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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSchool Council Update 2016/12/02 - #13School Council Newsletter December 2, 2016 WHAT'S NEW... Last night the Board of Trustees held their annual organizational meeting. At this meeting, the Board elects the Chair, Vice Chair, and chairs and members of standing, special purpose, ad hoc and advisory committees. I am very pleased to advise that Trustee Shirley Seward was acclaimed as Chair of the Board of Trustees and Trustee Erica Braunovan was elected to the office of Vice Chair. The term of office for both positions is December 1, 2016 to November 30, 2017. Congratulations to both Chair Seward and Vice Chair Braunovan! Planning Your Child's Academic Future It's hard to believe but we have already reached that point in the year where parents and students need to start thinking about planning decisions with respect to the next school year: Preschool and Kindergarten Parents If your child will be age four or five by December 31, 2016, they are ready for junior or senior kindergarten starting September 2017. Students already in junior kindergarten do not have to re-register for senior kindergarten. Visit your local school to register. Information on our Kindergarten program can be found here. Parents of Grade 3 Students Registration for Middle French Immersion will take place in the new year. Information about immersion programs will be sent home with students in January. Parents of Grade 8 Students All of our secondary schools host Grade 8 Parent Information Nights. These sessions are an important opportunity for parents and students to learn more about high school and the programs and pathways best suited to your child's needs. Parents of Grade 12 Students It's time to begin applying for college and university for the fall of 2017. College applications must be done online at www.ontariocolleges.ca before February 1st. To complete the application, students need their OEN, a nine digit number that can be found on their report cards. University applications for Ontario universities can be done online at www.ouac.on.ca anytime between now and January 11th. To complete the application, students need a specially generated OUAC P.I.N., which they should have received - contact the guidance office if you do not have one. These application dates are known as the "Deadlines for Equal Consideration". Students applying after these dates may still be offered acceptance, but are applying for spaces that are left over after the initial applicants have been placed. National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women To mark the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, flags on all Ontario government buildings including all OCDSB schools and work sites across the province will be flown at half-mast from sunrise to sunset on Sunday, December 6, 2016. Importance of Sleep in Children and Adolescents - Speaker series Sleep is so important to learning, well-being, and self- regulation. We have collaborated with the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), the OCDSB is pleased to present a free information session for parents with tips from experts about the importance of sleep and how to develop good sleeping habits in children and youth. Free Admission and Parking. December 12th - 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Longfields-Davidson Heights Secondary School Register here. Ottawa Public Health (OPH) Immunization As a parent, keeping your kids safe and healthy is your number one priority. All children attending school between ages 4 to 17 need to be immunized according to Ontario Immunization Schedule. Immunization protects children from many serious diseases that are easily spread in schools. Learn more here. Parents are required to report all immunizations done at the doctor's office to OPH. Under this Act, OPH has the authority to suspend students from school. Due to the size of our District, OPH is dividing its surveillance campaign into two phases. The first phase of notification letters to parents alerting them of missing documentation was sent out on November 15, 2016 and the second on November 22, 2016. Suspensions for the first group will commence on February 8, 2017 and for the second group on February 22, 2017 so it is very important to ensure your child's immunizations are up to date. Snow Days and Inclement Weather The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA) makes this decision between 4:00 and 5:30 a.m. when there is inclement weather. OSTA staff monitor the forecast every four hours, even in the middle of the night and take into consideration the type of precipitation, how long it is forecasted to last, the amount of expected precipitation and the air temperature. OSTA services a large geographical area, and they have to consider weather and road conditions across the entire jurisdiction. Once OSTA makes the decision, they contact the school district and we start communicating with parents through the media, social media, websites, etcetera. You can monitor the OSTA or OCDSB websites. When there is a snow day, yellow bus service is cancelled, but OC Transpo high school routes continue to operate. All schools remain open for students. Whether it is a snow day or not, with ice and snow on the roads, all drivers and pedestrians in and around schools need to use caution and to proceed safely. Please use extra caution and slow down in school parking lots or pick up and drop off areas. Also, a reminder to parents to ensure that students are dressed appropriately for outdoor play. The OCDSB has a procedure regarding extreme weather conditions and we monitor the forecast issued by Environment Canada. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PROGRAM FRAMEWORK CONSULTATION The district has just released a draft Elementary School Program Framework (ESPF). The Framework explains that the district's model for elementary school program delivery is the designated community school model. The framework outlines our elementary program offerings, school configuration models, school size, and addresses single and dual track schools. Consultation on the ESPF is underway and we are interested in your feedback. There are a number of ways to get involved:  Discuss this issue at school council;  complete the survey; and/or  Send an e-mail. Consultation is planned between November 3 to December 21st. The survey deadline is December 13, 2016. The final staff report, including feedback gathered through consultation will be presented for discussion at the OCDSB Committee of the Whole meeting on January 17, 2017. For more information, visit our website to read the ESPF and/or our Frequently Asked Questions. If you have questions, please email us at ElementaryProgramFrameworkConsultation@ocdsb.ca. Continuing Education Newsletter - November/December 2016 Take a look at the latest edition of the Continuing Education Newsletter and what is coming up in our department. It is interactive, so please click anywhere to be linked to our website for more information on all of our programs. Multi-Year Plan for Student Learning and Accommodation Planning Online Community Engagement and Discussion The first phase of our online consultation on the Eastern