JV Humphries School Graduation Handbook 2022-23

A guidebook for graduating students and their parents

last revised Feb 21, 2023

Welcome Class of 2023 Grads and Parents!

It’s finally here: your final year of high school!

I’m sure it’s a mix of “finally” and “I can’t believe it’s over.”

The purpose of this handbook is to give you an idea of what graduation entails and the activities you’ll be involved in as the year progresses. 

Your year will be quite busy with schoolwork, accumulating the right number of credits , applying for post-high school education and training, or looking for a job, and being feted as this year’s graduating class. 

So let’s take a quick look at the happenings so you’ll know what to expect and won’t feel so overwhelmed.

SD8 Graduation Procedures

Graduation marks a significant transition in a young person's life, and that it also represents the culmination of over a decade of work and effort to achieve prescribed Ministry of Education goals and outcomes of a formal academic educational program. In an effort to recognize this achievement and maintain reasonable and consistent expectations, the District holds schools to the following expectations and guidelines: 

Definition

• Graduation shall exclusively describe the process of completing and leaving grade twelve; other terms such as 'celebration', 'completion', or 'transition' many be used to mark other significant milestones such as Kindergarten, Grade Sever, or middle years. 
• The terms 'Graduation Ceremony' or 'Graduation Exercise' describes the event in which students are recognized for completing their grade twelve year or put another way  - thirteen years of education. 
• Graduation Ceremony is an event of academic achievement - 13 years of learning - not just Grade 12, and remains separate from other events such as dinners, dances, or socials, which are generally not part of the school's formal program. 

Eligibility

• All students will be passing all subjects effective June 1st to be considered for participation in their graduation ceremony. Some schools may have earlier deadlines depending on their actual Graduation ceremony. Check with your school Principal. 
• All students on a 'Dogwood' diploma program are expecting to have all coursework at least 90% completed by June 1 of their graduation year. Students must be registered in at least one course during the year they wish to graduate. A student with a course or courses with less than this amount completed may not participate in graduation ceremonies with their peers. 
• The Principal will make a determination as to whether or not this has been accomplished. 
• Parents of students with significant graduation complications or deficits will be notified in writing by February of their graduating school year. 
• Students on an 'Evergreen' school completion program will be expected to complete their programming in a similar fashion to dogwood students. Our intent is to celebrate the achievement of graduation for all of our students. 
• No students shall be excluded from graduation exercises because of the inability to pay fees. 
• No student shall participate in more than one graduation ceremony. 
• All students must be primarily registered in School District 8. 

for more information, check out the SD8 website at https://www.sd8.bc.ca/graduation-guidelines

2022-23 Year Overview

Graduation 2023Ceremony

Your final year at JVH will culminate in the Graduation Ceremony and Banquet on Saturday, June 24, 2023 beginning at 4:30pm in the JV Humphries auditorium. The Grad Banquet is held following the Grad Ceremony (6pm) in the Lighthouse Theatre. Save that date on your calendar!

The graduating students and parents will be involved in some additional activities before the ceremony (see the Grad Day Schedule). 

Grad Meetings

Over the course of the year your grad parent committee will hold 2 or 3 grad meetings with the grads and their parents. These meetings are an opportunity to review all the events and activities that take place in preparation for graduation. Please attend all the meetings if possible. You and your parents will be asked to offer your assistance in various activities. Those activities are described in this guidebook. Meeting notes will be emailed but please note that if you are​ not in attendance you may be assigned​  a less than desirable role or responsibility.

Graduation and Additional Fees

Please pay your grad fees ($125) at the office starting in January. Grad fees cover the following costs:

• Gown rental and cap (you can keep the cap!)
• Ceremony costs
• Banquet meal for each graduating student
• Snacks during the ceremony
• Banquet decorations
• Grad breakfast

In addition to grad fees, there will be payments required for other grad-related items:

• Some years grads create a grad book (cost range: free with sponsorship to $25/copy)
• Grad hoodies, sweats, t-shirts (paid for by fundraising and/or personal payments)
• Prom ($200+ can be acquired by applying for funds from BC Liquor’s Dry Grad Program)

Fundraising Events 

Every year the grad class participates in community fundraising events to raise funds to subsidize various grad initiatives, like grad clothing, yearbooks, prom and grad trips.

Fundraising events have included the Rubber Ducky Race held on the May Day weekend and Indeygo Cookie Dough Sales. In the past we have been fortunate enough to have leftover funds in the grad account from previous years.   A committee consisting of grads and parents will be formed early in the year to agree​ upon and to carry out different fundraising opportunities.   

Graduating Class Legacy

Each year the graduating class leaves a gift to the school to celebrate their class, the JVH staff and the school. Here is an idea of some of the past legacy gifts:

• Grad mural
• Wall-mounted water bottle refilling station and water fountain
• Sporting equipment 
• Grad lounge furniture
• A bench dedicated to staff members
• Plants and trees

What will you leave at the school in celebration of your graduating class?

 What Happens During the Year and How You Can Help

Here are the various activities that need to happen to prepare for graduation day. Please look over the list and see where you can lend a hand. Remember many hands make light work.

