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Jean-Paul II builds on late Pope’s legacy
Jul 9, 2007 By: Lesley BovieWHITBY -- When students arrive for their first day of school at Ecole elementaire catholique Jean-Paul II, they become part of a family -- literally.
Everyone, from teachers to custodians, at the French language Catholic school are assigned to one of eight families.
Each family is named after one of the countries that played host to Youth Day before Pope John Paul II’s death in 2005.
It helps foster mentoring among older and younger students while also honouring the late pontiff’s commitment to family.
Building a sense of community is also important for a school like Jean-Paul II, where 99 per cent of students are bused from as far away as Raglan.
“We’re really more of a regional school. For us, it’s a challenge, so we have to do something like this,” says principal André Savard.
Opened in September 2005, Jean-Paul II is the former Sir William Stephenson Public School on Hutchinson Street.
This year, the school will see a new $1.5-million gym built, complete with a stage.
The old gym will be converted into two classrooms and a central office.
Mr. Savard said the board was taken by the grounds, which back onto two large soccer fields, a baseball diamond and the perfect toboggan hill in the winter.
Students can also use the neighbouring municipal tennis courts, which has given way to a successful tennis program at Jean-Paul II.
“We’re not big, but we’re good,” said Mr. Savard, of the 212 students attending Jean-Paul II.
Home to the boys’ champion volley-ball team for the last two years, Jean-Paul II also boasts successful basketball, soccer and handball teams.
Earlier this year, the Grade 6 Improv squad took the gold medal, edging out 48 other schools within the French language board.
“We give a lot of importance to literacy, reading and writing,” said Mr. Savard, pointing out regular reading activities that each family participates in.
A feeder school for Ecole Secondaire Saint-Charles-Garnier in Brooklin, the JK to Grade 6 school is often referred to by parents as a home away from home, said Mr. Savard.
Jean-Paul II offers a French class for parents who don’t speak it as their mother tongue at home. At the same time, it encourages bilingualism among students by introducing them to English classes in Grade 4.
“To have two languages today is nothing,” says Mr. Savard, who hails from Quebec originally. “Some of our students have three or four.”