Secondary and Western Area student learning and pupil accommodation reviews closed on October 9th. Thanks for your input - almost 2,000 people participated and shared close to 8,000 thoughts. The next phase of the consultation begins October 24th - watch for more details. Reminders: Advisory Committees for both review areas will meet on December 6th from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Western Area Review Advisory Committee Meetings will be held at Confederation Education Centre. You will find more information on the reviews here. Eastern Secondary Review Advisory Committee Meetings will be held at Ottawa Technical Secondary School. Public Meetings January 10, 2017 - Woodroffe High School 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. January 11, 2017 - Gloucester High School 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Please note that there is an Open House from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. on both dates which will include displays and exhibits and staff will be available for questions. The formal part of the meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. Email - If you have questions or concerns regarding the proposed changes for the reviews, you can email easternsecondaryreview@ocdsb.ca or westernareareview@ocdsb.ca. Math Facts Check out our presentation on Supporting Your Child in Math from this year's Parent Conference. This session explored ways to increase parent engagement in your child's mathematics learning. SCHOOL COUNCIL BUSINESS School Council Reminders If you have not already done so, please send your school council contact information to Susan Baker at susan.baker@ocdsb.ca - School name, chair/co-chair name(s), phone number(s), and email address(es). School Councils are also required to submit to the District an annual report on its activities, including fundraising activities on or before October 30, 2016. Please ensure to submit your school council annual report to school principals and forward a copy to Susan Baker, 133 Greenbank Road, Ottawa, ON K2H 6L3 or by email at susan.baker@ocdsb.ca. School Council Training Missed the Bridging Home and School: Conference for Parents and School Councils? Check out the School Council presentations online on our website: Best Practices for School Councils, PRO Grants - From Application to Reporting, School Council Insurance and Risk Management, School Council Finance. Funding for Play Structures and Playgrounds Funding is available to assist school communities in developing their school grounds and installing or replacing some of their play structures. Please submit your application using Form 700, as soon as possible. Approval will take into account equity, special circumstances and other funding already in place. Project applications that did not receive funding in previous years will be carried over; however, it is important to update the application to reflect the current status. If you have any questions, please contact Dan Fournier at 613-596-8211 ext. 8690 or at daniel.fournier@ocdsb.ca. Translations Our district website and all school websites now translate into just over 100 languages. Use the translation button in the upper right hand corner of the website. BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEETINGS Meetings that Matter.... Board and Committee of the Whole Meetings The next Committee of the Whole will be December 13th. The Public session will begin at 7:30 p.m. There are several items of interest on this agenda including a report and motion on the Gifted Program Review, fees for Extended Day programs and the approval of boundaries of the new elementary school in Findlay Creek. For more information about the meeting please read the full agenda here. Upcoming Committee Meetings: 12/6/2016 7:00 PM Western Area Review Third Advisory Committee meeting 12/6/2016 7:00 PM Eastern Secondary Area Review Fourth Advisory Committee Meeting 12/7/2016 6:00 PM Parent Involvement Committee 12/8/2016 7:00 PM OCASC Secondary School Committee 12/14/2016 7:00 PM Special Education Advisory Committee 12/15/2016 7:00 PM Ottawa Carleton Assembly of School Councils Boardroom Highlights can be found here. EVENTS AND REMINDERS Places to Go...Things to Remember NEW: Rideau High School Parent Council - Christmas Craft Fair - December 11th 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Location: Rideau High School - 815 St. Laurent Blvd. The craft fair has been organized in an effort to raise funds for the school's concert band to attend the Music Festival in Montreal next year. The event features local craft makers and direct sellers, including exhibits and demonstrations. Come join us! Free parking. Free Admission. For more information please contact sc-rideauhs@ocdsb.ca Location: Rideau High School - 815 St. Laurent Blvd. REMINDERS: Goulbourn Middle School Craft and Vendor Sale - December 3rd We are excited to share that we are hosting a Holiday Craft and Vendor Fair as a school- based fundraiser this year. This event takes place on Saturday, December 3rd from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. We have 36 crafters and other vendors who will be selling their wares in our gym. There will also be a used book sale, a bake sale, and a canteen. We hope to see you there. Arts Cantebury - Open House - December 6th 7:00 p.m. Arts Canterbury will be hosting their annual Arts Open House on Tuesday, December 6th, at 7pm. This event is geared towards all students currently in grades 8-11 who are interested in auditioning for a spot in our district's Arts Program for September 2017. Arts Canterbury allows students an enriched arts program while fulfilling their Ontario Secondary School Diploma. The presentation will begin at 7pm in the school's auditorium addressing the audition process and requirements. Guests will then be invited to visit the arts area in which they are interested: Dance, Drama, Music (Instrumental, Orchestral Strings, or Vocal), Literary Arts, and Visual Arts. Please visit our website for more details. Stay Connected OCDSB staff, students and community members can view the District's website. Keep in touch by following us on Twitter, visiting our Facebook and LinkedIn pages, and watching our videos on YouTube. About the Newsletter We get a lot of feedback about the newsletter and we are always happy to hear from you. Anyone can receive the newsletter. If you are not on our distribution list and would like to be please clickhere or email Communications@ocdsb.ca. At this time of year there are many changes on school council, please be sure to notify us about any change of email address. Many people forward the newsletter to others in their community. If you forward this message, please delete all of the text from the "forward e-mail" link at the bottom left of the newsletter (just outside of the purple border). Otherwise, anyone who receives the message can click the opt-out button at the bottom of the newsletter and will actually unsubscribe your name from our distribution list. This may explain why some regular users are being dropped from our distribution list. Have a wonderful weekend. Michele Michele Giroux Executive Officer, Corporate Services Ottawa-Carleton District School Board 613-596-8211 ext. 8607 michele.giroux@ocdsb.ca