December 19 Newsletter

As always, there has been a lot of activity at Frontenac. Students from our various musical groups were able to show what they learned at the annual Winter Concert held on Friday, December 12th. Our winter sports teams continue with the KASSAA regular season schedule, as well as compete in tournament play amongst the best teams in the province. Students in the classroom are working hard with their studies to prepare for final culminating tasks and exams, attend field trips to augment their learning of the curriculum, as well as receive important training through the Specialist High Skills Major program. We sincerely hope that our extended Frontenac school community has a safe and wonderful holiday season. Take some time to rest, rejuvenate and enjoy time with friends and family. We look forward to seeing everyone in the new year. After the break there will only be thirteen class days until exams begin on January 22nd.

FSS Semester 1 Exam Schedule- January 2026

We are pleased to share with families that the FSS January 2026 Exam Schedule is now available.  All students are expected to be available to attend and write their final exams, as these are critical components of their courses.  

Please note that exam start times are slightly adjusted this year to allow students who require additional time to be accommodated within the regular exam space with their classroom teacher.  Exams will start promptly at 8:15am and 11:30am. Specific locations for exams taking place in classrooms will be shared in the new year.

We are aware that a few students will have scheduling conflict (e.g. two exams at the same time).  Mrs. Morris-Pocock will connect with these students well ahead of exam time to adjust their individual schedules.  Any students with questions about exam conflicts should come see Mrs. Morris-Pocock in the main office.

FSS Arts

On December 12th, the FSS Arts department hosted the annual holiday concert in the Frontenac Library. Students were able to lend their talents to a variety of musical acts and ensembles and the Improv team provided humour to the evening as well. Thank you Mr. Davey for your leadership in helping to make the night go smoothly despite being robbed of a rehearsal date due to the snow day on Wednesday. Treasure Island cast and crew will be on a two week hiatus as they pillage and plunder (politely of course!!)what might be under a tree this holiday season. Rehearsals resume in January and please save the date for the performances March 5th-7th. Ticket information will be made available after the exam break in January.

FSS in the News

Two Frontenac students have been selected by the Kingstonist online newspaper as a part of the Next-Gen Journalism Program. Ellice Stephens and Micaela Schmidt have both contributed to the Kingstonist and are sharing stories from a youth perspective. You can see stories from Micaela and Ellice related to two events at Frontenac - Chilifest and Girls Night In. Please continue to check in with the girls published stories and support local news.

FSS Holiday Cheer

On Wednesday and Thursday this week, the Family Studies department hosted their annual Holiday Cheer Event. Over 2000 cookies, 300 salt dough ornaments and 18 liters of hot chocolate powder were prepared by our foods classes in preparation for this event. This hard work allowed over 700 students to gather in the cafeteria to sip hot chocolate while enjoying festive activities such as cookie and ornament decorating, games, sing-alongs, and much more! This event is about bringing people together to share the fun and joy of the holiday season. Thank you to everyone involved who helped make this event a great success! On Friday morning, staff served pancakes for students. A special thank you to Denny's Gardiners Road location for the help with making the pancakes and for their generous donation to help defray the costs for supporting this school wide event.

Student Services

• A reminder for families of Grade 12's and Returners that the deadline to apply to post-secondary schools is quickly approaching! The deadline to apply to Ontario Universities is January 15th and the deadline to apply to Ontario Colleges for equal consideration is February 1st. Detailed information on how to apply can be found on the FSS Class of 2026 & Returners Google Classroom. Questions? Contact Ms. Lackey.
• Acceptance for Winter session Dual Credits will be sent out soon! Students should keep an eye on their email for updates :)
• As we get closer to semester 2, please make sure you are reviewing your student's timetable with them. If there are any issues, or if students are wanting to make a change, they should see their Guidance Counsellor when they return in the New Year.
• Our Student Services team has begun welcoming our Future Falcons to the nest! This week we had Grade 8 students from Holsgrove and L'Acadie come be a 'Falcon for a Day'. They learned about what FSS has to offer, toured the school, and participated in lots of fun games and activities! We look forward to welcoming the students from our other feeder schools in January!
• Our Grade 8 Information Night is scheduled for Thursday, January 15th, 2026. Spread the word! We look forward to seeing all families of Grade 8's interested in attending Frontenac next year! More information about what we have to offer can be found on the Future Falcons page of our website.

FSS SHSM

The Specialist High Skills Major Program (SHSM) is a ministry-approved specialized program that allows students to focus their learning on a specific economic sector. Frontenac offers four SHSM programs; Arts & Culture, Business, Construction, and Health and Wellness. These programs support all pathways and provide opportunities such as experiential learning for the work place and Apprenticeship, (OYAP) after high school, exposure to Dual Credits at St. Lawrence College, and financial bursaries at various University programs. These photos provide a quick glimpse into the expanded learning activities for students in the program to explore possible careers. Please see Ms. Kasper in student services if you need more information and to ensure that student timetables are properly created to cover the program requirements. 

