Frequently Asked Questions

For the purpose of the application - we ask that you identify all the sports that your son/daughter play and/or the level of competition your son/daughter is participating at.

For the application purpose our interest is in your overall participation in sport.

Declaration of Primary Sport to the YRAA will not take place until the student has been accepted to Bill Crothers and has started school in August. For some students this might have changed from the time that they applied. i.e. Students may have been playing house league and over the summer they have made a rep. team, etc.

For the declaration to YRAA in August - this is to determine the student's eligibility to compete for BCSS.

It is important when making your decision to apply that you may not be able to play for a YRAA sanctioned team in your primary sport.

What do I put as my primary sport if I am currently injured and unable to play?

If it is still your primary sport and if you plan to return to it after recovery, then it still would be considered your Primary Sport.

Once I claim my primary sport do I ever change it when @ BCSS?

No. You do not change your primary sport. Please remember that primary sport is only for YRAA school teams. You are encouraged to try out for other YRAA teams and there are other sport opportunities outside of the YRAA here at BCSS

Can I ever try out for my primary sport?

This is possible through our house intramural, but also there are some sports that are outside of the YRAA that you could try out for (i.e Prep or tournament teams).

What is my level of sport participation?

Active for Life (Recreational)- Competitive (Regional/Club Team) - Provincial / National /International (Highly Competitive)

Recreational - Active for life: (examples: school teams, house-league teams)

Student athletes in the Active for Life profile are involved in sport in a variety of ways. Active for Life Student Profiles could include recreational competition, house league, school sports, AE, Select, All Star, sport lessons, officiating, coaching, volunteering and sport media interests

Competitive (examples: Rep Hockey, OPDL Soccer, OBA Basketball, OVA Rep Baseball)

Student athletes in the Competitive for Life profile are committed to serious training and competition with goals of reaching the next level in sport. These athletes may be on the path to high-performance status. Competitive for Life Student Profiles could include rep. team sports or club level individual sport.

Provincial / National / International - Highly Competitive

The High Performance Athlete profile describes a student athlete who is highly-ranked, or has been selected for a provincial, national or international team or their development team (e.g. Team Ontario or Team Canada).

High Performance Athlete Profiles could include Junior A Hockey, provincial or national carded athletes, or highly ranked athletes in their individual sport.

How do you support Highly Competitive Athletes?

We have a large group of highly competitive student athletes who need some academic flexibility to accommodate their provincial, national or international training needs. On the application you will indicate which level of competition and training you participate in.

A specialized, cooperative education program, for students who are competing at the provincial, national and/or international level. In HPA, students practice and demonstrate, through a cooperative education program, the knowledge and skills acquired in the classroom, to their training/competition setting.The HPA program is made up of:

the HPA cooperative education course; and
a subject-related course.

A student may earn up to two co-op credits for each subject-related course they take. There is no limit to the number of credits a student can earn through cooperative education (Co-op) programming as long as you have a related course to link the Co-op to.

Application:

How many applicants are accepted each year?

Each year it can vary and we do accept all grades, although the majority are incoming grade 9's. Typically a grade 9 cohort would have anywhere between 420-440 students. For current grade 9-12's, it is dependent on space and varies each semester.

Does BCSS give priority to siblings?

Each individual application is taken into account and processed on an individual basis. If there are family connections currently at the school or several students in one family applying in the same year, there is no guarantee that all members are accepted.

Is there a hard copy package to submit? and if so can I have a sibling drop it off?

Yes there is a hard copy package to be submitted no later than November 3, 2024. If a sibling attends, they can drop off the complete application to the drop box located inside the front door and just outside the main office entrance.

For students wanting to apply for January:

Is there a separate application for students who are currently attending high school and would like to attend Bill Crothers in semester 2 of this school year?

No, students would submit the same application. There is a question on the application that you can indicate that you are looking for 2nd semester entry for this school year.

What if you play house league, can you still get accepted?

This counts as sport experience - please review the section above labelled Recreational? Competitive for Life? Highly Competitive? to know what category your experience falls into.

How are students chosen?

The full application is taken into account and it is a holistic approach. We are looking for students who work to their potential. It is not all just about marks or all just about sport. All areas of the application are taken into account.

What if I live outside of York Region?

Any student residing in York Region is eligible to apply. Students from outside the board may apply; acceptance is dependent on availability. We have many students from within the region as well as outside. If you are planning to move into the York Region but have not yet, you are still considered out of the area. Please use your current address.

Do current grade 9 students only submit grade 9 November report cards or grade 8 report cards as well?

For grade 9 submission you provide the grade 8 report and grade 9 midterm depending on timing since the credit counselling summary would not be sufficient as of the first semester in grade 9 (doesn't have a lot of information for the application).

Do you have a template of all the questions that will be asked on the application (to make preparing for completing the application easier)?

We have provided instructions of all you will need to complete the application on the "prospective colts" homepage with dropdown options for each step.

Can a grade 9 student indicate an interest in applying for January 2026 as well as August 2026?

Yes.

How many grade 9 students (for January) and grade 10 students have you admitted in prior years?

This looks different each year depending on space but we do offer spots to grade 9, 10, 11, and 12's in January each year.

Do students in York Region have priority over students in other areas?

As a York Region school we do have a majority of students who live in York Region but also have students who come from outside of the region (Durham, Toronto etc)

If I were to apply and not get in, would I be able to apply next year?

Yes

What is the High Performance Athlete (HPA) program:

For more details on the HPA Program please click here!

