May 10th, 2011 – Student Transition Presentations

Congratulations on your first presentation, Transition Team!

As part of our strategy to become further involved with the outside community and to better inform the public about our school, a group of very eager students have joined together to form the “Transition Team.”  The aim is for them to visit Grade 8 schools to talk to junior students about high school, about the transition process, and to introduce them to the YMCA Academy.  In order to collect information about what this process was like for our students, we did a short survey a few weeks ago, and the information was compiled by the BTT class and transformed into an educational Powerpoint that was used during the presentation.   Members of the team were very dedicated, practicing at lunch time and after school.

We had our first presentation last Thursday (May 5) where the students did an outstanding job of presenting to students at Dunblaine School.  Not only does this project benefit the Grade 8’s that we visit, to help calm their worries about their upcoming transition, but Academy students benefit through this service learning project by earning volunteer hours. Our Academy students represented our school well, as they shared their experiences about their Grade 9 year, and mentored the younger students on strategies to help them through the process.

If you would like more information about our Transition Presentation or would like to recommend a school that would benefit from our youth mentor “Transition Team”, please call the school at 416-928-0124 for more information.

Apr. 4th, 2011 – Arcade Construction Phase Two

After many brainstorming and ‘theory’ based sessions, where we hammered out all the electrical and design details, construction of the arcade can finally begin! We assembled the structural frame last Wednesday, only a few finishing touches are needed before we can start installing the electrical components. Check out some of the great pictures below!

Thank you to both Kerry and Chris, for your dedication to this project, we couldn’t do it without great volunteers!

Check out the rest of the pictures on our Facebook Page!

Mar. 25th, 2011 – Student speaks at SKC launch

Families gathered at YMCAs across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) February 21st, 2011 to celebrate Family Day and kick off the YMCA Strong Kids Campaign, which raises money so more kids can participate in life-enhancing YMCA programs.

“The YMCA is like a second home to me,” said Alex, a YMCA Academy student who has benefited from the Strong Kids Campaign. ”I’ve been able to discover my skills and passions, meet new friends and accomplish more than I ever thought I could.“

Academy student speaking during the SKC kick-off.
Metrocentral YMCA SKC kick-off

Speakers at the SKC kick-off event at Metrocentral YMCA.

Check out the rest of the pictures on our Facebook Page!

Mar. 7th, 2011 – Our Health Our Future Launch

The official launch of the Our Health Our Future: A National Dialogue on Healthy Weights Website took place at Metro Central YMCA today. Academy students were present during the live demonstration and had the opportunity to meet Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq and YMCA Canada CEO Scott Haldane.

“This site is an interactive forum that lets Federal, Provincial and Territorial governments get input from citizens, communities, industry and other stakeholders across the country to start thinking about ways to reduce childhood overweight and obesity. It also allows Canadians across the country to connect with each other to share their ideas about how to promote healthy weights for children and youth.”

Academy students during the launch of the Our Health Our Future Website.
Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq speaking about the new Website.
Academy students with YMCA Canada CEO Scott Haldane and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq.

Visit the Our Health Our Future Website

Check out the rest of the pictures on our Facebook Page!

Mar. 4th, 2011 – Student Job Crawler Launched!

To provide students with multiple, easy to use resources for finding part-time employment, the Academy has developed a “Student Jobs” Portal. Students can find a wealth of information in this portal including including:

  • an employment handbook
  • a list of employment websites
  • information on internships
  • volunteer opportunities
  • a “real-time” GTA job crawler

Students can check this page daily to see the most recent job postings broken down by category.

Check out the Student Jobs page!