Dear Northern Families,

What a great week. On Tuesday we held the Spring Athletic Assembly- always an energy filled event. We are now looking forward to the Athletic Banquet on June 10^th.

We also had the Northern Lights Arts and Tech evening last night. It was amazing to see the proud faces of students performing and showing off their creations. We want to thank everyone that came out to the event for making it such a success. I am already looking forward to next year’s event! Thank You to all our staff sponsors who helped make the evening a success.

A reminder that the SAC Carnival has been rescheduled to Tuesday June 3^rd. Details below.

You have likely received this message directly, but we have been asked to share the results of the recent Boundary Review with the Northern community.

June is Pride month across all of TDSB, a time to celebrate 2SLGBTQ+ communities and reflect on the important work that must continue to make our schools and workplaces more inclusive, welcoming and affirming for all. Pride month offers learning opportunities for each of us to engage in and learn from as we strive to celebrate 2SLGBTQ+ Pride every day at Toronto District School Board. Please keep an eye/ ear out for exciting events happening at Northern to celebrate Pride Month beginning with the Pride flag raising Monday at lunch!

Finally, and on a more serious note, I need to speak to the conduct of some of our students in recent weeks. At Northern we are part of a larger community in the city. We have neighbours that live in homes and apartments, we have neighbours that are businesses and places of worship. All of these neighbours deserve to be treated with dignity and have their person(s) and property respected. Recently I have received several calls and emails complaining about Northern students crowding sidewalks (please move to the right when passing others and ALWAYS make room for people passing on the sidewalk when you are waiting for the bus). There have been complaints about students sitting in private spaces and leaving garbage behind, and most frustratingly, with the inappropriate responses of students when redirected by members of the public. Please, let’s honour our neighbours who include toddlers and the elderly. They deserve respect from all of us. Thank You.

The student calendar can be found here: 2024-2025 School Calendar.  Any additions made will be highlighted for a two week period throughout the year.

The student handbook can be found here: Student Handbook

 

Things to Know for Next Week:

Tuesday: Music Banquet

Tuesday: SAC Carnival (extended lunch schedule)

Wednesday: Grade 8 Welcome Event

 

Graduating Students – TDSB 1:1 Device Collection:

All Grade 12 students participating in the Student Device Program are expected to return their Chromebook prior to June 30 to the administrative offices at Northern. Grade 12 students taking a TDSB-provided summer course will be able to retain their device. Students taking a summer course will be required to complete an agreement that includes returning the device in good working order to their home school prior to September 1, 2025. The agreement will be shared digitally with Grade 12 students registered for a TDSB summer course in mid-June and this data provided to schools.

 

Tonight is PROM for the Northern Class of 2025!

Thank you to our Prom Committee, Staff Advisors, and Staff Supervisors for making this an Enchanted Evening.

We are looking forward to a memorable and magical night together at Parkview Manor from 6 to 11 pm.

Please remember to review with your graduates:

-Safe travel planning (do not get in a car with a driver under the influence).

-Make good choices around substances, consent (verbal and enthusiastic!) and respectful behaviour.

Congratulations on this meaningful milestone!!!

 

CARNIVAL x AFROFEST:

takes place on Tuesday, June 3rd over an extended lunch period.

This is an annual FREE event for ALL NSS students and staff to celebrate the year end together.

There will be games, music, sports, activities, inflatables, a dunk tank and more.

Pick up your free PASSPORT at the gate, get a hole punch at each booth, and win prizes!

Students should:

-dress for the weather, wear sunblock, and bring water

-bring money for amazing food from BlackNSS, Greek Club, and MSA, as well as lemonade, freezies, protein bars, and ice cream sandwiches

-FREE popcorn and snow cones from Student Council

20. Northern we Own Our Actions, and leave Careful Footprints. Please help us have a positive and respectful Carnival by: putting trash in it's place, showing our NSS pride and sprit respectfully, and making the event inclusive and fun for everyone.

Students who would like a quiet alternate space are welcome to go to the library over the extended lunch.

Classes will be running in the morning and afternoon - Tuesday is NOT an early dismissal.

We are looking forward to the sunshine!

 

Track and Field:

Congratulations to Northern's Track & Field Team for their outstanding performance at the South Regional Championships and Metro Championships! Over 90 students represented Northern at the Regional Championships, winning too many medals to list here and earning many top 10 finishes. Our Junior Girls and Junior Boys both won the title of South Region Champs. Some notable results included Maya D.-C., who won gold in all of her events (long jump, triple jump and high jump); Rebecca P., who broke the track record in the Junior Girls 800m and the 1500m; and Kieva B., who broke the track record in the Senior Girls 1500m and the 3000m.

We also had over 50 student-athletes qualify for the Metro Championships, which took place this past week at Birchmount Stadium. Our Junior Girls won the title of City Champs, and we had several athletes place in the top 10 against schools from the TDSB, TCDSB, and independent schools. Our top finishers were Maya D.-C., who won gold in triple jump, silver in high jump, and bronze in long jump; Rebecca P., who won double golds in the 1500m & 3000m; Kieva B., who won bronze in the 1500m & 4th in the 3000m; and Kate W., who won bronze in pole vault.

