The week before the winter break is one of our favourite times at Homework Club. Not only is it the last week before school ends and a well deserved (by everyone) break begins, but it is also the time of year when so many of our former graduates come back to visit. Every year, we marvel at how much these students seem to mature in the five short months since they left high school and became college students. All week long, students pop in to Homework Club to say hi, to check in with their favourite tutors, or if it’s Monday, to enjoy a nostalgic Nutella sandwich. And, all week long, we get to hear about their triumphs and defeats since leaving us: what they did with their last summer vacations, what schools they are currently attending, what jobs they’re working, and of course, what they think of high school and Homework Club now that they have moved on. Every year, we hear how much they value Homework Club now that they have met other students from other high schools and realize that we are one of a kind, unique to Britannia. We also hear about all the things they wish they had known about post-secondary while they were still in high school. So, a few years back, we created “Meet the Grads” – an opportunity for the current grade 11 and 12 students to hear all about college life from members of the most recent graduating class. The grads answer questions about anything from choosing courses and making new friends to paying for post-secondary school and choosing a fraternity or sorority. This year’s gems included, “do not sleep through your registration time or you will end up taking astronomy!” and “OMG, the papers – pay attention in English class!”. “Meet the Grads” has become a Homework Club tradition, just another part of the holiday season at Britannia, and we wouldn’t want it any other way!
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In the 2012-13 school year, Homework Club touched the lives of more than 400 inner-city students! Offering free tutoring, hot meals, caring ears, open hearts and friendly smiles, we let our students know that we believe in them, in all that they can be, and all that education can provide.
Of course, we aren’t alone in this task – in fact, we couldn’t do it at all without your kind and generous support. So, to show you the lives you have touched and the futures you have helped to create, Homework Club has prepared an annual report highlighting our achievements from the year, and recognizing those who helped to make these achievements possible. With British Columbia once again in the news for having the highest child poverty rate in Canada, the work we do and the support you offer, becomes all the more important. We know that education is one surest ways out of poverty and will continue to support Vancouver’s inner-city youth as they struggle to graduate and move on to post secondary success. Thank you for your continued support of our mission! Homework Club Society is fortunate to have some of the best volunteers, tutors, and donors around. This past summer, donors Dr. Brenda Lau and her fiance Doug Zabkar were married in Vancouver.
“Instead of accumulating an abundance of presents for themselves, the couple requested that family and friends divert their generosity to The Vancouver Sun’s Adopt-a-School campaign.” Read the entire article » I was just checking out one of our partners – Telus – to see what’s new in their world, when I came across this video and was reminded of the opportunities that come from community partnerships. Not only does Homework Club get to partner with great organizations like Telus, but they help to bring opportunities to one of our other partners, Britannia Community Secondary School.
We were so proud to have Marc and Craig Keilberger launch Give Where You Live from the historic Britannia auditorium, and for all of Britannia’s students to take part in this “love fest”, but then, we also got to film this great little video in Homework Club last! The ripples in the pond spread well beyond what you expect them to, and I am always amazed by the opportunities they bring. One of the great things about working in the Britannia Community is working with so many other inspired teachers – veritable movers and shakers – like Home Ec teacher Dawn Kelly, who brought Simon Chang to the school!
Read more about Simon’s visit and project Britannia here… http://www.vancouversun.com/life/fashion-beauty/Adopt+School+Simon+Chang+delivers+hope+inspiration/9221279/story.html?__lsa=e0d0-a069 One of the greatest things about our partnership with Britannia Secondary is the ways in which overlap – Brit students attend Homework Club and Homework Club sponsors the Britannia We Club! On October 18th we took 20 students to We Day Vancouver to learn about global change from the likes of Kofi Annan, Martin Luther King III and Romeo Dallaire.
On October 31st, we got to see their passion transformed into action as the Britannia We Club participated in WE Scare Hunger, collecting canned goods rather than candy in support of Free the Children and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. Homework Club is proud and fortunate to be able to sponsor these amazing students! Without tutors there would be no Homework Club; they are our most valuable assets! We accept applications from tutors throughout the year, however, our main intake periods are in September and January. We welcome tutors of all ages and from all walks of life who are be able to demonstrate competency in the subject(s) you wish to tutor.
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December 2023
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