Royal Bay Secondary School

School Overview

School Identity and Context

Built in 2015 to provide a new school for the growing WS area. Doors opened in 2015 to serve 800 students. Our population has increased to 1400 students as of June 2022. RBSS is a state of the art, comprehensive high school. Located in Colwood, a western suburb of Victoria, British Columbia. RBSS is currently one of three high schools in School District 62 Sooke. RBSS currently serves the communities of Colwood, Metchosin and Langford.

Our physical location is indeed stunning. Located close to the water's edge in Colwood, our staff and students are lucky to learn in the shadows of ice capped mountains, and at the edge of the ocean. RBSS has a beautiful campus, in the heart of a growing community. Currently, our facilities consist of 34 classrooms, 11 science labs, 4 state-of-the-art computer labs and animation rooms, three gymnasiums – one featuring indoor turf, a weight room, a 350-seat professional theatre (Teechamitsa Theatre), two beautiful art rooms, a comprehensive professional teaching kitchen, three shops, a medical clinic and much more. Outside we have an Olympic size track, an all-weather turf and grass fields and associated field houses and change rooms.

School Identity & Unique Context
RBSS opened in September of 2015, we have been cultivating and discovering our identity ever since. Recently, our school community went through a process of encapsulating our school culture. This student and staff led initiative was designed to put into words and visuals what our school identity is. Our students and staff created a culture committee that focused on working with several stakeholders in the school community. Over two-year period, this group came up with our new school motto and crest. Using local First Nation’s learning and language Royal Bay discovered that our motto is “Together We Are More”. Our school truly lives and breathes this motto. It isn’t just written on the walls and on T-Shirts; this motto is a living thing that permeates the halls of the school. It is demonstrated by the actions of our students and staff. Our school welcomes all into the building, everyone has a space to be themselves to discover what possibilities lie ahead.

As a comprehensive high school, we focus on the pillars of education: academic success, social well-being and emotional health. Our school maintains high expectations for student engagement in their education. We offer all the academic courses, challenge course and dual credit option and a vast number of electives focusing on student choice and discovery. Royal Bay has a solid foundation in the arts, sports and trades as well. Currently, we have a very successful Fine Arts Program. Our music department is well known in the province and our Theatre Department (Black Wing Theatre Company) is an important part of our local community. We have three well-equipped shops designed to give students a professional trades experience, and a dual credit carpentry program. Royal Bay is also home to many athletic academies; Dance, Golf, Boy’s and Girls’ Soccer, Boy’s and Girl’s Lacrosse and Equine.
Royal Bay also has many extracurricular clubs and groups that further engage students in their passions and interests.

Shared Values
Royal Bay’s shared values are based on inclusion, respect, kindness and belonging. Essentially, mirroring our school motto “Together We Are More”. Since 2015 our school has cultivated a positive culture in the school and in the surrounding community. Royal Bay is a safe place for all. The school works hard to foster a sense of belonging and community mindedness. Our staff have high expectations for the students in terms of engagement and participation: to be an active participant in their education. As a school we value diversity, inclusion and equity. Students and staff need to feel heard, appreciated, valued and safe.

Strength
Our strength at Royal Bay is the people who populate the building. Our students bring life to building, in the form of curiosity, engagement and participation and a willingness to challenge themselves and the school each day. Our staff (STA, CUPE & PVP) are dedicated to the wellbeing and advancement of our students and school. Each day these people make Royal Bay and vibrant, engagement and interesting place to be.
We have fostered a culture of inclusion, diversity and equity. All voices have a platform and the ability to be heard.

Our Learners

What do we know about our learners?

In an effort to assess who our students are how they feel about their learning at Ecole Royal Bay Secondary School we will use the following sources taken from the 2020/2021 Satisfaction Survey for Grades 10 and 12, and the data collection from the 2021/2022 Honour Roll

RBSS Student Composition 2021 -2022
Total Students - 1361
49.7% Female
50.3% Male
18.3% SPEDLA
9.0% AbEd
7.2% International
Students on average take 8.13 courses over the course of the year.
25% of RBSS Students earn marks above 90%
19% of RBSS Students earn marks between 80%-89%
1% of RBSS Students earn marks below C- or 50%
Honour Roll
Semester 1 2021/2021
Grade 10 - 59%
Grade 11 - 63%
Grade 12 - 59%
Semester 2
Grade 10 - 59%
Grade 11 - 63%
Grade 12 - 62%
Grade 10 satisfaction Survey - Question Response
Do you try your best at school?
Do teachers and staff at your school support healthy living?
At school, do you respect people who are different than you?
At school, are you being taught about Aboriginal peoples in Canada?
At school, do you get exercise (physical activity, sports)
At school, do you participate in activities outside of class hours?
Do you feel safe at school
At school, are you bullied, teased, or picked on?
Do you like school?
Do your teachers help you with your schoolwork when you need it?
Do you feel welcome at school?
Grade 12 Satisfaction Survey - Question Response
Do you try your best at school?
Do teachers and staff at your school support healthy living?
At school, do you respect people who are different than you?
At school, are you being taught about Aboriginal peoples in Canada?
At school, do you get exercise (physical activity, sports)
At school, do you participate in activities outside of class hours?
Do you feel safe at school
At school, are you bullied, teased, or picked on?
Do you like school?
Do your teachers help you with your schoolwork when you need it?
Do you feel welcome at school?

Observations: RBSS is very happy to observe that the general trend amongst the grades and the school in its entirety is an upswing on the percentage of student population represented on the Honour Roll and with students connection to the school.

What evidence supports what we know about our learners?

