Good Day Families of Higgins Students

I hope you’ve had an enjoyable summer, and that you had an incredible time with family and friends.

Below is some important information for the start of school.

Office Opens:  Monday, August 26, at 7:45am.

Office Hours:  7:45am – 3:45pm Monday thru Friday

First Day of School:  Thursday, August 29

  • In the morning school is only for grade 7 students, students in our paced learning program, and any grade 8 or 9 student that is new to the school. 
  • In the afternoon, starting at 12:30pm, all students are expected to attend. 
  • Unfortunately, there is no bussing for students coming in the afternoon, but there is bussing at the end of the day. 

When students arrive, they can go directly to the school gym, where they will be placed into homerooms to begin their day.  

Have You Moved?

If you have moved, or your child is attending a different educational setting, please call the school at 403-777-7060 to let us know your child will not be returning.  This is important as it allows us to better support your child’s transition.

Dr. Gordon Higgins Bell Schedule

Monday thru Thursday

7:45am                 Entry:  Doors Open

7:55am                 Warning Bell

8:00am                 School Start:  Instruction Begins

9:54am                 Locker Break

9:58am                 Instruction Continues

11:52am               Lunch

12:30pm               Warning Bell

12:35pm               Instruction Begins

2:30pm                 End of School Day


Friday

7:45am                 Entry:  Doors Open

7:55am                 Warning Bell

8:00am                 Instruction Begins

10:38am               Locker Break

10:42am               Instruction Continues

12:30pm               End of School Day

Dropping off and Picking up Students and Traffic

In the morning, the front of the school is extremely busy with buses and student arrival.  The area in front of the school is reserved for buses only.  If you are dropping off your child, we suggest dropping them off a couple blocks from the school.  We also suggest you set a pick up spot at the end of the day away from the front of the school.   The street is narrow, and with buses it can prove challenging and dangerous when crowded.

My School Bus Monitor

For this families who have children taking the school bus, we strongly recommend you check to see if there are any delays.  You can access the information here.  https://www.myschoolbusmonitor.ca/

Closed Campus

The campus is closed for students in grades 7, 8 and all students in the Paced Learning Program.  The decision to close the campus for some grades was made in consultation with parents.  In a survey to families, 91% of parents asked for the campus to be closed. 

A closed campus means that students must stay on school property at lunch.  We have a hot cafeteria for lunch, featuring delicious food (Halal appropriate), supervised clubs and an open gym for grade levels.  If students bring their lunch there is plenty of space for students to eat their lunch.  The learning commons is a supervised space, and thanks to the CBE, the City of Calgary, Alberta Infrastructure, and our very own School Council we have a brand new sport court for students to be active on. 

Grade 9s

We recommend that all students stay on campus, but grade 9s do have the opportunity to leave campus at lunch.  However, if lateness becomes a serious trend, we reserve the right to withhold off campus privileges for some students in grade 9.

Cafeteria – Opens September 3

As mentioned above, the student does have a cafeteria which features healthy and delicious options for students.   Please note, the cafeteria will not be opened until Tuesday, September 3, so for Thursday, August 29, students will need to bring their lunch. 

Athletics

Early in the week a message will be sent home outlining which Athletic teams will start the year, and when tryouts for Athletics will take place.

The Sport Court

After 2-3 years of perseverance, the sport court is finally officially finished.  This summer the school logo was put on the court, and we are ready to offer the space to students, and when school is not in session to the Rundle community.    The following is an article that Livewire did on the opening of the sport court.   Have a read J  https://livewirecalgary.com/2024/07/26/new-basketball-courts-at-dr-gordon-higgins-school-serves-rundle-community/

We look forward to welcoming your students to the school this year, and hope that everyone has a fantastic year.

Sincerely,

Colin McCracken

Principal