Thank you to the 100+ students who participated on the team this year for a wonderful season. We are still looking for donations of used track spikes. If you have any spikes you'd like to donate to the school, please drop them off at the Guidance Office.

Good luck to Maya, Rebecca, Kieva and Kate at OFSAA next week!

 

Northern Trivia:

Congratulations to the Northern Trivia Team for placing second at Consensus Nationals, the premier high school trivia competition in Canada. The school was well represented in Ottawa by Sean G., David L., Blayze G., Aidan H. and Gavin H. With a record of 14 - 4 Northern fell just short in the final versus Glebe (Ottawa), but finished ahead of University of Toronto Schools, Renert (Calgary), UCC, Westdale (Hamilton), Iroquois Ridge (Oakville), McMath (Vancouver), Lisgar (Ottawa), among others. This was the finale to a fantastic season. Great work team.

 

Electric Vehicle (EV) Challenge – University of Waterloo
Last Saturday, Northern EV Team #851 competed in the University of Waterloo EV Challenge. This was the first EV designed and manufactured by students from the Tech Design and Robotics classes in a short timeframe. Despite encountering several mechanical and electrical challenges, the student drivers navigated the vehicle and competed in both the 12V and 24V races.The team also earned a spot as one of the four finalists for the Engineering Design Award.

Here are some photos and videos from the event:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1eGKcCKpU6yl58gvGMQUnipNYgTRwGALS

You can also see the EV or support the team by donating at Northern Lights, SAC Carnival, or the Grade 8 Open House.

 

News from Deaf and Hard of Hearing: NEW GLASSES!

A huge thank you to local optometrist Dr. Brenda Li and her team at Davisville Eye Care! On April 17th, Dr Li's team performed OHIP eye exams and eye-health checks for eleven DHH students.

Then, on April 29th, students from DHH travelled to the Toronto Foundation for Student Success's Eye Clinic at Charles Gordon Senior Public School to have further eye tests, and/or to choose fashionable frames!

Finally, on Friday, May 23rd, DHH students' new glasses arrived at Northern!

Thank you again to Dr. Li, the Toronto Foundation for Student Success, and our awesome DHH support staff (Sign Language Facilitators and Educational Assistants) for removing access barriers so that our DHH students can have clear sight to learn!

 

Library Learning Commons:

Final date* to return school Library books: June 12, 2025.

*If you need a book for longer to complete an assignment, please talk to a Teacher-Librarian.

Return your Overdue Chromebooks, USB chargers and Library Books!

• It’s time to start hunting for those overdue items from the Northern Secondary School Library.
• Students who have overdue Library technology and/or books have received an email notification with a list of what is overdue.
• If the Library door is closed, books can be left in the DROP BOX outside.

All Library tech and book loans are due before the end of semester on June 12th, 2025.

 

Final Exams

Final exams run from June 18-23, 2025. The moratorium period begins on Thursday June 12. There will be no excursions or athletic events during this period.

You can find information about the culminating activities and final exams for each course here (organized by grade) here: NSS Culminating and Final Exam Information Sem 2 2025.

You can find a detailed exam schedule here: NSS Exam Schedule - Semester 2 2024-25

The schedule follows this format:

Students will follow their Day 1 schedule as follows for exams:

Wednesday, June 18 - Period 1 Exam

Thursday, June 19 - Period 2 Exam

Friday, June 20 - Period 3 Exam

Monday, June 23 - Period 4 Exam

ALL exams will begin at 10:00 am.  Exam duration will vary by subject/year.  Looking ahead, students should make sure they eat a good breakfast as they will eat a “late” lunch on these days once exams are over (late relative to our usual 11:40 am lunchtime).

Please take some time to look through our Exam ReadiNSS site for information and resources.  More information will be added as exams approach – including some in person exam preparation sessions provided by our student services and special education departments.

CULMINATING TASKS AND EXAMS

Culminating activities and examinations carry the same importance and the same attendance requirement. Thus, attendance during culminating activities is mandatory. Some courses have culminating activities that take place over several days. Thus, attendance during culminating activities/summative evaluations is mandatory. A culminating activity is the final evaluation in each course which is worth 30% of the final mark. “This evaluation will be based on evidence from one or a combination of the following: an examination, a performance, an essay and/or another method of evaluation suitable to the course content” (p.41-Growing Success). Students who miss culminating activities or summative evaluations will be given a mark of zero for the portion missed with no opportunity to make up the missed work unless there is an extenuating and documented circumstance, such as a medical situation, court date, funeral etc. It is absolutely crucial that students do not miss any time during the end of a semester. Under Ministry of Education and TDSB regulations, there can be no accommodations made for students who miss the 30% culminating activities and summative evaluations at the end of a semester for personal reasons such as vacation or work. Students and parents should be aware that scheduled vacations at this time can significantly impact student achievement. With the exception of a medical emergency, all summative tests and assignments that are missed as a result of these absences will be assigned a mark of zero.

