Dear MGCI Parents/Guardians/Caregivers/Students:
We are so lucky to be able to witness (with safety precautions) the near total solar eclipse on Monday April 8th. Please remember that day is a PA Day and classes are cancelled so that teachers and staff can engage in professional learning activities.
In Toronto, the near total solar eclipse is expected between 2:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. with the peak occurring at approximately 3:20 p.m. This is when the moon will overlap the sun, causing the sky to become dark as if it were dawn or dusk. Depending on the weather, people along the path of totality will see the Sun’s outer atmosphere (or corona), which is usually obscured by the bright face of the Sun.
While there are regular safety considerations associated with looking directly at the sun on any day of the year, it is particularly important not to do so during an eclipse. Should people look at the sun during the eclipse, they may not feel discomfort, but the Sun's intense radiation can still cause damage to the eyes. For additional information, the City of Toronto has compiled a number of important resources on solar eclipse safety.
For those families celebrating Eid next week, we wish you Eid Mubarak. Enjoy the time with your families and loved ones.
Gillian Evans, Principal
- Secondary Summer School Options
Please note that summer school registration opens shortly. Check out the links below if you are interested in TDSB Summer School options:
- Program: Youth Climate Action Initiative 2024
Passionate about the environment and want to bring positive change to your community? Explore sustainability, climate change, healthy living, and community impact with the Youth Climate Action Initiative with Skills for Change. This free program is for youth ages 16-29 with an interest in sustainability and community climate action who reside in or around the GTA, particularly in the Jane and Finch, Weston, Thorncliffe Park, Flemingdon Park, and Black Creek areas.
Upcoming Information Sessions:
For more information contact: Skills for Change Youth Community Workers rsalam@skillsforchange.org and sschlieffer@skillsforchange.org
- Power of Art
Interested in a free program for 12-18 year olds focusing on the arts? Check out the flyer from TNO!
Power of Art - MH Flyer.jpg
- Research: U of T Climate Impact on Youth Research
An opportunity for youth aged 16-25 to participate in a UofT led research project exploring the disproportionate impact of climate change on Black and racialized youth in Toronto. Participants are invited to an individual interview and an optional focus group at a later date. The research group is offering a $30 honorarium for participation in each session. Attached, is their informational poster, which includes further details and a link to an eligibility survey here. If you would like further information, please contact Ibtesaam Moosa at ibtesaam.moosa@mail.utoronto.ca.
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- Catch up Vaccine clinics
Health Access Thorncliffe Park is offering free catch-up vaccination clinics to students aged 0-18 on Monday April 8. Check out the attached flyers for more information!
Vaccine Clinic - Dari.png Vaccine Clinic - English.png Vaccine Clinic - Pashto.pdf Vaccine clinic - Urdu.pdf
- Worth Repeating - Hello Thorncliffe and Flemingdon residents from CBC Toronto!
Thorncliffe Park is at a crossroads, and we want to talk about it with you.
The community continues to be a landing place for newcomers and their families. At the same time, it's undergoing massive structural change while dealing with the housing and affordability crisis.
One thing remains constant: the grassroots effort to find solutions that lift up the community.
On Tuesday, April 16, join us for Facing the Future Together, an in-person panel event at the TNO Youth Hub located in the East York Town Centre. (Entrance 6)
Hosted by Metro Morning’s David Common, the panelists will discuss the Thorncliffe Park community's challenges and how best to face the future together. Space is limited, reserve your free ticket HERE.
When: Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Where: TNO Youth Hub, 45 Overlea Blvd
Time: Doors open at 6 p.m. The panel discussion begins at 6:30 p.m.
The event will be recorded, and segments will run on Metro Morning later that week. It's your chance to peek behind the curtain of the GTA's number-one radio show and hear how the Thorncliffe Park community is working together to meet the future head-on.
Food and refreshments will be served, and an opportunity to network and connect will be provided before the panels begin. Resource tables will provide information on the many programs in the Thorncliffe Park community, and you'll get a chance to see and discover some of the programming CBC Toronto has done as a part of our Thorncliffe Park Communities in Focus series.
We hope you can join us for this important conversation.
- Worth Repeating - Corsage Project
We are excited to announce that the Corsage Project will once again be running for 2024!
Created in 1999, we work in partnership with the Children's Aid Foundation of Canada to provide free formal wear and accessories to female-identifying high school students unable to afford the cost of prom wear and accessories. Students referred to the program by their school will be formally invited to attend our ‘Boutique Ball’ on Saturday, May 4th, 2024 at Rosedale School of the Arts where they will be able to pick out a brand new outfit, shoes, and accessories free of charge.
Female-identifying students in need of this support should speak with Ms. Galanis in the main office or Ms. Lajeunesse in room 213 before the April 19th deadline.
CORSAGE PROJECT BOUTIQUE BALL REFERRAL GUIDELINES
The three requirements all referrals must fulfil to be eligible to participate in the event are:
· must be graduating
· cannot have attended Corsage previously
· must be in need of the support
Some reasons that a student may require additional support with graduation expenses are as follows:
· unemployment in the family
· newly arrived family in Canada
· large family
· health issues in the family
· working part-time to assist family income
· loss of a parent
· living independently
· single-parent family
· agency involvement
· living in a group home
· pregnancy/becoming a young mother
For further information on the Corsage Project, please visit www.corsageproject.ca.
- Worth Repeating - Human Trafficking Parents Workshop
We invite you to a very special presentation presented by Victim Services Toronto on Tuesday May 7, 2024 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Marc Garneau C.I. in our school’s library. The presentation will focus on your role as a parent/guardian/caregiver and how you can prevent human trafficking. You will learn how youth are recruited, how to identify if your child is being trafficked, and how to support your child to prevent from being trafficked. We look forward to seeing you on May 7 at 6:30 p.m. in our school’s library.
- Worth Repeating - School Calendar and Family Trip Planning
The 2023-24 School Calendar is available on the TDSB website. Please click here for Exam and holiday dates. Please note that we will be scheduling final Exams and culminating activities for the 2023-24 school year in both January and June. A reminder that vacations are not considered a legitimate absence from instructional days or Exam days. Every effort should be made to avoid scheduling family vacations during school time. In the event of a missed evaluation due to a family vacation, teachers are not required to provide an
alternative form of evaluation or Exam and a mark of zero may be assigned.
- School Council Update
Our next meeting will be April 25 at 7pm. The meeting will take place both in person in the library and online. Links will be shared closer to the date.