Grad clothing

Two to four students select and organize the ordering, purchasing and distribution of the grad clothing the class decides they would like. This typically happens before Christmas break so that the grads can wear and enjoy their grad clothing during their grad year (and let everyone know they are graduating!).

Grad Yearbook

A group of graduating students form a grad book committee and spend the year accumulating photos and other mementos to include in a special book all about the graduating class. A couple of parents assist the students (technical support; managing student and advertising payments, if applicable). The book must be submitted for printing before the end of May for students to receive a copy before the end of the school year. (Note: final approval from Mr. Sherman is required.)

Grad gowns

Grad gown and cap measurements will be conducted by email and submitted to the office staff for ordering. Two parents will hang the grad gowns and caps in the staff room when they arrive, assist the grads in getting the caps and gowns on and then repackaging the gowns to be shipped back after grad. Note: students get to keep their grad caps!

Grad Photos

Grad photos will take place in April this year, during school hours. It is not always possible to get retakes, so be sure to attend. A sign-up sheet will be in the office. Photos are taken by Mountain West Studios.

Grad Legacy 

The grad class will decide what they will leave behind to honour the staff, the school and the students. A parent will be responsible for researching and ordering the item selected by the grad class; the office will arrange the payment.

Banquet Catering

A parent will find a caterer, negotiate the costs and make banquet arrangements on behalf of the graduating class. Students will get to choose the menu closer to grad. This planning typically occurs in April.

May Days Parade

Every year the graduating class decorates, enters and rides on a float down Kaslo’s main street in the May Days parade on the Monday of May Days at 12 noon. This is one of the highlights of the May Days parade and a chance for everyone in town to see who is a member of Kaslo’s graduating class.

Two to four parents and a group of students decorate the float the Monday morning before the parade (Note: A truck and flatbed trailer are also required.)  A theme is picked and the float is decorated with signage, streamers, balloons, etc. The parents then remove the decorations and wash the trailer and truck afterwards.

Note: the local tradition is to soak the graduating students as their float leaves the parade to head to it’s parking spot near Vimy Park. Stand clear if you don’t want to get wet. It is fast and furious and lots of fun to watch!!

Rubber Ducky Race

Every year JVH grads hold the rubber ducky race fundraiser. One or two parents organize ticket sales. The grads and their parents sell tickets (cost per ticket is $5). The race is held on May Days Monday. At 3pm a Kaslo Village worker dumps the ducks from the bucket of a front-end loader into the Kaslo River from the bridge leading out of town. A group of parents are in canoes, kayaks and motorboats at the mouth of the river to catch the ducks as they enter Kootenay Lake. Prizes are awarded to the winning tickets for the first, second and third ducks to enter the lake.

To-dos:

• Create tickets or track sales in a spreadsheet and collect ticket revenue from sellers

(grads and parents). Tickets sell for $5 each (sometimes 3 for $10). Typically we drop 300 ducks in the water (we have about 500-600 ducks). Ask Ms. Terlingen for the digital ticket file.

• Contact JVH PAC (JVH Parent Advisory Committee) and have one of their executive members file an application online for a gaming licence (this requires a non-refundable $10 processing fee, payable by credit card). The approval process takes about 3 days.
• BC Gaming Website:

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/sports-culture/gambling-fundraising/gambling-licenc e-fundraising/class-d)​

• Retrieve the ducks from the bus shed where they are stored; they need to be counted and the missing ducks replaced.
• Contact the Village of Kaslo to organize the dumping of the ducks into the  Kaslo River from the bridge. 
• Collect the 3 winning ducks and all the rest once they enter Kootenay Lake and return them (dry) to the bus shed at the school. (This effort requires 4-6 parents with motor boats/canoes/kayaks, armed with nets.) 
• JVH Valedictorian(s) announce the winners at May Days (1st prize: $400, 2nd prize: $250, 3rd prize: $100, typically).  An ad is also put in the Pennywise to announce the winners and thank the Village, volunteers and town for support.

Grad Decs (Decorations)

Four to six parents assist Grade 11 students in preparing the auditorium for the Grad Banquet. This is usually a commitment of 8+ hours of time. This includes hanging up the decorations made by the students, hanging lighting, setting the tables, etc. This happens a few days before grad at the school in the Lighthouse Theatre. This group is in charge of buying table decorations​             to go with the chosen theme. Marlene in the office​ will let them know of the budget available for​     decorations.

IGrad Programme

The ​ Grad Programme is digitally prepared by a parent volunteer in June. It is typically printed at​   the school. (See the order of events below, followed by a sample programme)

Grad Video

Every year a few graduating students create a grad video showcasing the current graduates that will be played just before the grad ceremony begins in the auditorium. (Note: The video must be approved by Mr. Sherman before grad day.)

Grad Tree

A parent volunteers to go to Georama (or another nursery) to order/purchase a tree for the grad class to plant on graduation day. The budget is around $100. Please refrain from purchasing a poisonous tree or one that will attract bears to the school field.

