Week of July 1, 2019 - Happy Summer!

Happy Canada Day!

This is my last weekly update of the 2018/19 school year - please watch for special editions of highlights from Ward 8 schools.

Thank you all for staying informed and engaged... your support of your schools, and public education is more critical than ever in this political climate. I wish you and your families a wonderful summer break! Back to you the last week of August!

Please note - if you no longer wish to receive these weekly updates into the 2019/20 school year, please click 'opt out' at the bottom of this e-mail. Thanks again for your support.

Administrative Changes in Ward 8

Principal and Vice-Principal Changes in Ward 8 Effective September 1, 2019

Change is our only constant at the TDSB! We have had a few staff changes approved at the board on June 26, 2019. There will be more to come in early July. The following are the known leadership changes in Ward 8 schools effective September 1, 2019:

Armour Heights Public School – Corey Birnbaum, Principal at Armour Heights is being transferred to Forest Hill Jr/Sr Public School as Principal. Belinda Longe, Centrally Assigned Principal (formerly Principal at Winona) is being transferred as Principal of Armour Heights.
Davisville Junior Public School – Cathy Macina-Ciardullo, Vice-Principal at Davisville
Jr. PS is being promoted to Principal at William J. McCordic PS. It is planned that this position will be filled when the Board meets at a Special Meeting in July.
Forest Hill Junior and Senior Public School – Paula Dodick, Principal at Forest Hill is retiring. Corey Birnbaum, Principal at Armour Heights is being transferred to Forest Hill Jr/Sr as Principal.
Humewood Community School – Avinash Mani, Vice-Principal at Humewood is being promoted to Principal at Crescent Town ES. It is planned that this position will be filled when the Board meets at a Special Meeting in July.
Ledbury Park Elementary and Middle School – Paul Friberg, Principal at Ledbury Park is being transferred as Principal to Denlow. Kari Hudson, Principal at Lambton Park
CS is being transferred to Ledbury as Principal.
John Polanyi Collegiate Institute – Antonio Santos, Principal at JPCI is retiring. It is planned that this position will be filled when the Board meets at a Special Meeting in July.
Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute – Joel Gorenkoff, Principal at LPCI is retiring. Aiman Flahat, Centrally Assigned Principal (formerly Principal at John Polanyi) is being transferred to Principal of LPCI.

A fond farewell to those leaving Ward 8... may you have continued success. Congratulations to those promoted and to those transferring in. We have great community schools with engaged students, parents and communities and excellent staff who value both academic achievement and wellbeing… hope you will enjoy your time in our schools.

In addition to our retiring Principals, there are also a number of teacher and education worker retirements, leaves and transfers in our schools - to all retiring - I wish you all the very best... to those on leave and transferring to a different area to continue your teaching or other work, thank you for all you have done for our students... and to those staff coming into our schools... welcome! Enjoy!

EcoSchools

There are a number of programs within the TDSB I am proud of, but EcoSchools is near the top - when we developed the program in 2002 it was truly revolutionary - now copied throughout the province, EcoSchools is a school greening program with a very broad scope covering not only what is taught, but also how we run our schools and how we design and use our schools grounds. Its central focus is supporting students and staff in learning about, caring for, and protecting the environment starting right in their own school. EcoSchools asks us to examine the decisions we make in our schools, inside and out — from modifying practices in our classrooms, offices, and boiler rooms to designing the school ground as a place for healthy, enriched learning. It is all about sustainability - The TDSB's Environment Policy and our Go Green Climate Change Action Plan outlines the Board’s commitment to environmental literacy for all students and to environmentally responsible operations. I am so proud of the schools in Ward 8 who are certified this past year.

Allenby Junior Public School - Platinum
Brown Junior Public School - Silver
Cedarvale Community School - Platinum
Davisville Junior Public School - Platinum
Deer Park Junior and Senior Public School - Silver
Eglinton Junior Public School - Silver
Fairbank Public School - Gold
Flemington Public School - Silver
Forest Hill Collegiate Institute - Gold
Forest Hill Junior and Senior Public School - Bronze
Glen Park Public School - Bronze
Humewood Community School - Gold
John Polanyi CI - Silver
John Ross Robertson Junior Public School - Platinum
John Wanless Junior Public School - Silver
Joyce Public School - Platinum
JR Wilcox Community School - Silver
Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute - Silver
Ledbury Park EMS - Gold
McMurrich Junior Public School - Bronze
North Preparatory Junior Public School - Platinum
North Toronto Collegiate Institute - Platinum

