Once again, we have enjoyed a very busy, productive semester at Bodwell. Some of the accomplishments of which we are most proud include;
Accomplishments
• setting our goals for the year, based on our vision statement, and making good headway towards the achievement of those goals (to be completed by July, 2011);
• maintaining a high quality program in spite of the construction happening around us, and the shortage of on-site facilities for sports;
• offering a more comprehensive, meaningful orientation for our new students;
• improving many aspects of our Academic Preparation Program, including resources and the processes of testing and charting progress;
• the configuration of all student laptops for school purposes, and the implementation of our Acceptable Use of the Internet Policy;
• increased participation in school sports, resulting in a greater number of teams participating in inter-school activities;
• the successes of our sports teams;
• our arts programs, as demonstrated in the successes of the drama production, “Backstage Blues”;a wonderful Art Exhibition that included printmaking, graphic design, photography, and visual art in various forms; and musical performances at the Vancouver Christmas Market and at our Final Assembly;
• the effectiveness of our Student Parliament in organizing special events such as the Halloween Dance and the Talent Show;
• the implementation of our “Bodwell Success Series,” designed to communicate to students all of our values and expectations at appropriate times during the year;
• health initiatives led by our school nurse, including health talks at each regular assembly and the establishment of a “smoking cessation” support group;
• an amazing array of field trips that have provided our students with memorable experiences outside of the classroom;
• opportunities provided by our extra-curricular clubs, such as the Volunteer Club, Adventure Club, Roots and Shoots Club, etc.;
• the successful placement of 196 students in homestay situations;
• the wide array of activities provided for our dormitory students;
• presentations to our students by representatives of numerous universities, including University of Toronto, UBC, and Victoria;
• the enhancement of our safety procedures and emergency drills, which the local police force have called “the best in North Vancouver.”
Special Events
In the space of only 14 weeks, we have managed to fit in an amazing number of special events that have enhanced the experience of our international students here at Bodwell:
1. New student orientation
2. School Picnic
3. Awards Assembly
4. Student Parliament Elections
5. Chalk for Peace
6. Shoreline Cleanup
7. Volunteer Club Food Drive
8. Dorm Olympics
9. Terry Fox Run
10. Cops for Cancer Assembly
11. Provincial Exams
12. Halloween Dance
13. Leadership Camp
14. “WE DAY” Conference
15. Tennis Tournament
16. Table tennis Tournament
17. Indoor Soccer Tournament
18. Inter-school sports tournaments, including the provincial swimming championships
19. Homestay Appreciation Evening
20. Social Studies 11 Trip to Victoria
21. Remembrance Day Assembly
22. Drama performances
23. Math contests
24. Kenya Day
25. Dorm Family Dinner
26. Dorm Open House
27. Music performances at Vancouver Christmas Market
28. Two regular assemblies
29. Talent Show
30. School Colours Assembly
Unsupervised Trips
All of the activities mentioned above are planned and supervised by school staff. Unfortunately, some students have planned unsupervised overnight trips for themselves during the semester, and even though parents gave their permission for these trips, this has caused us a great deal of worry and concern. We feel very responsible for the safety and security of our students, and feel that they should not be staying overnight in hotels at resorts such as Whistler without adult supervision. We are particularly concerned when students miss classes for this purpose.
As of January, 2011, we will not allow Bodwell dormitory or homestay students to go on unsupervised overnight trips.