(Please note: Acceptance to Bill Crothers does not automatically mean acceptance into the High Performance Athlete Program)

Student Supports:

What types of supports are there for students with an IEP?

At Bill Crothers we strive to support all students and have a large Special Education Department with a very supportive team. All IEP students have a SERT who will meet with them regularly and assist them in advocating for their needs in their classes. We also offer a Learning Strategies program that can serve as a transition into high school. There are a range of supports depending on the needs of the student and our teachers are understanding and supportive of the various accommodations a student requires.

Uniform: Link for the Uniform Payment - School Cash Online

The information for the uniform package is in your Registration Package - including a sizing chart and a picture and information about pick up and order deadlines.

This uniform package is mandatory for all students. Students who have siblings who attended - still are required to purchase a uniform package. This is a onetime purchase. Additional items, as required, can be purchased through school-cash online.

Programming & Academics:

What is ILIP?

Integrated Learning Instructional Period. Purpose of ILIP:

1. Give students the opportunity to meet with teachers in subject areas where they need support;

2. Provides a flexible structure to complete student directed work & homework;

3. Opportunities to collaborate with classmates and peer mentors.

What ILIP is NOT:

Free time to chill with friends, extra lunch time. The Ministry of Education is closely tracking student attendance and instructional time. Students must meet the required 110 hours of instructional time for each class. Missing ILIP could result in losing credit(s).

What about academics at BCSS?

At Bill Crothers we do not just concentrate on athletics, rather this is the lens that we are able to use for our students as they learn in and outside the classroom. We implement the Ontario Curriculum concentrating on critical thinking, metacognition, and higher order thinking in order to challenge students to thrive and move forward in their learning. We honour all pathways at Bill Crothers. Please view the presentation and the various student testimonials to see how we help prepare to students for various post secondary pathways.

BCSS life:

What sports teams are there?

On average we have over 60 teams run a year which would be too numerous too list -there are many options for students to try out for the sports in each season and tryouts are communicated through our announcements, instagram and website.

What clubs are there?

We have many clubs running this year such as chess club, french club, Model UN, Black Student Alliance, Colt Newspaper, Colts in Action and many more! Check out our calendar and clubs under the "stduent" tab to see all that is going on in our building this year.

What are Intramurals?

We have regular intramural sports for Jr students and Sr Students. These are hosted at lunch and students have the opportunity to sign up.

Financial considerations

What are the costs involved?

There are costs to be aware of such as the uniform, transportation if you choose private bussing, activity and sports fees etc.

What are the extra costs to be on a Sports Team?

These costs may vary. We have fees associated with sports that are based on cost recovery the specific teams’ play. The costs are determined in conjunction with the Athletics department and the coach who set out the student fees. For example: Students participating in a volleyball team, will be subject to additional costs (team apparel, extra tournament fees/transportation). All sports programming is subsidized through athletics.

What is the Mandatory Yearly Athletic Fee?

This is a yearly fee for all students that helps to subsidise the many sport programs at Bill Crothers.

Teachassist & School Cash Online

Can parents get a Teach Assist account?

This year there is a parent teachassist account to book parent teacher interviews but are not open for incoming parents at this time. Teach Assist has historically been only for students, teachers and Administration. Parents can access Teach Assist with their child's account.

How do I pay?

This is done through School Cash On-line.

Transportation

What transportation can you get from Aurora / Woodbridge / Thornhill / Richmond Hill / Newmarket - etc. to Bill Crothers?

Areas serviced by York Region Transit (YRT) do not qualify for a board bus, but private buses can been arranged through the parent community. Aurora is serviced by YRT so there is no board bussing provided. Students take the YRT, Viva, GO busses, car pool or purchase private bussing through the parent facilitators.

Please contact the parent facilitators below if you are interested in this private bussing:

York Region Area: bcbus.transportation@outlook.com

Durham Region: Durham Region Bus Information

Board bussing: Rural areas that are not York Region Transit (YRT) accessible. (Georgina, Keswick, Sutton, Pefferlaw, Schomberg, Nobleton and Mt Albert currently are serviced by board buses). You may qualify for board bussing if you are in one of these areas. These areas are subject to change.

References:

Can I submit a teacher reference from a teacher I had more than two years ago? For example, can I use my Grade 6 teacher?

We highly recommend using your current grade 8 teacher but understand this might not always be possible in certain circumstances. It needs to be a teacher in the last 2 school years. A grade 7 teacher or a current teacher, but not a grade 6 teacher. You can use a virtual school teacher as a reference.

Can I submit more than 1 teacher reference and/or coach reference?

Please only submit 1 reference for a teacher and 1 reference for a coach. Only one each will be accepted. Letters are not to be submitted, only the completed digital forms that are sent to the provided emails will be accepted. These forms will be sent directly to your chosen references and they will submit it digitally. There will be no paper references - all will be completed online and the student applicant does not give anything to the references. You will receive a confirmation once a reference completes the online reference.

Who do I use for a coach reference if I don't currently train? or if I have a new coach?

You can use a previous coach in the last 12 months of the sport you've played at the highest level. If this is a school coach for a school team, that is applicable. This applies for students who may have been training at a different level a few years ago. Please use a coach from the last 12 months.

Can you use your Gr. 7 homeroom teacher as a teacher reference even if they also happened to be the gym teacher that year ?

The coach and teacher reference need to be two separate people. You can decide who the teacher reference will be and the coach as long as they are two different people.

For Active for Life criteria - does a student require a coach reference if they played on House League Teams and school teams?

The reference can be a gym teacher etc - someone who has seen the student participate in some sort of sport. (Intramurals, house league etc would qualify for active for life)

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