Budget Implementation

As I confirmed in last week's update, the Board approved a balanced budget as per our legal obligation - but it came at a cost - there are reductions and there are program changes - some are clear as they were defined within the budget reductions - many of the details regarding the operationalization of other changes to programs and services are still to be determined. Now that the Board has accepted the recommendations by staff, and given staff the direction to move forward, work will begin over the summer on the implementation of these coming changes. In addition, staff will now need to revisit the Board's Multi-Year Strategic Plan and will be bringing a report to Board in the Fall with a revised implementation plan.

To help with the transition process, a few letters have already gone out to parents with students in elementary IB programs, gifted and French programs. In case you missed it, please see excerpts below.

Elimination of the Elementary International Baccalaureate (IB) Program - The elementary IB program is at five TDSB elementary schools - two are in our ward - JR Wilcox and Cedarvale - I heard from many, many parents in the program pleading for it to be sparred and describing the value of the program to their students.

We acknowledge that value but we also recognize that our focus on the infusion of global competencies over the last two years is part of every elementary school. Global competencies include the 5Cs – collaboration & leadership, communication, creativity, inquiry & entrepreneurship, critical thinking & problem solving, global citizenship and character. These competencies mirror the attributes of the IB Learner Profile. To learn more about global competencies, please click here.

When a school board offers the IB program, the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) requires that the majority of teachers teaching IB courses be IBO trained regularly. In addition, it requires a minimum of a .5 IBO coordinator to oversee all registrations, authorization, and adherence to the program objectives. With the severe budgetary shortfall, the TDSB does not have the funds to support these requirements across the system any longer.

Transportation Service Reductions
On June 19, 2019, Toronto District School Board trustees approved a number of budget reductions to balance the 2019-20 operating budget. The TDSB, and school boards across Ontario, were required to make difficult decisions to reduce operating costs as a result of millions of dollars in funding reductions by the Ontario Ministry of Education.

One of the reductions approved in the Budget is the elimination of TTC tickets/tokens for students in the French Immersion and Extended French programs and the Gifted Program in Grades 9-12. As the Board currently spends more on student transportation than we are funded for by the Ministry, it was necessary to look at reductions in order to balance the budget. In cases of financial need, schools will continue to provide TTC tickets/tokens. Please contact your school Principal if you require more information.

And a final note on teacher surplus - staff informed the media on Friday that 282 secondary teachers are currently unplaced for the new school year - however it is anticipated that many of them will be placed throughout the summer. Unfortunately, at this point in time, it is not possible to provide a final number of staff that will be surplus to the Board in September. On the elementary side - there are no teachers that have been declared surplus to the Board. However, in both these cases there are many changes within schools as a result of this process.

Vaccination Clinics

Starting in September, Toronto Public Health (TPH) will be implementing an important change in their consent for immunization policy. Secondary school students age 14 or older will be able to give informed consent to receive immunizations at TPH clinics hosted in TDSB secondary schools. Parental consent is still required for students 14 years of age or younger. Clinics in schools are usually offered when there is an outbreak or if a large number of students are at risk of the suspension because of gaps in their immunization record. Parents/guardians and students will be informed prior to the start of any clinic in a TDSB high school. Read the full letter from Toronto Public Health.

Let Them Play

Basketball Nets to Remain Up at TDSB Schools - Photo from Globe & Mail

On Thursday, the Toronto District School Board announced that basketball nets at all operating TDSB schools will remain up outside of school hours. The nets will remain up as part of a 6-month pilot project to better understand any potential issues. Following the conclusion of the pilot project, staff will prepare a report and present it to trustees for recommendations on next steps.

“Young people deserve places to play and if the TDSB can help them by ensuring our basketball nets are up after hours, this is important for us to do. Basketball is only getting more popular in Toronto and we want to provide every opportunity for our communities to join in on the fun.”
- John Malloy, Director, TDSB

“It’s become very clear that Toronto is in need of more places to play basketball and I’m happy that the TDSB will be able to play a role in further expanding the sport to all corners of the city.”
- Robin Pilkey, Chair, TDSB

I am hoping everyone uses the school yards responsibly and respects the neighbours - we still have significant issues at some schools with dog walkers not picking up after their dogs, with litter and trash and with noise after dark. For this to work, we need everyone's cooperation. Thanks in advance!