Our Student Voice

Royal Bay is a large comprehensive high school which serves roughly 1400 students. A large student population means that there are a lot of voices competing for space. Recognizing that it is impossible to fully give voice to how the students feel, I will give you my impressions before I introduce some data which paints a better description of our school.

While experiencing exponential growth over the last several years, we have been able to retain and reinforce a strong school culture. Our school still has a "small school" feel. In the past two years RBSS has gone through a school wide process to better define our values. Through numerous meetings, workshops and events consisting of students, staff and community members RBSS was able to define our school motto "Together We Are More". This process of discovery has been very important on the cultivation of a positive school culture. Our community (students. staff and families) have embraced this motto throughout the school. While the new crest and logo are highly visible throughout the school, it is the behaviour and understanding around this motto that has had major impacts on the school.

Through student led groups like; Leadership, GSA, Grad Council our students have found their voices. Students like school and feel valued here, but the stresses of the last three years have left some students feeling anxious and disconnected to the building and their education. Our goals over the coming years is to work hard to re-establish this positive connection and to remove any lingering barriers to their successes.

Our school is busy, and our students are in attendance. They are overwhelmingly connected to the building. RBSS has a large percentage of students connected to Fine Arts Programs, Acadamies, sports teams and extracurricular groups.

Students feel that the growth of the school and the size of the student population as challenges. They have experienced this growth along with staff and are seeing the challenges this represents. Halls are busy, classes are full, and the day is busy. Many students mentioned that they value the quarter system and would welcome its return.

Focus and Planning

What focus(es) emerge as goals to pursue?

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Intellectual Development

Social Emotional Learning

School Goal 1

To cultivate greater inclusion and belonging of all members of the Royal Bay Secondary School community in order to improve student success.

Strategic Plan Goal

Engagement

Strategic Plan Engagement Objectives

Continue to develop, expand and implement a culture of wellness.

Action Plan

Students will feel connected to two or more adults at school.
We work hard throughout the year to connect students with adults in the building. Admin and counsellors speak and put a lot of emphasis on healthy connections at monthly grade assemblies, our grade 12 students are partnered with a staff member as a mentor for their capstone project.
Students will feel high levels of peer belonging and friendship intimacy.
RBSS has a lot of groups, teams, clubs and programs for students to connect with. Our school is lucky in that our staff is engaged and often leading interest groups in sport, social initiatives, games and cultural awareness initiatives. With the connection to our school motto "Together We Are More" our staff and students put a lot of energy in fostering connections in the school. We have programs before school, at lunch and after school for our students to get involved in.
Students will feel safe and welcome at school.
The RBSS school community works closely with all stakeholders to make sure that our school is safe and welcoming.
The action plan includes:
1. Changes to the location and education surrounding gender-neutral bathroom
2. Healthy relationship and identity workshops for each grade
3. Continued work with Lisa Gunderson surrounding racial equity
4. Continued staff and parent consultation on healthy online behaviour
5. Continued work on the equity scan as outline above
6. Refresh of our inclusive crosswalk
7. Planning Day on Aug. 29 with Hannah Beach, "Reclaiming our Youth"
8. September 30 National Day of Reconciliation
9. Santa's Breakfast
10. Grade specific assemblies and check-ins each month

School Goal 2

To include the values of the Nat'tsa'maht enhancement agreement and the equity scan into the daily curricular delivery of individual departments

Strategic Plan Goal

Engagement

Strategic Plan Engagement Objectives

Further the goals of the Na'tsa'maht agreement following the objectives of 'One Mind' and 'One Spirit'.

Action Plan

The goals for greater equity in our school have been a priority for the past several years. In 2021 as a staff, we looked at how inclusive and relevant our individual departments were for our indigenous students. The tool we used to evaluate how we are currently doing was the learning environment survey made available through the equity scan. We had each department complete the survey and then elect a champion teacher to meet with the equity team and debrief on the current state of each department's learning environments, our elder in residence was also part of this conversation.

After the first initial meeting with the equity team the champion teachers took the results back to each of their departments, what followed were conversations at a departmental level outlining strengths and weaknesses. After discussion as a department, one or two key goals were created. The idea was that each classroom would undertake their departmental goal. The projects ranged from creating classroom territorial acknowledgements, including the indigenous ways of knowing in rubrics, including traditional games and arts in classes and engaging in guided discussions about systemic racism. We followed up with each department through monthly updates on the equity projects in our staff meetings, and culminated the projects with a staff carousal.

For the 2022-23 school year, we plan to continue our momentum using a departmental approach to making sure that our learning environments are equitable and accessible. We are starting the year with a staff paddle on dragon boats. We will invite our elder in-residence Rick Peter as well as N.I.E. leadership to join in our paddling and address the staff about the continued need for equity. We have asked each department to elect a champion teacher for the 2022/23 school year. They will participate in four meetings as a team, as well as lead an equity initiative in their department. The goal for the 2022/23 school year is to take the former projects and expand on them, creating an even stronger message of diversity within our classrooms.

How can the district support your goals?

Curriculum

ELL

International

Facilities

Finance

Human Resources

Inclusive Education

Na’tsa’maht Indigenous Education

Safe & Healthy Schools

Digital Solutions

Transportation

Pathways and Choice

Professional Development and Training

Staff and Organizational Structure

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Reflect, Adjust, Celebrate

Indicators of progress

Indicators of progress connected to Goal 1

Indicators of progress connected to Goal 2

We dedicate one staff meeting each year in May for Departments to showcase their yearly projects and discuss victories and challenges they encountered along the way.

RBSS will also use the Equity In Action Survey. For the 2022/2023 school year we will target our Grade 10's and follow them through to Grade 12 in order to get an understanding of how we are doing as a school community in promoting and encourage Equity, Inclusion and Diversity in the school.

How will we communicate and celebrate our progress?

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