We believe in you! At the Ponoka Outreach School this is their motto; as a third year student attendee at this school the motto stands true to its word year after year. Mr. Lawrence Hrycan is a major contributor to the upkeep of just why that is; as every year throughout registration he likes to have a personal sit down with every new and returning student to get a feel for who they are as individuals; parents welcomed. The school year has already begun and student orientations have long since ended.
On Thursday, Sept. 4 at 4 p.m., began the first student orientation date. This is the last step in an individual student’s orientation process. As stated by Mr. Hrycan on the Registration for High School Students handout “All students must go through a student orientation of two hours before they are allowed to start or continue with their courses.” As to why this step is mandatory is to welcome everyone to the building and to answer any and all questions; staying on topic. The second orientation alone hosted between 60 and 65 students out of the 255 students in total. Monday, Sept. 8 at 9 a.m., Thursday, Sept. 11 at 4 p.m., and Monday, Sept. 15 at 9 a.m. were the four total orientation dates in which could have been attended by students and their parents.
The program began with a self introductory from each teacher and Mr. Hrycan. Followed by a rather humorous joke made by Mr. Halbert; in order to loosen up one and all and aid in keeping the attention of everyone. Moving on to riffling through a rather large amount of handouts; which included a calendar of upcoming events, a student handbook, a high school course planning chart and a vibrant welcoming slip. On the calendar; informs that Sept.18 from 4 to 8 p.m. was a Meet the Staff Barbecue night, giving parents who have not met any of the teachers or the principal, yet another opportunity. Also, the annual Terry Fox Run began Sept. 23 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.. As the Terry Fox Run is an event that the Outreach School; like all others, participates in and encourages all students to do every year. Wrapping up the program was a 45 minute video on drugs. Like most of the other students I as well thought “Oh no not another video on why drugs are bad”, but this video; although somewhat long, was actually very interesting and still very informative. We were given the chance to observe drug abusing teenagers’ emotional experiences. During the movie as I glanced around the room, I had noticed tears in plenty of teachers’ eyes, along with many students. Out of all the times that I have watched informative videos about drugs, with my class, this was the very first time that I have ever observed any of the students crying. They usually just roll their eyes and take part in a whole lot of yawning. It really put things into perspective for me.