Prom

Prom is typically held the week before grad. Past locations have included The Bluebelle Bistro, the Kaslo Hotel and the Kaslo Golf Course. This event usually runs from about 6:30-9pm. Often grads get dressed up (less formal than grad), have food and non-alcoholic beverages, play music/dance at a decorated facility. At the beginning of the event, there is an opportunity for parents to take photos of the grads.   

Two parents spearhead decorations for prom (and take decorations down, too). The school has some decorations that can be used and, if fundraising has been successful, there might be a small prom budget for decorations (keep your receipts). One parent must remain onsite as a chaperone. (Note: this is a chaperoned “dry” grad event)

JVH applies for a Dry Grad bursary from BC Liquor for the event; this amount varies year to year. 

Grad Day Staffroom Snacks

A parent organizes, picks up and delivers a tray of cheese, crackers, and fruit and some beverages to the JVH staffroom for the grads while they get into their gowns and caps for the grad ceremony.

Graduation Day 2023

Graduation Day Schedule 

Saturday, June 24, 2023

Details for Events on Grad Day

Moyie for photos

Grads and families meet at the Moyie at 1pm for individual and group photos. NOTE: shoes with stiletto heels are not allowed on the Moyie deck, please bring other shoes for photos.

Cavalcade 

The cavalcade is a two-lap circuit of downtown Kaslo by the graduating students in vehicles (first lap) and then on foot. The students meet at Vimy Park at 2:15 pm with their drivers and vehicles (A parent volunteer will organize vehicles and grads in class) and then drive up to the Victorian Hospital (so the hospital residents get to see the grads). The grads then drive back down to town, turn left at the post office and drive down Front Street slowly, turn right at the Bluebelle and drive back to the post office. Then they march down Front Street following a piper to the cheering crowds of Kaslovians. At the Bluebelle, the grads are picked up and brought to the back of the school for photos and the planting of a tree in honour of the Grad Class of 2020.

Group Photos and Tree Planting

Every year the grad class plants a tree in honour of their grad class. Students each take a turn shovelling dirt into the hole (photo opp) and take a group photo by the tree.

Into Gowns

Back in the staff room in the school, two parents assist grads in donning their grad gowns and caps (remember tassels are on your right before you graduate!). The girls might need bobby pins to attach caps to their (styled) hair. Snacks and water are provided in the staff room for the grads (it’s already been a long day!).

The parents who assisted the students before the ceremony are responsible for packing up the grad gowns to be returned to the gown rental company by JVH staff the following week. Students can keep their caps.

Ceremony

The graduating students line up outside of the auditorium at 4:25pm and wait to be introduced by the principal and the grad teacher in the Graduate’s Procession. As each grad walks into the auditorium, a short bio of the student will be read to the audience (each student prepares this bio in advance of graduation day).

Graduation Ceremony Programme of Events

JV Humphries School Auditorium Saturday, June 20, 2020 at 4:30pm

Programme Sample:

Grand March and Grand Waltz

After the grad ceremony is completed, the grads fling their caps in the air and go outside for some fresh air and photos. Meanwhile the teachers and audience stack the chairs and move them out of the way for the Grand March and Grand Waltz. Each grad is accompanied by a parent or family member in the Grand March and Grand Waltz. This will be explained to the students in class before grad and they will guide their guest through the process (Students: you may want to practice waltzing with your chosen guest in advance of grad!).

Donor Tea

This is a short reception for donors and scholarship winning students (place TBA). It's an opportunity for scholarship winners to thank the donors for their generosity and for the donors to congratulate the winners. Some refreshments are served.

Grad Banquet

The Grad Banquet is for students, their families and the JVH teachers and takes place in the Lighthouse Theatre. Each student can bring a predetermined number of guests. In the event of a large family, there are sometimes extra tickets to be had. The office can help the student or parent arrange this. Grad students attend the banquet for free. Banquet tickets are typically $25+ each for a lovely, catered meal.

Following the meal, there are some toasts to the grads and their families and the teachers often roast the students in a fun-hearted way. After the banquet, all grad parents help take down the decorations and stack the chairs. This takes about 45 minutes.

Grad Breakfast

After the grad party (usually at one of their favourite outside venues), the grads are invited to a grad breakfast at the home of one of the graduating students or the United Church downtown (or another appropriate venue). This breakfast is earlier than the typical breakfast, often starting as early as 3pm!

The parents (two to four parents) make and serve the students hot coffee, juice, pancakes and sausages or bacon and are then sent (and sometimes driven) off to their beds for a big sleep. It’s been a long and jam-packed day!! There is a budget of about $100 for the food; parents take your receipts to the office for reimbursement before summer break.

The Final Week

Secondary Awards

These awards are handed out at an evening assembly the final week of school. Everyone is invited to attend. Award recipients are notified in advance of the assembly. (These awards are no longer handed out at grad in order to keep the program short in the potentially hot early summer weather.)

Last Day of School

Students go to school on the last day to pick up their report cards and thank the teachers and staff for their support over the years.

And now school is out....