A look in from Wednesday night's Open House at John Paul II Collegiate. (Submitted photos/Bruce Yockey)

By Martin Martinson

Local Education

John Paul II sees strong turnout at annual Open House

Apr 29, 2023 | 1:00 AM

John Paul II Collegiate held their annual Open House earlier this week at the high school, to provide an overview of the school and both academic and extracurricular activities that it provides for students.

Geared towards students that will be entering Grade 8 this fall, as well as any new students that may be interested in attending next year, the event saw more than 270 students, parents/caregivers, and staff come out.

“It was a nice turnout to see everybody, with a lot of new faces, and some familiar faces as well, of parents of younger siblings [of current students] now getting ready to enter high school, and some new families checking out what we have to offer as well,” said Bruce Yockey, John Paul Collegiate.

“We usually have about 220 to 250 come out, so it was a good turnout for a Wednesday evening, and it was good to see so many new faces of parents and kids.”

JPII administrators and SRC leaders provided a general overview of what the high school is all about, with SRC members also hosting school tours which included activities, demonstrations, and food.

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Currently, JPII is undergoing some big renovations, so the crowd was able to see a video of what the ‘new and improved’ JPII will look like as three major phases of the project are set to be unveiled and operational this fall.

This includes the new Crusaders Hockey Academy, as on-ice instructors Jordan Trach and Blake Tatchell (of Trach Power Skating + Skills) were on hand to share information about the on-ice instruction, and Yockey, who will serve as academy coordinator, provided information about classroom instruction.

Teachers Lindell Gateley and Amy Francias were also on-hand to present the overview of the Arts Academy programming which will also begin this fall, featuring guest workshops, and covering a range of the arts, from music to studio art, to dance, and drama.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1