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With Gratitude
Both secondary and elementary school offices are open as of Monday. With a week until students enter their schools, I want to thank the caretakers who worked during the summer to ensure classrooms are ready - to the office staff who manages to stay smiling although inundated with work to get schools open - to Principals, especially those with projects happening at their schools who have been in an out all summer to keep an eye on how things were progressing - and to teachers and support staff who will be in this week (and some who were even in last week!) to just make sure all is ready on September 4. Thank you.
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Board Meeting this Week
Regular Meeting Wednesday, August 29, 2018 4:30 p.m. Claude Watson School for the Arts, Gymnasium, 130 Doris Avenue
As our Boardroom continues to be renovated, please note the meeting will be held offsite.
For the complete Agenda, please click here,
- 9. Chair’s Announcements
- 10. Reports From Trustees Appointed to External Organizations and Student Trustees
- 11. Director’s Leadership Report
- 12. Declarations of Possible Conflict of Interest
- 13. Matters to be Decided Without Discussion
- 14. Confirmation of Minutes of Meetings Held on June 20 and 28, July 11, August 9 and 16,
- 15. Staff Reports
- 15.1 National Alliance of Black School Educators’ 46th Annual Conference, November 6 -11, 2018: Expense Approval
- 15.2 Appointments to the Program and School Services Committee and the Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee
- 16. Committee Reports
- 16.1 Director’s Performance Appraisal Committee, Report No. 9 (Private), June 20, 2018
- 16.2 Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee (Special Meeting), Report No. 18, July 5
- 16.3 Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee (Special Meeting), Report No. 19, Aug 1
- 16.4 Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee (Special Meeting), Report No. 20, Aug 28
- 17. Written Notices of Motion for Consideration
- 17.1 Health and Physical Education Curriculum (Trustees Story and Pilkey)
- 18. Emerging Issues
Please note we heard from the director that he is putting the final touches on the senior team directory and organizational chart and this should be communicated to the system Monday - there may be changes to assignments of Superintendents of Education as a result of the system vacancies. Will update you next week. I am looking forward to dropping into the annual learning session of system leaders – including Business Managers, Principals, Vice Principals and Senior Team – on Wednesday.
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Safe Routes to SchoolWe have posted information on the website regarding school safety - we know many come distracted - excited - so it's up to all of us to be aware of school zone safety. Children travel to and from school many ways including walking, wheeling (e.g., bicycle, scooter or mobility device), taking public transit or a school bus; and/or, driving/taking a ride to school. Whatever option you and your family choose, please remember to be careful and share the road with other road users.
Walking to School - The TDSB encourages active transportation to and from school whenever possible. Walking to school can be safer than driving and have a positive impact on student’s mental wellness and academic success.
Cycling to School - Similar to walking, cycling is good for children’s health, the environment and our communities. According to the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO), bikes are considered vehicles. Therefore, cyclists must follow the same rules and laws as drivers do.
Driving to School - A child struck by a car travelling at 50 km/hr is eight times more likely to be killed than a child struck at 30 km/hr. Children 10 and under are most at risk for pedestrian related injuries. Therefore, if you are driving your child to or from school, it is important to be alert and slow down as children are smaller and harder to see. In addition, it might be difficult for children to determine the direction of sound and judging distance or speed.
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HPE Curriculum
This week the provincial government provided direction through a letter to Board Chairs on the Health & Physical Education Curriculum to be taught in September. Chair Robin Pilkey issued the following statement - Since the government first indicated that they were changing the Health and Physical Education curriculum, the TDSB has been concerned about whether students would still learn about topics such as gender identity, sexual orientation, online safety and consent. Staff is now reviewing the curriculum to ensure they are able to fulfill those requirements. Parents would have expected the province to have explained more clearly the differences between the two curriculums — both over 200 pages — but based on the information released today, we’re disappointed to see that it’s still very unclear. With regards to the launch of a College of Teachers parent concern website, our TDSB Parent Concern Protocol already provides parents with an outlet to voice concerns and most importantly, gives them the opportunity to resolve matters. I want to emphasize that should parents have issues or concerns at any time, we truly believe it is essential to address them with the teacher first as per our protocol. The relationship between teachers and parents is critical to engagement... which in turn is critical to student success. In adddition, the idea of parents being able to complain anonymously regarding a teacher completely disrespects protocol and practice and common sense. I know I do not even respond to anonymous complaints... it means there will never be resolution. I also want to emphasize that being able to complain is not consultation. In the TDSB Consultation is a two-way communication process between the Board and external participants, including students and their parents/guardians, school councils, advisory committees, community members, different levels of government, service agencies, professional organizations and union partners. The objective of consultation is to gather public input regarding options, alternative courses of action, as well as to identify unintended effects for various participants and to find solutions. Further, Director Malloy wrote to all teachers yesterday - From the beginning, we have been vocal about our concerns with regards to the inclusion of important topics such as online safety, gender identities, sexual orientation, and consent. Our central staff have been reviewing both the 2010 and 2015 curriculum documents to determine which topics are covered and which are not. While that work is continuing, it is already clear that many important topics remain in the curriculum. While the wording may be different than the 2015 curriculum, the 2010 curriculum still contains many critically important topics. In some cases, these topics are now covered under “prompts” as opposed to “expectations,” but they remain in the curriculum. As a result, educators will continue to have discussions about diverse families, online safety, consent, etc. Despite some challenging developments over recent days, I want you to know that we trust you and we believe you are doing great things for our students. I want to assure you that we will be providing support for you through the implementation of the curriculum changes. To read the complete letter, please click here. More information for parents will be coming shortly.
