<p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Dear Highland Park Huskies,</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><br></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">With less than one week of school left, I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude for your support, encouragement, and partnership throughout the year. Your involvement has helped create a welcoming, positive, and engaging environment where our students have been able to thrive.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This year has been filled with so many wonderful highlights. We’ve seen students grow in their learning, take risks, and build confidence in themselves. From creative projects and class presentations to moments of teamwork, leadership, and everyday kindness, it has been a joy to watch our students shine and support one another in becoming Husky STRONG.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">To those students and families who are moving away, we wish you all the very best in your new adventures. You will be missed, and we hope you carry fond memories of your time with us.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">To our Grade 5 students, we are so proud of all you have accomplished. As you head off to Len Wood Middle School to join their “EXTREME” team—we wish you confidence, courage, and excitement for all that lies ahead. Please remember our Husky STRONG ways of being: </span><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">once a Husky, always a Husky. That’s the Husky Way… Whoo AH! </strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Our grade 4/5 teaching team has planned a grade 5 celebration day on Tuesday, June 23. We ask families with grade 5 students to please check your email for more information from Ms. Mac send last week. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Thank you again for being such an important part of our community. Wishing you all a safe, restful, and joyful summer. If there is anything important you wish to reach out to me about over the summer months, please email me at </span><a href="mailto:scull@sd83.bc.ca" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">scull@sd83.bc.ca</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">. I will be checking periodically.&nbsp; For information about our proposed configuration for next school year, the student placement process, or more about the </span><a href="https://hpe.sd83.bc.ca/welcome-to-kindergarten-2025-2026" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Kindergarten Gradual Entry Schedule</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="https://hpe.sd83.bc.ca/news/newsletter-9-june-1-2026" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to review the June Newsletter that was posted on our website on June 1</span><sup style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span>st</span></sup><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> and emailed to families.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">FUNDAY: </strong></b><a href="https://hpe.sd83.bc.ca/news/hpe-fun-day-schedule-" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to review the plan for Fun Day and approved volunteers that are running our activities. Permission Slips were sent home on Friday as we realized last minute that the Funday date was not included in regular swim dates shared already with families, like last school year. Many apologies for that oversight. &nbsp;Information about Funday with an attached permission form was emailed to families on Friday. Please email your child’s teacher or reach out to Tammie at the office by phone 250-546-8723 or email </span><a href="mailto:hpe@sd83.bc.ca" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">hpe@sd83.bc.ca</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to give consent if you did not receive either of these.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">YEAR END ASSEMBLY</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">: Our year end assembly is on Thursday, June 25 at 8:30 am. We will be recognizing students who have shown exemplary sharing behaviours.&nbsp; More than just sharing objects but their best selves at school. At our last assembly we talked about sharing kindness, ideas, strengths, patience, understanding, acceptance, forgiveness, second chances, etc. In addition to these Husky STRONG certificates, we will be acknowledging the annual Mrs. Prystupa Perseverance Award to a deserving student. We will also be thanking our outgoing PAC executive, introducing our new PAC executive, saying farewell to staff and our grade 5 students, and thanking parents who have contributed ongoing and regular volunteering for school wide events throughout the school year.&nbsp; We are at gym capacity with our students and staff and guests that we plan to acknowledge.&nbsp; If you wish to attend because your child is in grade 5, there is standing room only at the back. To include families in our year end celebration, Mrs. Cull will be emailing the year end slide show by email with restrictions in place preventing downloading and a file expiry of one week.&nbsp; It is important that families do not share photos on social media platforms without consent from all the individuals in the photo or their guardians if underage.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">INFORMATION FROM PAC</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">: The incoming PAC executive will be hosting a celebration for our outgoing PAC executive on Thursday, June 25 at 9:40ish after the year end assembly.&nbsp; Given that both Julie (with 13 years) and Amanda (with 11 years) are leaving our school, students and staff will head out after the assembly to enjoy a cupcake to honour their investment in our school and our students over these years.&nbsp; As long serving PAC executives, they leave behind a legacy of tradition, advocacy, and community building. We are hopeful that families will join us in the front field to express their gratitude to these generous ladies.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><img src="/images/7f760194-d96d-49b9-b2ac-fd751d59f0fe?fingerprint=ppb20260621175259" alt="Image (92)" width="100%" height="inherit" style="width:100%;height:inherit;display:inline-block"></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Our first PAC Meeting for the 2026 – 2027 school year will be Tuesday, September 22 at 2:30 pm in the library.&nbsp; In addition, PAC would like our families to know that funding to Shuswap Food Action Society has been cut quite significantly. &nbsp;This is the organization that provides our free soup days at our school. Our incoming PAC executive will be exploring options for meal programming for the 2026 – 2027 school year for our students.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">COMMUNICATING STUDENT LEARNING: </strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Summaries of Learning will be available on Thursday, June 25. If you have questions about your child's learning or progress, teachers will be at the school on Friday, June 26. As always, please reach out to me regarding any and all aspects of Highland Park Elementary. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL BBQ:</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> In the spirit of next year, please ensure you include the Welcome Back to School BBQ in your family calendars on Thursday, September 24 at 5 pm in the front field at HPE. Thank you to our incoming PAC executive for organizing this kick off to the 2026 - 2027 school year. All HPE families welcome and more information will be available in the new school year. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL 2026 - 2027:</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> Please contact our office at 250-546-8723 as soon as possible if you are moving or know of anyone moving into our catchment.&nbsp; Throughout the summer you can also email me at </span><a href="mailto:scull@sd83.bc.ca" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">scull@sd83.bc.ca</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">.&nbsp; This information is vital for planning purposes.&nbsp; The more secure we are with our enrollment, the faster we can get into assigned classrooms for the school year. The first day of school for students in grade 1 – 5 at Highland Park is Wednesday, September 9.&nbsp; Students will be returning to their previous classroom (where possible) for the first day and for as long as it takes to solidify our enrollment and balance out student placement given any unexpected moves and new registrations.&nbsp; </span><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Dismissal on the first day of school (Wednesday, September 9) for students is three hours earlier, at 11:03 am.</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">&nbsp; Buses will run as usual, just 3 hours earlier.&nbsp; In order to ride the bus, your child must be registered. For more information about transportation and how to register, please </span><a href="https://www.sd83.bc.ca/school-bus-transportation" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">SCHOOL CALENDAR</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">: Please have a look at the school calendar for the 2026 – 2027 school year and input important dates like the Student/Teacher/Family Conference on Monday, October 26. &nbsp;</span><a href="https://hpe.sd83.bc.ca/news/2026-27-district-calendar" class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to access the 2026 – 2027 school calendar and record all the pertinent dates in your family calendar.&nbsp; </span><a href="https://www.sd83.bc.ca/documents/921adfa0-748d-4776-b72c-222bfb371a9d/SD83-2026-2027-School-Calendar.pdf?fingerprint=ppb20260316201307&amp;fingerprint=ppb20260316201307"&fingerprint=ppb20260316201307 class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to access a pdf to download and print for your reference.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">2026 – 2027 SCHOOL FEES</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">: A reminder to please not purchase supplies for your child.&nbsp; </span><a href="https://hpe.sd83.bc.ca/documents/c631fc73-13b7-409c-b321-394d33c10c84/HPE-STUDENT-FEES-2026-2027.pdf?fingerprint=ppb20260530151928&amp;fingerprint=ppb20260530151928"&fingerprint=ppb20260530151928 class="editor-link"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> to view the fee structure for the 2026 – 2027 school year.&nbsp; </span><b><strong class="editor-text-bold" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Payment is due by Friday, October 2, 2026</strong></b><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">.&nbsp;</span></p>

<p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">On Friday, June 19, HPE students and staff will acknowledge National Indigenous People’s Day.&nbsp; At 1:00 pm in the front field students will be participating in a whole school song entitled&nbsp;</span><i><em class="editor-text-italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">O’Siem</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">&nbsp;by Susan Aglukark, an Indigenous artist and songwriter. Susan Aglukark was the first Inuk performer to secure a Top-10 hit in Canada. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">We chose&nbsp;</span><i><em class="editor-text-italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">O Siem</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">&nbsp;because it shares an important message about inclusion, friendship, equality, and respect—values that are central to Indigenous cultures and to the spirit of National Indigenous Peoples Day. By learning and singing this song, students are engaging with an Indigenous artist’s voice and reflecting on how we can treat one another with kindness and understanding. In addition, our lovely Ms. Laura will be singing and leading the grade 5’s in drumming.&nbsp; </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">On Friday, June 19 students are encouraged to wear the following colours representing the colours of Canada, our school and also when put together, represent the colours of the Nunavut flag, where Susan Aglukark is from.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sandberg, Myhre, and Johnson, Terrell and Cooper (Grade k/1) – red</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Kalf, Fassbender and Ricard (Grade 2 and 2/3) – white</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Coombs and Daughtry (Grade 3 and 3/4) – yellow</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">MacDonald, Benge, Byrnes and Vallance (Grade 4/5) – blue</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><br></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">If families would like to attend, they can observe from in front of the school's main entrance or along the kiss and ride side walk. Approved volunteers, if wanting to participate, can obtain a HPE lanyard from Ms. Tammie when they sign in at the office. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><br></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">A big thank you to Ms. Laura and many parent volunteers for making Bannock for our staff and students today. It was delicious. Thank you for sharing your time, knowledge, and generosity.</span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><img src="/images/39d563fd-5850-4e90-8620-dfe9fa4347e7?fingerprint=ppb20260618234910" alt="Image (75)" width="100%" height="inherit" style="width:100%;height:inherit;display:inline-block"></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><img src="/images/3a31c217-1ad0-49d3-b865-50caaa8f36b2?fingerprint=ppb20260618234908" alt="Image (90)" width="100%" height="inherit" style="width:100%;height:inherit;display:inline-block"></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><br></p><p class="editor-paragraph" style="text-align: start;"><br></p>

<p class="editor-paragraph"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Our PAC is looking for volunteers to help with IPE Parking on Thursday, September 3 and Saturday, September 5. This is their biggest fundraiser of the year. Please scan the QR code or click on the link to sign up. On behalf of our school, students and HPE families, thank you for volunteering. </span></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><figure><a href="https://www.signupgenius.com/GO/9040F4CAFAD2EA3F94-64164835-IPEPARKING#/" title="Parent IPE Parking"><img src="/images/412ec587-330d-4655-8118-ff6fac44518c?fingerprint=ppb20260613160907" alt="Parent IPE Parking" width="100%" height="inherit" style="width:100%;height:inherit;display:inline-block"></a></figure></p><p class="editor-paragraph"><br></p>