FSS Athletics

We have had a great ending to our Fall Season with our Senior Girls Basketball team competing at the AAA Basketball Championships in Sarnia, ON.  The girls went in ranked 8^th which put them against the #1 seed Maple Ridge in the quarter finals. The girls played their hearts out and showed FSS is capable of playing with all the top teams  in the Province.  The future looks bright for our girls basketball program! Our Senior Boys Football team took KASSAA by storm making their way up the Provincial rankings all year. The team faced of in the OFSAA Bowl against a highly talented Huron Heights team.  The weather was awful but the game was exciting and again showed why FSS had a 50+ win streak and is one of the strongest programs in the Province.  Our Winter teams will have 2 weeks of competition before the exam break. Please check kassaa.ca for dates, times and locations so you do not miss out! 

Queen's University Black Legacy Program

The Black Legacy Mentorship Program (BLMP) is a student-led initiative launching its pilot year at Queen’s University. It connects Black youth in Kingston (Grades 9–12) with Black student mentors from Queen’s University. Together, they explore leadership, identity, and future goals through engaging, culturally affirming activities. Sessions will take place monthly at Queen’s University from January to March 2025, with free transportation and meals provided.

Time Commitment

• 2 mentees will be assigned to 1 mentor at a time 
• Mentees are required to participate in small mentor meetings, up to 1.5 hour bi-weekly and be engaged participants in discussions and events (online or in person) 
• Mentees will be required to attend a 1 monthly 2-hour session with their mentor hosted at Queen’s University. These will take place on January 29th, February 26th, March 26th.                                                         

Eligibility

• Be full-time high school student (Grade 9 – 12) in Kingston 
• Self-identify as Black

Here is the link for local Black secondary school students to be considered as a mentee:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf4WYDQ1fWcKKeMga1fdS2sNZELD_dpyfsLIrXJoHJjmIGB8A/viewform

FSS Trivia

The Trivia Team once again represented the Falcons well at Consensus in Ottawa last week. The Juniors had an impressive debut to their season, earning a respectable 6^th place finish; and our Seniors came home in 2^nd place. We'll be going for gold at the finals on February 7! New members are welcome as we compete all year - please talk to Ms Belyea or Ms Lee for details.

School to Community

Our Special Olympics Basketball team travelled to Bayridge to complete in a one day event.  We had 2 teams compete and show their Falcon Spirit with great sportsmanship, kindness, and athletic ability! Thank you to the PAL program for accompanying the team and participating and cheering them on! Our school to community group loves to get out in the community! We travelled to the Cineplex Odeon with several other local high schools to watch the movie Zootopia 2.  It was a fun and relaxing afternoon had by all! Frontenac hosted the Winter Wonderland Dance for all the School to Community Programs in the city on Dec. 11^th in our own cafeteria.  We had inflatables, snowflakes, a photobooth, a visit from Santa, crafts, snacks and facepainting! Thank you to all staff and students who made this event happen! We danced until the lights came on!  On December 16th we had our school to community Swiss Chalet lunch for staff and students to help get into the festive season.

Frontenac Secondary School is proud to be selected as 1 of 7 schools across Ontario who have achieved Gold Level status in the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools Program for 2025. Gold level schools "demonstrate strong, sustainable programming across all three Unified Pillars. Unified sports are well established, student leaders play a central role in program delivery, and whole school involvement is consistent. At the Gold level, inclusion is visible in everyday school life and celebrated across the broader community."

FSS to Costa Rica

FSS is going to Costa Rica at the 2027 March break – and we would love it if you would like to join us! Bruce Patry, Charles Macdonald, Keli Kasper and Aaron Kenney have more information about the trip and welcome any inquiries you have. In addition to cultural explorations; volcano watching, rainforest hiking and zip lining, kayaking, swimming and horseback riding are on the itinerary. Click the QR code to find out more information!

Apply to be a Student Trustee

Applications are now open for rural, urban and indigenous trustees for the 2026-2027 school year. Gain leadership skills, amplify student voice and impact, build connections across the district and be an advocate for student voice and change! There will also be opportunities to attend conferences in Toronto. Applications are due January 29, 2026. Apply online here!

Southeast Health Unit

Schools will be notified in mid-January regarding students that have incomplete vaccination updates. Schools will then share this information directly with families regarding any gaps that exist with immunization records. If you are aware of any shortcomings with regards to immunization shots, please update your records.

Upcoming Events at FSS:

December 20th-Janurary 4th: Rest, relax and enjoy time with friends and family

January 5th: Return from Winter Break

January 15th: Grade 8 Information Night at Frontenac starts in the Library at 6:30 pm

January 16th: Day 1 Grade 9 EQAO Math Test

January 19th: Day 2 Grade 9 EQAO Math Test

January 21st: Last day of semester one classes

January 22nd-29th: Exams at Frontenac

January 30th: PA Day

February 2nd: First Day of semester 2