Emily Ritonja, a grade 6 student at St. Michael School, Corkery was nominated by her classroom teacher, Monica Jacka for a Me to We Award in the Youth in Action (12 and under) category. Last Friday, Emily found out that she is one of the three finalists in Canada for her category. The Me to We Awards are all about shining the spotlight on Canadians who are making a difference in communities, at home and abroad, and Emily is definitely making a difference!

In October 2012, she spearheaded an initiative to honour the students at her school with Down syndrome, as well as the efforts with the Special Olympics. She presented her idea to the school administration, created a team of assistants and launched a fundraising week for the Special Olympics. Because of her engaging personality, Emily was able to inspire others to not only join her cause, but also to create their own initiatives to make the world a better place.

The nominees in each category have been posted on the Huffington Post Canada website, so make sure you show your support and vote for Emily! If she is selected, she will receive a $5,000 donation to the charity of her choice and a Me to We volunteer trip to the Amazon. Best of luck Emily!

  Click here to vote for Emily! >>  

The Ottawa Catholic School Board is proud to recognize eleven (11) of our teachers who were finalists for the 2013 Capital Educators’ Awards, and the four (4) award recipients of the prestigious honour. All finalists were invited to attend the 12th Annual EduGala on May 23, 2013 at Algonquin College. View the photos and biographies for all of our special finalists.  

Read more: Congratulations to our 2013 Capital Educators

Brian Laight from All Saints High School in Kanata was recognized by the Ernest C. Manning Innovation Awards Foundation at the Canada Wide Science Fair last week in Lethbridge, Alberta with a Manning Innovation Achievement Award. He took home $500 and a silver medal for his research on oncolytic viruses.

Brian turned his fascination with the human immune system and cancer-related experiences within his own family into an ongoing focus on the potential for using oncolytic viruses in the treatment of human cancer. Oncolytic viruses are engineered for the sole purpose of selectively infecting and destroying cancer cells/tumours in patients.

Read more: All Saints Student Wins National Science Fair Award

On Friday, May 3rd, over  270 students from the Ottawa Catholic School Board gathered at the University of Ottawa for a French for the Future information day. French for the Future is an event in which students have the opportunity to take part in workshops and cultural activities that demonstrate the real-life benefits of knowing both of Canada’s official languages.

Students attended workshops that focused on how French is used in a variety of employment fields including the RCMP, medicine, marketing, tourism, music, visual arts, and media. Other workshops helped students discover how French can culturally enrich their lives through adventures in travel including studying abroad, social tourism and international volunteer opportunities. This forum was a high energy day, including improvisation, music, dance, and a wonderful lunch!

The Ottawa Catholic School Board Chamber Choir shared their ministry of music by leading the congregation in song at the Catholic Education Week Mass, held at Notre Dame Cathedral on Tuesday, May 7, 2013.  The Chamber Choir is directed by Jamie Loback, with assistance from MaryAnn Dunn, founder and director of the OCSB Children’s Choir. Wonderful support at the piano was provided by the choir's accompanist, Tony Dunn.

Celebrating Excellence, now in it's second decade,  is an event that honours one exceptional student from each of our 81 schools. Each of the students recognized benefits from our special education services and is singled out for exemplifying one or more of the following Gospel values: faith, hope, community, dignity of persons, excellence, justice, and stewardship for creation.

Read more: Celebrating Excellence

On May 1st, 38 French as a second language students from several Ottawa Catholic School Board high schools participated in the Concours de français langue seconde d’Ottawa-Carleton at the University of Ottawa. This French as a second language contest evaluated grade 11 and 12 students' competencies in listening, reading, writing and speaking. Students competed in three categories: Core , Extended and Immersion.

Special congratulations go out to Andrew Kidd and Shingai Madzire from Mother Teresa High School who both claimed first place in their category, along with a first-year scholarship to either Carleton University or the University of Ottawa in the program of their choice. Andrew was one of the eight winning students from category 2 for students who have achieved 2101 to 5000 hours of French studies, while Shingai won first prize in category 1 for students who have achieved 600 to 2100 hours of study in French. Shingai, pictured on the left, was also awarded the Prix Roger-Drouin for achieving the highest score in creative writing. "Félicitations!" to all participating students!

Congratulations to Mrs. Davidson's grade 5/6 class at Holy Cross School for being selected as one of 6 overall winners from Ontario in the Power4Bones Public Service Announcement contest.

The class submitted their entry entitled "Felix the Giant" based on their learnings about bone health. Because of their achievement, a $500.00 monetary donation will be made on behalf of the class to the Boys and Girls Club of Ottawa. Well done students!

To see their winning PSA entry, click on the link below and search for "Felix the Giant."

  Check out their winning PSA entry >>  

From April 10-14, 23 students from St. Pius X High School in Grades 11 and 12, along with teacher supervisors Mr. Todd Sloan, Mr. Mike Bourguignon and Ms. Megan Valois, had the opportunity to bring history to life through a school trip to Washington, DC and surrounding areas.  The trip was a supplementary experiential learning opportunity for the American History and Politics courses run at St. Pius. 

Read more: Experiential Learning Opportunity for St. Pius X Students

Dr. F.J. McDonald Catholic School had an international lunch on Wednesday, April 24th featuring delicious food and cultural presentations from around the world. Many students dressed in beautiful costumes and sang songs from their native countries. Some of the countries that were represented were Rwanda, Phillipines, Peru, Congo, Eritrea, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti, Lebanon, Poland, Ethiopia, India, New Zealand, Guatemala, Holland, South Sudan, Nigeria, and of course - Canada! Everyone had a great time at the event and learned about different cultures. Well done Dr. F.J. McDonald!