Attendance: 41 parents, 11 students, 2 community members, Principal A. Petitti, Guidance Counsellor C. Gillespie, 2 post secondary presenters
Report of Student Parliament -- The Co-Prime Ministers reported that the Student Parliament is operating under greater budget constraints this year because the Student Activity Fee is no longer mandatory. Upcoming Events include Veterans’ Week activities in November and a Talent Show in December. The Multicultural Fair will be held again this year in May, and parents are invited to attend.
Post Secondary Presentation entitled “Preparing for University”—Ms. Gillespie, Head of Guidance spoke about how students can prepare for post secondary education. She then introduced reps from Seneca College and U of T. The reps spoke in general about college and university admissions and student life.
Principal’s Report – Ms. Petitti discussed the following points:
Parents’ Night will be held on November 24 1:30-3:30 and 6:30-8:30
Report Cards will be mailed home the week before Parents’ Night
Parents are encouraged to phone the school is they have any concerns
Board Homework Policy for grade 9 is 1-1.5 hours per night, and by grade 12 it rises to 2-3 hours per night
EQUO Literacy Test –grade 10 students have had a practice test; initiatives are underway to further prepare students
Jr. Girls’ Basketball team won the East Region finals
Gr. 11 Leadership class raised $1200 for the Toronto Foundation for Student Success
18 grade 11 and 12 students are participating in the Television Dual Credit program with Centennial College
Peer Education Program—grade 5 students recently came to Leacock for an Anti-bullying day –Leacock students gave an excellent presentation
the School Improvement plan was distributed to parents –it includes initiatives to improve student achievement, parent and community engagement, and financial stability
the school budget was distributed to parents –the total budget is $219,860, which represents $156 per student --the budget does not include salaries or maintenance --the phys-ed and technology departments have the largest budgets
Ms. Petitti outlined plans to hold PLCs every Wednesday beginning in Semester 2 --the weekly PLCs will require a delayed start at 10:15 every Wednesday --each class during the day will be reduced slightly--students will still have the required number of hours per class –parents unanimously approved the plan
P.A. days will be held on Nov. 18 and Dec. 9
November 18 – teachers will focus on Assessment & Development
December 9 – Board-wide activity day
Upcoming Events:
Anti-Bullying Week
Veterans’ Week November 5 - 11
Student Census –held at school between Nov 21 and 24, census is not mandatory
Other Business –due to lack of time, discussion of other business items was postponed until the January meeting
Items carried forward to next meeting:
School Council Budget opportunities
Commencement refreshments
Eco Schools—interview sign-up software
Mailing of report cards
Meeting Presentations –frequency & topic options
Lockdowns & school safety
University prep (already done this year)
High School orientation
Exam prep
Internet / social networking / cyber bullying
Understanding teens / conflict management/ how to talk with teens
ESL parents—understanding the Ontario school system
Childcare during meetings
Report of 5th Annual Parent Conference
Next Meeting Dates for 2011-2012:
January 26, 2012
March 29, 2012
May 24, 2012
Parent Council Minutes - Sept. 22, 2011
Stephen Leacock C.I. School Parent Council
Minutes of September 22, 2011 meeting
Attendance: 9 parents, 3 students, Principal A. Petitti, V-P K. Keroglidis, SRO J. Knox
Election of School Council positions – The following people were elected to school council positions:
Various ideas were discussed for increasing parent participation including themed meetings such as lock down education, university prep, high school orientation, and exam prep. It was suggested that childcare be provided.
School Resource Officer’s Report – The school council welcomed the new School Resource Officer, Jamie Knox. Ms. Knox outlined her varied 10 years of experience with Toronto Police Services. In her new role at Leacock, she assists in classrooms and attends field trips as needed. She will be assessing further needs in the coming months. She welcomes comments and questions from parents and can be reached through the school office or by e-mail. She has videos and materials to familiarize parents with lockdown procedures.
Student Parliament Report – The Student Parliament rep was unable to attend. Her report was read by A. Petitti. The Grade 9 Activity Day will be held on Sept. 23 in the morning followed by a BBQ lunch. A Haunted House will be held during the last week in October, and a Winter Talent Show will be held in December. Student reps will be attending the Me to We kick off event on September 27.
Principal’s Report – The school council welcomed the new principal, Angela Petitti. Ms. Petitti outlined her extensive 30 years of experience within the TDSB and gave her report as follows:
Enrolment—There are currently 790 students. This decrease from last year has resulted in the loss of 7 teachers and a decrease in the school budget of $27,000. One additional teacher has been requested for the technology department.
Supplementary Fees—Students are asked to pay $50 in September as an activity fee to cover the cost of agendas, t-shirts, yearbooks, and clubs. This fee does not cover supplies for classes such as Art. At the next meeting, there may be a request for approval to charge additional fees for some courses.
EQAO test results—Leacock has improved 17% in applied math, 14% in academic math, and 3% in literacy test results. Math results are well above the Board average, but Literacy results are lower than the Board average. Literacy results are lower because 66% of students do not have English as a first language and a significant percentage of students has been in Canada fewer than five years.
ID tags—In order to reduce student-teacher conflict, students are no longer required to wear their ID, but they must have it available. Safety concerns with the new policy were raised and addressed.
Fire Drills—Three fire drills will be held in the fall and three in the spring. One will be audited by the Fire Marshall.
Lockdown Drills—Letters will be sent home to inform parents when lock down drills are planned.
Weekly Bulletin—Parents requested that the weekly bulletin continue to be distributed via e-mail.
Other Business
1st semester Parents’ Night—A discussion about Parents’ Night was led by Vice-Principal K. Keroglidis. Two proposals were given regarding the timing of report cards and interview dates. It was decided that report cards will be mailed home on November 17, and Parents’ Night will be held on November 24. It was decided that the School Council meeting originally scheduled for Nov. 24 will be moved to November 3. Suggestions regarding length of interviews, appointments, hours, and location will be passed on to Vice-Principal G. McIntosh for consideration in planning the Parents’ Night. Principal Petitti will ask teachers to meet at another time with parents who require longer interviews than Parents’ Night can accommodate.
Principal/Vice-Principal Profile—The profile from last year was distributed. The profile for this year is due at the Board by October 15. Parents are asked to read the profile and e-mail changes or suggestions to S. Riihimaki by October 10.
School Council budget—The School Council budget is $997.
School Council meeting time—Daytime meetings were discussed. It was decided that the meeting times would remain at 7 p.m.
SEAC position—The Special Ed Advisory Committee has an opening for an alternate rep for the North East region. A. Petitti will send out an e-mail with further information and the application form.
Items carried forward to next meeting:
Supplementary fees
Meeting themes / speakers and resulting re-work of the flyer to be mailed home with report cards
Possible parent survey
Childcare during meetings
Next Meeting Dates for 2011-2012:
November 3, 2011 (note change from November 24)
January 26, 2012
March 29, 2012
May 24, 2012
Summary of Action Steps:
Parents –read Principal Profile and forward comments to S. Riihimaki by Oct 10
S. Riihimaki –compile Principal Profile and forward to A. Petitti by Oct 14
K. Keroglidis –forward suggestions regarding Parents’ Night to G. McIntosh
A. Petitti –forward e-mail regarding SEAC to parent distribution list
–general communication: lock down drills, weekly bulletins