Carmangay School Handbook
REVISED: August 2022
Carmangay School is an alternative public school for Low-German speaking Mennonite families. We are located in the small community of Carmangay, Alberta. We provide classes to students in grade 7-12. Carmangay School is within the jurisdiction of the Palliser School Division. Our school has approximately 80 students. All of our grade 7-9 students receive full time direct instruction, while our high school students will experience a flexible and fluid program between school and work. Carmangay School gives its students opportunities to embrace their Faith and culture, as well as skills they will need for life after high school.
At Carmangay School, we value:
Our mission is to provide a safe and caring school community where everyone is valued and respected. Through engaging and collaborative learning, students will find success today and be ready for tomorrow.
Our vision is to empower students to strive for their highest academic and God-given potential while in a safe, respectful, and welcoming faith-based school.
Kris Van Wieren Principal
Cathryn Story Junior High School Teacher
Blake Wheler Junior High School Teacher
Kirsty Hansen Senior High School Teacher
Christine Johnson Senior High School Teacher
German Teacher
Dan Doerksen Low German Mennonite Liaison
Erin Harrington Administrative Assistant
Erin Harrington Learning Commons Facilitator (Librarian)
Educational Assistant
Sara Loewen Head Custodian
Carmangay School Alternative Programs
All students participate in daily prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is recited in both High German and English.
Our students participate in High German speaking and writing lessons. Junior High students attend 3 German classes a week and Senior High students attend 2 classes a week. Senior High students have the opportunity to earn upto 5 credits towards graduation.
All our Junior High students have one Bible class a week while attending our school. This class is taught by Dan Doerksen, our German Mennonite Liaison.
Student Supports
Dan Doerksen is our Low German Mennonite Liaison. Mr. Doerksen comes out to Carmangay school every Wednesday to support students and families. He is fluent in Low and High German and often translates conversions for parents. Mr. Doerksen works in cooperation with Carmangay staff and school administration to provide support, consultation, context and advocacy for the greater Mennonite community.
**** is our Family School Liaison Counselor. She is specifically trained to assist students who experience social, emotional, or behavioral difficulties. **** works in cooperation with the Carmangay teaching staff and school administration to provide support, consultation, counseling and referral services for students and their families.
General School Information
Students are required to pay school fees for the following:
Parents who, due to financial burdens, are unable to pay the school fees before the commencement of the school year can make alternative arrangements with Ms. Van Wieren. In these situations a fair and discrete process will be used to arrive at alternative means of reimbursing the school.
It is at the teacher’s discretion to use textbooks. If a student is given any, he/she is responsible for it and will need to return it at the end of the semester or year. A Student will have to reimburse the school for his/her unreturned textbooks.
Junior High Students must stay on school property during lunch time. Senior High students can leave campus after they sign out at the office. All students remaining in the school for lunch are requested to eat their lunches in the lunchroom or other lunch eating designated areas, provided that students clean up after themselves.
The gymnasium will be open during lunch time for extra activity time for those students that would like to use it. Junior High students to use the gym for the first half of lunch and the Seniors get it for the second half
Carmangay School will be opening up a concession stand every Friday at lunch time. Most items will be $1, with the occasional item at $2.
Carmangay School, along with Barons School, host School Council meetings throughout the school year. All our meetings will be held at Barons School. Please find meeting dates in our monthly newsletters.
The School Council is designed for parents to assist the school in an advisory capacity. All parents are encouraged to attend, stay informed, and become involved. Parent input is very important and helps inform important decisions to be made.
School newsletters serve as one means of getting information to families. Our monthly newsletters list the various activities scheduled for the school and students. A copy of a monthly newsletters will be sent home with students
Students are assigned individual lockers. Students can choose to use a lock. Please talk to your teacher or the office if you would like a lock.
While students are assigned a locker, the lockers remain the property of the School Board, and may be subject to unannounced inspections by school staff. Parents and students should have no reasonable expectation of privacy regarding locker contents.
Visitors are to report to the office and sign in before continuing throughout the school.
In the case of a school fire, once the alarm is triggered students will exit the building, head east to the basketball court area, and assemble in their class so that the teacher can ensure all students are accounted for. Routes are posted by each classroom exit. If the most direct path is blocked, the next nearest and direct path should be chosen.
If dangerous conditions exist, the assembly area may be moved. Do not congregate in the parking lots, or near building exits.
Nobody should re-enter the building until the all-clear is sounded. The signal for a safe return to the building will be an announcement from the Principal or designate.
We will complete 6 fire drills throughout the school year.
In the event of an evacuation, students and teachers should use the nearest and most direct exit route from their location and meet at the designated muster point, Carmangay Seniors Complex.
Nobody should re-enter the building until the all-clear is sounded. The signal for a safe return to the building will be an announcement from the Principal or designate.
Our school district has collaborated with our community partners including local police or RCMP, Alberta Mental Health and Child and Family Service Authorities to develop a team approach to ensuring a safe and caring learning environment.
