To the ASW Community,
We want to provide a further update on our efforts to support the students and other community members who are dealing with the loss of grade 12 student Mikolaj Dziduch. We'll limit our special messaging to high school students and their parents going forward and summarize in eNotes for the entire community as appropriate.
This morning, at the beginning of the school day, Mr. Sheehan met with the High School students, faculty, and staff in the theatre to outline the support available to everyone and also to provide details about Mikolaj's last day in school and final hours at his apartment with his mother.
Mikolaj's day and evening were described as "normal" on Thursday last, that is until his mother tried to wake him up in the morning on Friday and found him unresponsive. It was a rather unremarkable day that turned into an extraordinary and tragic event. To all High School parents and students, we urge you to talk at home about recollections of the assembly and process together this profound situation. Among other things, there was a collective commitment to channelling our positive energy toward Pani Kielcz, who is intensely grieving the loss of her only child.
Today's Advisory sessions in the Upper School included a time for discussion and reflection. Some groups walked the track and chatted along the way, while others found a quiet place to gather and discuss. Teachers in the High School, particularly in grade 12, were sensitive to the feelings of their students and sought to relieve the pressure of deadlines and due dates where necessary or possible. School programs have to go on, but our attentiveness and responsiveness to the emotional needs of our students are heightened at a time like this.
Our counselling team from across the school has been available for students and other community members all day, and they will continue to make themselves available throughout the coming days. If one person on the team is busy speaking with someone, there will always be another person available. If you feel your child needs support in this situation, please remember
the counsellor resources we sent to you on Friday.
We continue to grieve this loss and will find ways to support each other as we move forward. Once again, we will pass along to you any information about arrangements as soon as we receive it from the family.