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Bussing
Transportation staff have been in constant contact with our bus operators over the summer to ensure a smooth start-up in September. At this point in time, all operators are reporting sufficient drivers to cover all routes. Thanks to all families who have signed up on the transportation portal as it will allow for the team to communicate and keep you updated on service related issues. If you haven’t signed up yet, please visit https://busplannerweb.torontoschoolbus.org/Subscriptions/Login.aspx. The portal will continue to be your one stop shop for valuable information. If you have any issues signing up on the portal, please contact us at support@torontoschoolbus.org and staff will assist you with the registration of your account.For more information, please click here.
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Spirit Wear - Choice of 27!
You asked and we answered. In response to feedback from schools, Purchasing Services issued a Request for Supplier Qualifications to identify qualified providers of spirit wear (typically school branded items such as hats, hoodies, sweat pants, jackets, t-shirts, gym bags, etc.) and athletic uniforms (football, soccer, volleyball, etc.) that met the requirements of the Board. Schools were clear what they were looking for – and it included:
More choice of product; More choice of vendors; More “local” vendors; Access to vendors who may specialize in different types of apparel; and Access to different levels of quality and price.
Twenty-seven (27) bidders have been qualified to do business with the TDSB – approved by the Board on August 1st. We’re hoping schools can now get quotes from those on the list who may be able to provide the type of spirit wear or athletic clothing they are looking for with the quality and price range that matches their needs.
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Attendance Moving to Web-Base SystemTDSB will be implementing an online, web-based attendance system for teachers to use during the 2018-2019 school year. This will eliminate the time needed to run the scan sheets down to the office, the time to scan, paper jams, etc. As a result, schools should be able to send out the safe arrival calls much sooner. The web-attendance system has been piloted successfully with a number of schools, however, it could not be implemented board-wide until all schools were moved over to the new Bell network. In the fall there will be training for teachers and office staff, as well as support resources – it is the hope that implementation will begin in October 2018. I am hoping for another update in late September… and I will include it in my weekly update.
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School Facility Updates in Ward 11- Davisville/Spectrum - The school has temporarily relocated to 529 Vaughan Rd (the former site of Vaughan Rd Academy) - happy to report the internal and external renovations at the new location have gone well over the summer. The move has taken a great deal of extra effort on behalf of staff - thank you to all. The Davisville demolition project has been approved - the project will demolish the existing Davisville Junior Public School building to prepare the site at 43 Millwood Rd for the construction of a new, replacement school along with necessary site developments for outdoor play. It will start Tuesday, August 28, 2018. The contractor will mobilize on site on Monday, August 27, 2018 and will begin to install hoarding.
- Eglinton - The school been a busy site this summer with a Metrolinx project, a barrier free upgrades project which is ongoing, an emergency cooling centre which has a new AHU installed at the south end of the gym and finally classroom retrofits on second and third floors. The classroom retrofits project started late in June and will be substantially complete on 30 August. Sincerely appreciate the patience of staff who are in the affected classrooms. Crosstown LRT Project – Update, August 22, 2018 - Piling has started in front of the school and will continue for the remainder of the summer and likely into the fall. During this time, the covered sidewalk in front of the school will remain open while traffic may be diverted. The scaffolding had been completed and will likely remain in place until spring 2019 to allow for construction to progress. We will be testing dust and sound levels next week. In addition, we will continue monitoring the construction, and testing dust and noise levels as needed to ensure the safety of students and staff. Please visit the school website later in the week for another update.
- Deer Park - Staff was able to get a difficult task done over the Canada Day long weekend of relocating the school’s main gas line intake. The classroom retrofits have gone well. The majority of the window replacement project by the entrance will be completed before the start of the year to allow students to access the building through both entrances - the remaining work will continue throughout September but will not affect internal classrooms.
- Forest Hill Jr/Sr - Library project completed as is air cooling HVAC installation. And the auditorium was painted!
- Hodgson - Qs and As regarding the addition can be found here. Staff are further developing options and hope to provide a revised Business Case to the Ministry early fall. Through Councilor Matlow we are examining whether or not the legal agreement between the City and the Board about the use of the space for the rink can be amended to allow for portable placement and/or the addition itself. At this point we are exploring what is possible.
- Humewood - Outdoor lighting project completed.
- JR Wilcox - Paving of parking lot completed.
- Northern - Happy to report the auditorium was painted over the summer!
- Oriole Park - HVAC installation and the exterior facia repairs has gone well.
- Winona/McMurrich - There will not be any issues regarding the use of the entire school spaces when school opens - window replacement project went well over the summer as did installation of HVAC systems in both schools.
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School Year Calendar 2018-2019
The official school year calendar for the Toronto District School Board runs from September 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019, inclusive.- First day of classes for all students is September 4, 2018
- The last day of class for elementary students is June 27, 2019
- The last day of class for secondary (full-year) students is June 25, 2019
- The last day of class for secondary (semestered) students is June 26, 2019
2018 - 2019 Dates to Remember: Official Holidays and PA Days |
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December 24, 2018 to January 4, 2019 (inclusive)
Last day of school is December 21, 2018
School resumes January 7, 2019
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Secondary PA Day (Semestered Schools only)
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Secondary School PA Day (Full Year Schools only)
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EQAO - The following dates have been established:
- Gr. 9 Math: 1st Semester: January 14-25, 2019
- Gr. 9 Math: 2nd Semester: June 5-18, 2019
- OSSLT: March 27, 2019
- Primary/Junior EQAO: May 21-June 3, 2019
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