S. in St. Catherines on
October 9 and in Ancaster on October 17.
The Senior boys hope to carry this winning streak for the remainder of the season
in hopes of yet another ‘AAA’ OFSAA
birth in Kingston this year.
Girls’ Flag Football
Part of the success of any team is it’s ability to overcome adversity and rise to the
occasion. A part of the team’s upcoming
success will be attributed to the collaborative efforts of the coaching staff which
includes Mr. Minott and Mr. McTiernan,
in combination with a core group of
dedicated athletes who are all focused on
making this football program something
special.
The future looks great for the Lady Wolverines as the team is quite young and the
up and coming stars of grade 9 are being
mentored by some of the best student athletes in peel. Proper preparation, completing tasks with high efficiency and having
people in positions which bring out the
best of their gifts/talents is turning out to
be the equation for growth and continued
success.
Go Lady Wolverines!!
›››Guidance Files
Student Services • ARD • Counseling
Welcome to a New School Year! On behalf of all of us in Student Services, we extend our
warmest welcome to our new Student Services Secretary, Ms. Joann Trenton. She brings a
depth and breadth of experience to the role and we are very pleased to have her as a part of
our team. On behalf of all of us in Student Services, we welcome Ms. Trenton to our community.
Guidance And Career Counselors
Ms. C. Lehecka (A – N) (ext. 77311)
Mr. B. Bonnah (O – Z) (ext. 77289)
Student Services Team Members
Student Success Teacher
Ms. M. Bueno-Marcial (ext. 77287)
Child and Youth Worker
Ms. V. Williams (ext. 77292)
School Psychologist
Dr. I. Rukavina (ext. 77065)
School Social Worker
Mr. Hamid Jivraj (ext. 77293)
Guidance Secretary
Ms. J. Trenton (ext. 77301)
Welcome to Our Grade Nines
St. Paul Secondary School hosted the
Grade 9 summer orientation called the Get
Ready! Program. Under the direction of
Ms. Bueno-Marcial, Mr. Powers, Ms. Zanon, and with the assistance of junior and
senior student volunteers, this year’s grade
9 students participated in a variety of engaging activities that focused on literacy,
science, and numeracy, as well as school
readiness skills to help
prepare them for their secondary school experience.
This summer, over half of
this year’s grade 9 cohort
took part in St. Paul’s Get
Ready Program.
In addition to orienting
students to the school,
a community service
component was added to
the program for the first
time. Students had the
opportunity to volunteer
at the Canadian Food for
Children and with the
City of Mississauga’s
Litterbug campaign. Students at the
Canadian Food for Children were exposed
to the global reality of poverty around the
world as they learned about the history of
the organization, assisted with sorting and
loading donated items into shipping crates
and helped with letter writing and newsletter campaigns. Students also cleaned up
Cawthra Bush and the surrounding forest
area around St. Paul School as part of the
City of Mississauga’s Litterbug Campaign. Volunteer hours were also granted
to students who participated to count
toward their graduation requirement.
Pathway and
Transition
Planning
St. Paul and the DufferinPeel CDSB are pleased to
provide an exciting education planning resource
available immediately to
your students at school or
from home.
The myBlueprint Edu-
cation Planner (www.myBlueprint.ca/
dpcdsb) lets your child create an engaging
and interactive Education Plan and provides a wealth of information about postsecondary pathway planning. Students
and parents can build customized high
school course plans, instantly identify the
post-secondary options that are available
to them and explore valuable information
about apprenticeships, college programs,
university programs and workplace opportunities across Canada.
With direct access from home, now you
can also get more informed and involved
with your child’s education. Log in and
learn about courses, graduation requirements and the endless options available to
your son/daughter.
From their Profile, your student will be
able to set goals, save high school and
post-secondary plans, create post-secondary program short lists, investigate occupations of interest, record extra-curricular
activities and more.
myBlueprint helps ensure you can assist
your child in making the most informed
decision about their education. We
encourage you to get started today and
explore the website with them.
Please contact a member of the Guidance
and Career Education Department for
more information!
Faith, Food and Friendship
On Tuesday, October 7, St. Paul hosted
their first ever Welcome Breakfast for all
students new to our community. Students
and staff shared stories and had an opportunity to become acquainted with each
other. The event also gave us an opportunity to showcase the opportunities for
student involvement as well as a chance to
learn about the variety of services that St.
Paul provides.
The twenty-three new students have joined
us from various schools both within and
outside the school board. As well we have
students who are recent immigrants from
the Philippines, Jordan and Poland. We
are extremely excited to have them as part
of our family and we wish them the best
and University Fair is being held in the
cafeteria. This year’s event is being held
on the evening of on November 12 from
6:30 - 8:30 pm.
Recruiters from 30 colleges and universities will be here to answer all your
questions about college and university
programs. All students and parents are
welcome!
College Application Deadline:
February 1, 2015
The cost is $95 for up to 5 programs (no
more than 3 at any college)
University Application Deadline:
January 14, 2015
The cost is $140 for 3 programs (plus $47
for each additional choice). Individual
PINs to log on to OUAC will be available
for pick-up in November.
