Welcome to our website for Rutland Senior Secondary School. Our learning community is located on the Traditional Territory of the Sylix Okanagan people.
At RSS we appreciate that each of us has a unique Story and when we take the time to learn each other's story, it helps us to build community.
RSS is an exceptional place for our diverse student population of over 1,900 and a caring staff of 200. The many unique course offerings are part of what make RSS a special place for our staff and students to learn together as we transition from a teaching culture to a culture based on Learning - Learning for All.
Our students are provided agency through 'voice and choice' and encouraged to choose their learning via the many curricular and extra-curricular activities. Our students are able to pursue challenging Academic programs such as Advanced Placement (first year university level course work) and core Academic subjects. Other choices for students include our extensive Applied Skills, Languages and Fine Arts programs. Beginning in the Fall of 2004 our athletic teams started being known as the THUNDER.
Our work is guided by the international research of the OECD's 7 Principles of Learning in the work that we do, which recognizes:
- the importance of putting learners are at the center of their learning,
- the social nature of learning
- that emotions are integral to learning
- individual differences
- the importance of stretching all students
- assessment FOR learning (to guide further learning)
- the value of building horizontal connections.
We put an emphasis on building community through outreach into the other schools in Rutland and within our district. Examples of this include: Our ASL (American Sign Language) classes visiting other schools and classes in our district of Deaf or Hard of Hearing students to teach sign language to their classmates, English classes visiting Middle and Elementary schools teaching lessons, our Physics students teaching middle school science lessons, our Earth Science students designing and teaching lessons to grade 3 classes on Earthquakes and Volcanos, our French & Spanish classes teaching French & Spanish to Elementary students. Our Drama department invites elementary classes in to watch our drama Fall Production which always has a young learner theme.
Our Grad Council (elected executive representing the Grad class) raise funds as part of their Annual Legacy Project as a way to give back. Each year they choose one of the eight Rutland Elementary Schools to connect with and provide additional support for the students who will one day be students in our school. Once the gift is purchased, the Grads meet with the selected school and engage with their elementary students to share in the learning alongside them.
At the end of their each of the three Athletic Seasons, our Senior Students select a staff member who has had a positive impact on them and gifts them a Shirt as part of 'Your Impact, My Jersey' as a powerful way to show appreciation to the staff.
Our Indigenous students are provided support in academics with Teacher tutors, with social/emotional needs via Indigenous Advocates, and a community support worker. This staff also provides support in Professional Development sessions for the rest of our staff in sessions after school and during staff meetings. In January of 2019 we added an Indigenous Learning Leadership Community to our school.
The diversity and variety of RSS course offerings is arguably one of the best in British Columbia. Some of these offerings include: Forestry, Emergency Medical Responder, Firefighter, Pre Lifeguarding Academy, multiple Dual Credit programs, Outdoor Education, Cafeteria -- Culinary Arts, Cutter’s Edge Program, Advanced Placement, a Preschool Program, Pre-AP Courses, Cyber Security, Leadership both Climate & Culture, as well as Social Justice. Additionally we also have Sports Academies (Hockey, Soccer, Equine, & Baseball) which is no doubt another reason why RSS is a school of choice in our district. In partnership with Kelowna United Soccer, we have an indoor soccer dome and an outdoor artificial turf field on our property which we have use of during the school day.
In partnership with our staff, students and Parent Advisory Council, we gather information through scanning, identify Patterns and Trends that emerge and develop our 'If - Then' statements. These become our goals or School Learning Priorities. We purposefully have weekly conversations with our students to gather insight into their experiences so that we can learn from them to understand what it is like to be a student at our school.
Our belief is that Learning is a personal experience for each of us. It is an honour to serve as the Principal of this caring learning community where students have a staff dedicated to supporting learning for all of the members of our community.
Hugh Alexander