Principal's Message May 20-24th

Good morning Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary!

Hello Panthers.  I hope your week has gone well.  We are approaching the end of May and the final month of the 23/24 school year is just around the corner.  The next 5 weeks will move very quickly with much to accomplish and much to celebrate.   All students are encouraged to stay focussed on your learning goals, work hard, and dedicate yourself to success.   Never underestimate the value of hard work, regular attendance and high levels of engagement in school life.  I am confident that our Panthers will continue to make us very proud and will complete the school year with purpose and dedication.  I would also like to recognize and thank our entire staff for the caring professionalism and curricular and extra-curricular support you provide our students during this very important time of the year.  

Monday was the Victoria Day Statutory holiday, and so we returned to a shortened week on Tuesday morning with a full agenda.  We met with the District’s Facilities Department and learned that the exterior of our school will be painted over the next 6 weeks.  The painting crew will schedule their work around the operational needs of the school.   It has been many years since our last painting renovation and we are looking forward to the “refresh” for the school.

On Wednesday, several activities occurred across our school community.  Our Health and Safety committee met to discuss our Evacuation drills and other safety systems.  Great thanks to our committee members for your assistance.  

Students in our BASES program enjoyed an excellent day participating in the District Special Track Meet. Our students excelled at many events and had a wonderful time connecting with their peers. Big thanks to the BASES teaching team, IESW's, and parents who made the day a huge success. 

Also on Wednesday afternoon, we had the chance to cheer on our Senior Boys Rugby team.  This was a South Fraser Championship match against South Delta Secondary.  Our boys played with great heart, enthusiasm and team spirit.  Way to go Panthers!

After school, our Dry Grad parent committee was busy collecting students’ clothing bags in preparation for this year’s Dry Grad celebration.  We look forward to another safe, fun and successful Dry Grad celebration at the Rec Room this year.  This is such an important tradition for our community, school and graduating class.   The event promises to be a wonderful and meaningful celebration for our grads.  We are very grateful for the many, many hours of work that our parent committee has dedicated to this year’s graduating class in planning and fundraising for the event.  Thank you!

Tomorrow we will welcome another group of Grade 7 students to our school for an orientation visit and tour.  We look forward to meeting our future Panthers from Surrey Centre Elementary school.

Tomorrow, we will also be recognizing the achievements of this year’s Automotive Service Technology Program.  Students from across the school district have been working at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary over the past semester in this unique and valuable Trades co-op program.  The skills our students have learned will help support their future careers in the Automotive industry.  They are very fortunate.

Our students are so fortunate to have such a wealth of available programs at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary.  Mr. Swaddling’s Trades Exploration students have also been very busy building garden sheds and learning carpentry skills.  Very impressive!

This weekend we will be celebrating with our Grade 12 students at this year’s Graduation Dinner-Dance and Dry Grad!  It promises to be a very special evening of friendship, recognition and celebration of 13 years of public education for our students.   We know that our graduating class will make us very proud.  

Have a great day tomorrow and enjoy your weekend.  Monday is a Professional Development Day in the Surrey School District.  See you on Tuesday!

Ken

Traffic Safety

Traffic safety around Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary is a critical priority for our community.  With increased enrollment, the number of vehicles navigating around and within our school grounds also increases.  It is essential that all drivers are very cautious while driving near the school and are aware of the many student pedestrians who are nearby.

All students and parents/guardians are requested to consider the following:

• If possible, students - please walk and/or bike to school.  Fewer vehicles attempting to drop off and/or pick up students will be very helpful.
• Consider dropping off/picking up 2-3 blocks away from the school and avoid the traffic congestion around the school.
• Consider drop-off/pick up earlier and/or later in the morning/afternoons to avoid peak traffic times.

Thank you for your help in protecting the safety of our students.