A lockdown means that students remain in their classrooms or other designated safe areas with precautions taken to minimize their visibility. School and classroom doors remain locked for the duration of the lockdown. School Administrator or Police will advise the school when the lockdown status can be lifted. Parents are not advised to visit the school during a lockdown
We will complete 2 lock down drills throughout the school year.
Learning Related Information
It is important for teachers to communicate with all parents about student learning. Carmangay School schedules 2 Parent Teacher Conferences throughout the year to inform parents of student learning and progress. Carmangay School will send out progress reports halfway through each semester and report cards at the end of each semester to inform parents on progress and learning.
Parent-Teacher Conferences: October (Semester 1) and March (Semester 2)
Progress Reports: October (Semester 1) and March (Semester 2)
Report Cards: February (Semester 1) and June (Semester 2)
Junior High ranges from grade 7-9. We have 2 Junior High classrooms, where both groups complete all their academic classes in the morning. In the afternoon, they participate in German class, Gym, Exploratory classes, Health and Student Choice classes. We are committed to giving all our Junior High students opportunities to try and experience many different things.
Students in Grade 9 are required to write Provincial Achievement Tests in Mathematics, Science, Language Arts, and Social Studies. These provincial assessments are given at the end of the semester it is completed in.
Carmangay School offers two paths to graduation.
Option 1: 100 Credit High School Diploma path and
Option 2: 80 credit High School Certificate of Achievement
The Province of Alberta records the courses that students complete, determines the student’s eligibility for The Alberta High School Diploma and awards this certification directly to students.
To attain an Alberta High School Diploma, a student must:
Complete and meet the standards of the following courses:
Students can earn up to 15 credits from work experience. Students who have been registered in the Integrated Occupational Program or in the Registered Apprenticeship Program may use some of their Off-Campus courses towards their High School Diploma. Please see Ms. Hansen for more information on the above programs.
To attain an Alberta High School Certificate of Achievement, a student must:
Complete and meet the standards of the following courses:
5 Credits in:
AND
| or | 5 Credits in:
|
Students can earn up to 15 credits from work experience. Students who have been registered in the Integrated Occupational Program or in the Registered Apprenticeship Program may use some of their Off-Campus courses towards their High School Diploma. Please see Ms. Hansen for more information on the above programs.
Core Courses at the grade 12 level will have diploma exams which will be worth 30% of a student’s final mark in that course. The schedule for exams is set by Alberta Education.
Students who are enrolled in a diploma examination course are automatically registered for the examination.
Students who are unable to write a diploma examination for reasons of illness must obtain a certificate filled out by both their doctor and Principal before forwarding the form to Alberta Education. Students are required to write the examination at the next administration. In rare cases, it is possible for the student to be exempted from writing the examination. Any such exemptions are noted on the student’s academic record.
Students who are rewriting a diploma examination must obtain a rewrite fee form from the school office. This form must be submitted by the dates outlined in the previous paragraph. A rewrite fee of $26.50.
Grade 10-12 final examinations for most courses (and midterms for full year courses) are written in the school gymnasium during scheduled examination weeks. This final examination accounts for 20-30% of the final mark. Grade 9 exams are written in classrooms. Courses that require special equipment for the final examination (i.e. computers) may have the examination conducted in classrooms. Students writing examinations must stay for at least 1 hour. The maximum time that a student may take to complete the examination is determined by the teacher of the course.
When students complete their examination, they must sign out of the gymnasium/classroom, indicating the time at which they completed the examination. These sign out sheets are kept for verification and future reference.
Retroactive Credits
Students who have completed courses that qualify for retroactive credits, and do not achieve at least 50% in those courses may, subject to the approval of the school Principal, take a course at a higher grade that is in an alternative sequence. The Province shall grant students who successfully complete the next higher-grade course in an alternative sequence credit for the prerequisite course.
Plagiarism is essentially a violation of trust and theft of intellectual property. The following is a list of guidelines that students must use when producing work for their teachers:
The consequences for plagiarism will be determined by the teacher and school administration on a case by case basis. These consequences can include all manner of sanctions, including removal from the course.
The Valedictorian is the student from the graduating class who has the highest achieving academic students in Grade 12.
To determine the academic standing for the Valedictorian, course averages from Grade 12 courses are taken into consideration.
Student Expectations
Mature behavior at school is expected of students. Students are expected to be kind to others, be kind to themselves and be kind to the school and community.
These will not be permitted on school property.
Students are expected to be respectful on any school chromebook. Any infractions of respectful use, may lead to technology privileges being taken away.
Cell phones are not permitted in Junior High classrooms at any time.
Cell use in Senior High is left up to the discretion of the classroom teacher.
Students will have their cell phones taken away and parents will be notified if cell phone use is abused.
Success in school is directly related to attending school on a regulator basis. The purpose of the school's attendance policy is to enhance the student's opportunities for academic success.
Absences
Student Responsibilities
Parent Responsibilities
Teacher Responsibilities
School Responsibilities
It is a student's responsibility to be in the classroom when the starting class bell sounds. When a student is late for class, they are asked to sign in at the office.
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Carmangay School Handbook 2022-2023 Page