On a Personal Note...

I am honoured to let you know that both Shari Schwartz Maltz, Manager, Media Relations and Issues and I have been accepted to the Canadian Society for Yad Vashem (CSYV) Scholarship Program, Leaders of Change. We are privileged to be joining a program that will take 20 leaders in education from across Canada to Berlin and Poland where we will interact with European history in a personal, intense and experiential way. We leave on July 3 and I will be tweeting throughout the experience.

Learning first-hand and building relationships with other educators in service to our students will ensure we are prepared to implement our planned year of Holocaust and Genocide-prevention education within the TDSB beginning in September culminating in a day of learning for our grade 7-12 students at Liberation75 next June… our goal - through our students - to help build a more humane world.

School Year Calendar 2019-2020

The 2019-2020 school year at the TDSB begins on Tuesday, September 3, 2019 following the Labour Day long weekend. For more information about important dates and holidays for the upcoming school year, please refer to the 2019-20 School Year Calendar.

The official school year calendar for the Toronto District School Board runs from September 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020, inclusive.

First day of classes for all students is September 3, 2019
The last day of class for elementary students is June 25, 2020
The last day of class for secondary (full year) students is June 23, 2020
The last day of class for secondary (semestered) students is June 23, 2020

PA Days & Statutory Holidays

Labour Day September 2, 2019
Board-wide PA Day October 11, 2019
Thanksgiving October 14, 2019
Board-wide PA Day November 15, 2019
Board-wide PA Day December 6, 2019
Winter Break December 23, 2019 to January 3, 2020 (inclusive)
Last day of school is December 20, 2019
School resumes January 6, 2020
Elementary PA Day January 17, 2020
Secondary PA Day (Semestered Schools only) January 30, 2020
Board-wide PA Day February 14, 2020
Family Day February 17, 2020
March Break March 16 to 20, 2020
Good Friday April 10, 2020
Easter Monday April 13, 2020
Victoria Day May 18, 2020
Elementary School PA Day June 5, 2020
Secondary School PA Day (Full Year Schools only) June 24, 2020
Secondary School PA Day June 25, 2020
Board-wide PA Day June 26, 2020

Also please note -

Rosh Hashanah begins sunset of Sunday, September 29, 2019 and ends nightfall of Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Yom Kippur begins sunset of Tuesday, October 8, 2019 and ends nightfall of Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Hanukkah begins sunset of Sunday, December 22, 2019 and ends nightfall of Monday, December 30, 2019
Passover begins sunset of Wednesday, April 8, 2020 and ends nightfall of Thursday, April 16, 2020
Ramadan 2020 will begin in the evening of Thursday, April 23, 2020 and ends in the evening of Saturday, May 23, 2020 (dates may vary)
Eid al-Fitr 2020 will begin in the evening of Saturday, May 23, 2020

EQAO

Gr. 9 Math: 1st Semester: January 13-24, 2020

Gr. 9 Math: 2nd Semester: June 2-15, 2020

OSSLT: March 31, 2020

Primary/Junior EQAO: May 19-June 1, 2020

Also please note Days of Significance - click for the complete list 2019-2020
You may also find this Days of Significance Resource Guide helpful

And finally...

I want to personally thank all staff - at all levels through the TDSB - especially to those in schools I have the privilege of representing in Toronto-St Paul's and Eglinton-Lawrence and to the staff in Learning Centre 1 who supports.

The entire budget process this year was extremely difficult - we understand behind every program and service are staff who are the backbone of the organization - it is through the relationships you establish with students that they thrive... it is through relationships that support parents and caregivers that lead to meaningful engagement and involvement in our schools. There is excellence happening every day because of you...and in spite of budget reductions there will continue to be excellence in our system because of you.

I had the pleasure of attending many Grade 8, 12 and the graduation at Yorkdale Adult Education Centre. I heard tribute after tribute by students for their teachers, administration and education workers - there were shout-outs to Principals and VPs to lunchroom supervisors to caretakers and office staff - and of course to education assistants and teachers - and I saw the pride on the faces of staff as students crossed the stage understanding the role they played in that particular student's success - and all of this happened in a room full of parents and family and friends who support our public education system. I am incredibly grateful. Have a wonderful summer!