 

School Council:

Walking Buddies - Sunday, June 7th at 9:30 am. Join other Northern parents for some fresh air, exercise, and conversation about school, kids, and life! If you are interested in joining us, please send a message with “Walking buddies” in the subject line.

Help Wanted: The Student Nutrition Program is looking for three new Parent Volunteers for the 2025/2026 school year. This program offers free healthy lunches to registered students throughout the school year. The time commitment is 10:30-12:30 one or more days a week to prepare and serve food to students. A vulnerable sector police check is required, which is why the process starts well in advance of the next school year. If you are interested, please email april.vibert@tdsb.on.ca

External Free Resources for Families

Youth ADHD Peer-facilitated Support Group: Age 16-24 - June 25, 2025 at 8:00 pm. CADDAC is excited to offer virtual support groups led by CADDAC-trained peer facilitators. Each session will offer a brief educational component to help relate a chosen topic to ADHD (i.e.. Procrastination; sleep; advocacy; etc.) Based on the topic and information shared, participants are then invited to discuss how this relates to them, share strategies and to offer support to peers with similar lived experience. Our wonderful team of facilitators is there to provide a safe and inclusive space for you to listen, share, and feel validated. Registration is required.

Northern Secondary School Foundation: New Grade 12 Awards: Business: The Donald Little Memorial Award in Business

We have recently received funding to provide an Award for a student in each of the Grade 12 Business courses- Accounting, International Business, Business Leadership, Sports and Entertainment Marketing and Financial Services.

Criteria:Demonstrated academic achievement, and financial need.

Apply at nssf.ca/scholarship from May 26-June 2, 2025

For more information contact info@nssf.ca

 

Guidance Updates:

1. June’s Wellness Theme is “Rest and Rejuvenation”

Student are encouraged to check out the NSS Exam ReadiNSS site for tips on Stress Management and Wellness.

2. OSAP Applications are now OPEN for the 2025-2026 school year: www.osap.on.ca for more information.

Recently, the Guidance Department held a lunch presentation on How to Pay for Post-Secondary, here's the slide deck from that presentation. You will find the following topics within:

• OSAP: when to apply, how it works, what you need etc.
• Student Loans: how to bridge the gap if OSAP is not enough
• The difference between OSAP and Student Loans

Feel free to come to the Guidance Office if you have any questions!

3. TDSB Summer School Options:

** PLEASE NOTE: July e-Learning registration is closing June 3, 2025.

e-Summer Information here

• Asynchronous, online e-learning (most flexible option)
• July and August courses available
• Grade 11 and 12 courses
• July e-Learning Key Dates: July e-Learning registration closes June 3, 2025
• August e-Summer Key Dates – Registration closes July 4, 2025.

ConEd Information here

• Full Credit Course Registration will CLOSE June 17, 2025 at 10:00 a.m.
• TDSB Credit Recovery will CLOSE June 27, 2025.
• ConEd Summer School classes will be held from July 2 to July 25, 2025 - Monday to Friday, from 8:45 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
• These classes are available only in July.
• ConEd Remote Learning: All Grade 9 and 10 credit courses will be delivered through synchronous online learning.
• ConEd In-Person Learning: All Grade 9 to 12 credit courses, students will attend face-to-face classes with a teacher.
• Summer School In Person Sites/Locations

4. Seeking Scholarships has released their April Scholarship Report which has upcoming scholarship dates listed for students applying to post-secondary programs in all areas, and there are tons of helpful resources around applying to OSAP as well.

Northern students, teachers, and families can access from this link using the password, scholar678: https://seekingscholarships.com/the-scholarship-report-2/

Please note: This resource is copyrighted and only available to Northern families - please do not share outside of the Northern community.

Northern-specific scholarship information and deadlines (along with other common awards that students apply to can be found here): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-ZrEGhtrhY8rH4WW3NLC-p5QE-2hStUszLZTn34h8_o/edit

5. IMPORTANT Volunteering Information:

NSS Volunteer & Community Involvement Policy:

Guidance has been working with Admin to finalise the NSS Volunteer & Community Involvement Policy.

PLEASE NOTE: Events and activities supporting a not-for-profit initiative/organization are approved. If you are unsure if your activities supports a not-for-profit program, please see your Guidance counsellor for approval of the volunteering initiative. For more information about the TDSB’s policy on Volunteering, click here. Students: for volunteering information and opportunities, please visit your Guidance Google classroom or www.volunteertoronto.ca. You can find the TDSB Community Involvement form here.

6. Online Graduation Requirement – Information and Opt-Out Form.

Looking for information about the Ontario Ministry Online Learning graduation requirement? Please click here. Overview Info: Students may withdraw/opt out of this new requirement and graduate with an OSSD if you have decided now to withdraw from the graduation requirement, please complete the TDSB Opt Out/Withdrawal Form and return it to your Guidance Counsellor.

7. Mental Wellness Resource Document

If you are experiencing an emergency, please call 911.

 

Have a great weekend!

Adam Marshall

Principal

Follow me @PrincipalNSS