 |
For the past few years, I have had the opportunity to teach a Leadership class with our PG student athletes. More and more teams and schools are requesting that their verbally committed student- athletes extend their academics and athletics at The Hill Academy to ensure that they are arriving at the post secondary institution ready to play, study, and conduct their personal lives. Coaches have a limited scholarship budget and therefore want to ensure that their recruits will succeed at the next level. After ten years, the track record of our graduates is exemplary.
The class curriculum includes many leadership topics including personal and community leadership, psychology of sport, present day societal issues, coaching theory, and sport in society. Throughout the course, various projects are assigned. In every case, presentation and assignments have been completed with thought and responsibility. The most impressive aspect to me is the work ethic and quality of work submitted/ presented despite the fact that there are no marks issued for the course. There is an underlying theme that the rewards of the course result from the process as opposed to some arbitrary assessment. When students are at the next level, their academic work load increases significantly and the support/ supervision on their academic work decreases significantly. Developing consistent work habits throughout the year with added accountability is our goal for this group. Their progress at this point is truly a credit to the entire class and it augers well for their future success no matter where they head in sport, school, and life.
Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Peter Merrill
|
|
Quote of the Week
"The value of achievement lies in the achieving."
|
|
Life at the Hill and Upcoming Events.
Wednesday 4, 2016 is McHappy Day! We often have students complete some of their community involvement hours by volunteering for this event. If you would like additional information on how to participate, or other questions about the community involvement, please contact
[email protected].
Second Semester Midterm Reports:
Midterm report cards will be sent home this Friday, April 15th. In order to allow teachers the time to input their comments and marks, the parent portal was suspended at the end of the day on Wednesday, April 6th. The parent portal will be opened again by the end of the day on Friday, April 15th, so parents can view their student athletes' midterm results online.
Parent Teacher Interviews:
Interviews will be held on Wednesday, April 20th from 6:30pm to 8:00pm at the school. Please make arrangements directly with teachers for interview times. For out of town parents, interviews can be conducted by phone. Again, please contact teachers directly for this option.
Save The Date:
Evan Frustaglio Memorial Golf Tournament: May 27th, 2016
Athletic Gala (Celebrating 10 Years): June 9, 2016
Graduation: June 10th, 2016
Ms. Languay's Grade 11 Law:
This past Thursday, April 7, Ms. Languay's grade 11 Canadian Law class had the opportunity to hear from Sgt. Cotton about the landmark Canadian legal case R v. Feeney. The Feeney case had a significant impact on Canadian law, especially with regard to police warrants and the rules officers must follow when apprehending a suspect. The students also had the chance to hear the ins and outs of being a law enforcement officer and about possible career paths for the future. We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Sgt. Cotton for lending us his time to provide the students with this wonderful learning opportunity!
Guidance Meetings:
Students will be having guidance meetings in which they can discuss their plans/goals for coming years, as well as graduation requirements. If you have any specific questions/concerns, forwards them to cflynn@thehillacademy as meetings will begin with grades 11 and 12 next week.
|
|
Hill Performance.
This past week's theme was the All Blacks' principle "go for the gap". If you see an opportunity, you need to dive in towards it. Luck is when opportunity meets preparation. We spend everyday at the Hill preparing; so when your opportunities arise, you need to take advantage of them. Additionally, addressing the gaps in your life and filling them is important. For example if the gap between you being a good player to a great player is your speed, you address that gap and do what you can to fill it. If your gap is a grade in a certain class, address that gap and study harder or ask for extra help. This is why we do assessments in the gym; to address physical gaps so the athlete knows where they need to improve.
Over the next couple of weeks we will be re-testing many of the assessments we have done in order to gauge the progress throughout the year thus far.
Congratulations to the Hill athletes selected in the 2016 OHL draft. It is important to remember that being drafted does not determine your success in Hockey. For those drafted, it is just the beginning of a long road that takes hard work, dedication, and sacrifice. For those who were not selected, use this as motivation that fuels the fire to work harder than any of your peers. Hill Performance Training athlete Anthony Cirelli is a shining example of someone who was passed up by all OHL teams 15 times, but never gave up. Anthony was drafted by the Tampa Bay lightning and this year he was named captain of the Oshawa Generals. Sometimes facing adversity is the best thing for you long-term. Do not let somebody else's opinion of you define your success. Become so good they can not ignore you.
|
|
Hill Lacrosse.