Students are strongly encouraged to apply
early because the on-line websites get very
busy in the final days before the deadline.
›››Guidance
Semester One Final Exams will run January 21 - 28, 2015.
Registration/Course
Selection for 2015/16
Though it’s hard to believe as we’ve just
started a new school year, we’re already
beginning the initial planning for 20152016! In order to facilitate our planning,
the registration process for next year will
begin in December.
All students in Grades 9, 10, 11 and 12
will make their course selections using
myblueprint.ca/dpcdsb with the support
of a guidance counselor. The process is as
follows; Parents and students are encouraged to:
1) review the courses they need/want to
take on myblueprint.ca/dpcdsb or on
the school website (attention to SHSM
requirements as appropriate).
2) select their courses and options on the
site using the secure password provided
by their counselor.
3) submit their course selections on-line.
4) print a copy of the course selection
verification.
5) ensure parents sign the course selection
verification.
of luck as they continue their high school
career with us.
University applicants must see Ms Trenton
for their PIN.
We would like to thank all teachers and
students who were involved with organizing the breakfast and in particular to Ms.
Bueno, Mr. Galli, Ms. Lehecka and Ms.
Pianta for leading this event.
Homework Help in Math
College & University
Applications
Mark your Calendars!
Again this year, the St. Paul College
Grade 7, 8, 9 & 10 students can access
free homework assistance in math at
www.homeworkhelp.ilc.org. This site is
supported by qualified teachers and is
available in the evening in real time.
Reporting Cycles for
Semester One
Mid-term report cards will be distributed
on November 7!
6) return the signed course selection along
with the school activity fee to the Student Services office by the due date.
Students will be provided with an online demonstration as well as designated
computer time for those students who do
not have internet access at home. Activity
Fees may be paid by debit or credit card.
All options/courses are filled on a first
come/ first served basis so to ensure options are available.
It is VERY IMPORTANT TO SUBMIT
COURSE SELECTIONS EARLY!
›››Planning For
Independence
An Apple a Day
On October 3, 2014 our Planning for Independence Program visited Chudleigh’s Farm in
Halton Hills. We had a perfect day, full of sunshine and beautiful fall colours. Farmer Bob
showed us how to make Apple Cider and each student tasted freshly pressed cider, learned
how to properly pick an apple so the buds would flower again next year, and took a wagon
ride through the rows of different apples.
This past week our Culinary Skills teacher, Ms. Bomben worked with the students and taught
them how to make an apple pie. With support, each student created a visual task sheet and
learned to follow the apple pie making process step by step. Students made mini-apple pies,
apple tarts and healthy apple snacks this week with the apples they picked from the farm.
Everyone is looking forward to tasting their apple creations over Thanksgiving weekend!!
PIP Gets Painting
Under the guidance of St. Paul’s Art teacher, Mrs. Petrauskas, the Planning for Independence
Program has wholeheartedly dived into painting ceramics. From pumpkin plates to soup
mugs, students are enjoying learning the painting process. Painting allows each student to
develop their fine-motor skills and practice their attending skills. Most importantly each is
encouraged to choose their own colours and designs which allows students to build confidence in their creative choices and in themselves.
›››Bits & Bites
Omnia Cum Corde
Awards Breakfast
Cooperative Education Update- Experience Your Credits
Ms. DiCarlo has organized the annual
Awards Breakfast which will take
place on October 29.
Currently, students in the Co-operative Education Program are fully immersed
at their placement and are finding their experience to be rewarding. Preparations for the annual Showcase have already begun and students will present their
work in the cafeteria on December 10.
Each year, the St. Paul community
celebrates the excellence and achievement of students. On this day we recognize the academic milestones from
the 2013-2014
school year.
Centralized Placement applications for positions at Peel Police, Trillium Hospital, Rogers Communication, and Mississauga News, just to name a few, will be
available in early November. Also, Dual Credit applications for students wishing to pursue college courses while finishing off high school will be available in
early November as well. These are highly competitive programs that are filled
quickly so students are encouraged to listen to the announcements that will indicate when the application process has started.
We will begin interviews the first week of November to ensure that students
interested in either the Centralized Placements or the Dual Credit Programs are
identified and guided through the application process. We urge students who
have questions and would like to discuss their options come by the Co-op office
(Rm. 236) to speak to Mr. Costigan or Mr. Multari.
For those who wish to independently research
career options, we encourage you to peruse the
following websites at your leisure prior to visiting
with us:
Looking Ahead
Please take note of the following dates to
help you plan out your calendar.
Parent/Teacher Night................October 23
Awards Breakfast......................October 29
School Info Night....................November 6
Mid Term Report Cards..........November 7
PA Day..................................November 14
School Council Meeting.......November 17
Christmas Break................ Dec. 22 - Jan. 2
EQAO.............................. January 14 & 15
Guidance Q & A........................ January 21
Semester 1 Exams...............January 21 -27
Exam Review Day.................... January 28
Semester 2 Begins..................... January 30
www.apprenticesearch.com
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