Bur Oak Secondary School

Bur Oak Secondary School
Address
933 Bur Oak Avenue
Markham, Ontario, L6E 1G4
Canada
Coordinates 43°53′50″N 79°16′43″W / 43.89722°N 79.27861°W / 43.89722; -79.27861Coordinates: 43°53′50″N 79°16′43″W / 43.89722°N 79.27861°W / 43.89722; -79.27861
Information
School type Public, high school
Founded 2007
School board York Region District School Board[1]
Superintendent Ruth Lambert[1]
Area trustee Allan Tam[1]
School number 933346[2]
Principal George Voumvakis[1]
Grades 9-12
Enrollment 1703[3] (October 2015)
Language English
Colour(s) Royal blue, gold, white, black                 
Mascot Biggie the Bulldog
Team name Bur Oak Bulldogs
Website www.yrdsb.ca/schools/buroak.ss/
Last updated: May 2016

Bur Oak Secondary School (BOSS) is a public secondary school in Markham, Ontario, Canada established in 2007, and is part of the York Region District School Board.[1] The school was named after the road which it is built on. As of 2015, the school has a student population of approximately 1700.[3]

History

Bur Oak Secondary School opened in September 2007 with only two grades (9 & 10). Bur Oak held its "official opening" ceremony on May 1, 2008 followed by an open house. The school now boasts a student population of upwards of 1,500 students in all four grades. The school's official colours consist of royal blue, gold, white, and black. Bur Oak's mascot is the bulldog, hence the representative name for teams, the "Bur Oak Bulldogs".

Academics

Bur Oak Secondary School is noted for its strong academic performance. According to the 2015 ranking of Ontario secondary schools, Bur Oak ranks 10th out of 676 schools in the province.[4]

The school offers a unique four-year core French program with intensive focus is placed on global French culture, music and history, in addition to grammar and structure.

The school also offers a Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) program. As of the 2015-2016 school year, the program is offered in five specializations:

The program provides students with valuable skills and certifications related to their specialization and career path, and is completed in the final two years of high school.

Awards ceremony

At its annual awards ceremony in September, the school recognizes the academic achievement of students with the following awards:

  1. Honour Roll: These recipients have earned an overall average of at least 80%.
  2. Subject Award: These recipients have shown initiative in a specific course. However, unlike the vast majority of schools that give the award to the student earning the highest mark and the strongest performance, BOSS requires a mark of at least 75%.
  3. Principal's Award: This award is given to the three students earning the highest academic average in each grade.

As of the 2011-12 school year, only subject awards are given each semester; the Honour Roll and Principal's Award recipients are currently determined based on their marks from throughout the whole school year instead of the previously established semester marking.

Extracurricular activities

Bur Oak Secondary School boasts a variety of student-led organizations and clubs and holds several student events throughout the year. Notably, it holds an annual back-to-school barbeque, Bossilicious in September, and a Summer Carnival in late May. In addition, the school also hosts dances, movie nights, and coffeehouses that are organizations by Student Activity Council, satellite councils, academic departments, or student clubs.

Student Activity Council

Many student events are coordinated by Student Activity Council (SAC). Student Activity Council is an umbrella organization that derives its membership from the Co-Directors of the seven satellite councils:

Student Activity Council is led by two Co-Presidents that are elected popularly by students in the preceding school year.

Satellite councils are led by two Co-Directors and an Executive team that are selected at the end of the preceding school year. Each of the satellite councils different interests within the school, some, like Music and Business Councils, serving extracurricular activities related to academic departments, while others, like Community and Global Action are more focused on student engagement in community service and social justice.

Student organizations & clubs

Student clubs and organizations active within the school as of the 2016-2017 school year include:[5]

Feeder schools

The following elementary schools are part of the Bur Oak S.S feeder schools:

Transportation

School bus

As per the criteria of Student Transportation Service (joint school bus service for YRDSB and YCDSB), students from grade 9-12 in the YRDSB are eligible for school bus transportation if they are:

and

Students in a special needs program (excluding gifted), are exempt from the policy and receive it based on a separate criteria.

Public transit

The YRT routes which stop at or near the school are:

Effective July 1st, 2016, YRT fares are $4.00 in cash for a two-hour pass. Ten student tickets (valid for 2 hours) are $27.00 and a monthly pass is $105.00.

Trivia

In May 2016, the location was using in the filming of the 2017 movie Downsizing.[6]

Notable alumni

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bur Oak S.S.". York Region District School Board. Archived from the original on 2012-03-07. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
  2. ↑ "Bur Oak Secondary School". Secondary School Profile. Ontario Ministry of Education. 2010-02-18. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
  3. 1 2 "York Region District School Board - Monthly Enrolment Report" (PDF). York Region District School Board. 4 November 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  4. ↑ "Bur Oak Secondary School Markham Ontario Academic school ranking". Fraser Institute. Retrieved 2016-02-28.
  5. ↑ "Clubs 2016/2017" (PDF). Bur Oak Secondary School. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  6. ↑ https://twitter.com/BOSSannounce/status/735525178403258368
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