We talk a lot about the word Legacy at The Hill. We want the students to be aware of the day to day footprint they leave behind. How do you impact others and the world around you? Our students are working so hard to achieve various goals. It is easy to get tunnel vision and forget some things that are really important---personal well being (mind and body), respect for others, approaching things in a humble way, showing gratitude, "living in the moment," etc. It is important to always look for transformational experiences rather than transactional experiences. To me that was the legacy of Jamieson Kuhlmann at The Hill.
This weekend marked another Jammer Classic. "Jammer" was the nickname of former Hill student Jamieson Kuhlmann. Jamieson and the number 45 is a great example of the power of Legacy. Jamieson passed away May 2008, suffering a blindside hit while playing for his home community Toronto Beaches. It was a devastating time. Jamieson, a quiet and humble person, was very well liked and respected by all that knew him. The Hill was a new opportunity for Jamieson and in some ways a second chance. As a grade 10 student new to The Hill, you could see a measure of apprehension when he first started. As he got acclimated and more comfortable around the school, he channeled initial intimidation into quiet, persistent work. The harder he worked, the more he developed (in the classroom and on the field). You could tell this excited him.
He was encouraged to wear number 45 from Coach Noble, who also wore 45 in his football career, after the movie Rudy--a story about an "underdog" who was always told he wasn't talented enough to attend Notre Dame to play football. Rudy didn't accept this; he was persistent and achieved his goal (great movie).
Jamieson identified with this story.
Jamieson wasn't a super star lacrosse player, especially among the elite level players in our program at that time. Jamieson was finding his way, learning more about himself everyday. I think that is why 45 is so significant in our lacrosse program. Many of our students connect with Jamieson's story and use it as a source of inspiration.
Our SR team represented The Hill really well, beating Michigan State in a "friendly." You can always feel Jamieson's presence on the Toronto Lakeshore when we play in the Jammer classic. I know he would be proud of all the players at The Hill and the Legacy that he has left behind.
Hill Lacrosse Action Photos:
Clark Bell is a partner of the Hill Academy, and has been taking great shots of our lacrosse program for the last few years. He has recently uploaded photos of all three of our teams from Spring Trip. Photos can be found
HERE
|
Monday
|
Tuesday
|
Wednesday
|
Thursday
|
Friday
|
JR @ McNaughton 8:30am- 9:45am (Lacrosse)
SR @ McNaughton 10:00am- 11:15am (Lacrosse)
WLax: Study Hall
|
Non-Athletic Day
SRs @ McNaughton 8:30am- 9:45am
|
JR- Team Session
SR- Team Session
WLax: @ Sonoma 8:30am- 9:30am (Lacrosse) |
JR @ McNaughton 8:30am- 9:45am (Lacrosse)
SR @ McNaughton 10:00am- 11:15am (Lacrosse)
WLax: @ Sonoma 8:30am- 9:30am (Lacrosse)
|
JR @ McNaughton 8:30am- 9:45am (Lacrosse)
SR @ McNaughton 10:00am- 11:15am (Lacrosse)
WLax: @ Sonoma 8:30am- 9:30am (Lacrosse) |
|
|
Hill Hockey.
Courage Canada
Once again this year, The Hill Academy will be working with Courage Canada. Courage Canada, Hockey for the Blind, is a national registered charity that leads the development of the sport of Blind Hockey and provides children and youth with the opportunity to learn to skate and try Blind Hockey. On Tuesday April 12th, Hill student-athletes will be aiding the group from Courage Canada get prepared and skate at The Hill Academy. The list of student-athletes will be posted at the main office on Monday April 11th.
OHL Draft
Congratulations to the following Hill student-athletes on being drafted to the OHL in this weekends entry draft:
Tyler Weiss - Sarnia Sting (1st round)
Sammy Rhodes - Barrie Colts
Wyllum Deveaux - Peterborough Petes
Jack Babbage - Flint Generals
|
Monday
|
Tuesday
|
Wednesday
|
Thursday
|
Friday
|
Prep: Year End Meetings
Varsity: Study Hall |
Non- Athletic Day
|
Prep: Practice 8:50am- 10:00am
Varsity: Skills Training 9:00am-10:00am
|
Prep: Practice 8:50am- 10:00am
Varsity: Skills Training 9:00am-10:00am |
Prep: Year End Meetings
Varsity: Guest Speaker |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
