Week of August 31, 2020 - Summer Edition #10
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Wash Hands.Physically Distance.Wear a Mask.Save Lives.Please wash your hands. Keep physical distance. Wear a mask. Save lives. Stay safe and protect each other.
Please continue to #DoYourPart to reduce the spread of #COVID19 & keep everyone in our city SAFE. This means practising #PhysicalDistancing, washing your hands often, wearing a mask in indoor public settings & staying home when you are sick, even with mild symptoms.
Other Important Links:
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Thank You for Your Patience
As you know, a lot of information and direction has been provided by the province over the last number of weeks, which has resulted in changes to TDSB documents. I tried to capture the changes in last week's update. Thank you for your patience, especially as we move closer to safely re-opening schools in September. We are continually updating the TDSB website with the latest information and will continue to send out system direct messaging. In addition, you will begin to hear from your local school Principal. This week all staff who are able, return to schools - 3 days of professional learning (PL) run from September 1-3. The Ministry has determined the following topics will be covered - a full day on Health and Safety Protocols in Response to COVID-19; Student Mental Health, Well-Being and Anti-Bullying; Remote and Online Learning Strategies and Tools and an Introduction to Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Training. In addition, there will be PL on the New Elementary Math Curriculum. (Many school boards requested this curriculum be put on hold due to Covid-19, but to no avail).
By the end of this week schools will receive lists of families who will be returning in-person and those who will be learning through remotely. Schedules and class configurations from June will be adjusted and communicated beginning the week of September 8. We know that school will look quite different as a result of continued efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19.
As we prepare, we keep advocating - please see two recent letters from Chair Alexander Brown on behalf of the Board and an opinion piece by Cathy Abraham, President of the Ontario School Board Association.
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Returning to School -
Key Information
As we prepare to open our schools in September and welcome back students and staff, we are doing everything possible to ensure the health and safety of all school community members, while also providing the best academic experience possible for students, supporting mental health and well-being and considering the needs of families and staff.
The Ministry of Education has approved the TDSB’s plans for reopening schools September 2020:
Elementary students (including those in Special Education, French Immersion and Extended French programs) will return to school five days per week with one cohort for the full day and with enhanced health and safety measures in place, including smaller class sizes to help maximize physical distancing.
Secondary students will have in-class learning on alternate days and synchronous (live, online learning) as well as asynchronous (independent work) daily with enhanced health measures in place including smaller class sizes to help maximize physical distancing.
Students who choose not to attend school in person will be able to participate in remote learning (Virtual School).
Click here for information on Adult programming.
Registration - If you do not receive an email or phone call to register by September 3, please contact your school to inform them of your child’s first and last name and confirm your registration for either in-school or virtual learning for September.
Questions and Answers - We’ve posted our Q and A section on our return to school page. We will definitely be adding to it in the weeks ahead. If you do not see your question answered, please e-mail me and I will do my best to answer it. Click on https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Return-to-School/Questions-and-Answers.
Ventilation - One of the most common questions is about ventilation in our buildings. The TDSB has been working over the summer to review ventilation and filtration systems and to improve ventilation and increase the volume of fresh air to the maximum extent possible. Some of this work includes ensuring clean filters are installed and increasing the number of times they are changed and inspected during the year, and running systems prior to the start of the day to flush the building with fresh air. As you know, some of our buildings are quite old and may not have mechanical ventilation. In those cases, we will be ensuring that windows are opened to provide fresh outdoor air and will support schools and sites where there may be unique circumstances that need to be addressed. Recently, both the provincial and federal governments announced additional ventilation-related funding. Please know that we’re working hard to confirm how much of this money can be spent prior to the start of the school year. While some improvements will be possible, given the planning, design and construction involved, any large- scale projects will require months to complete.
Managing COVID-19 in a School - This week, the province released the recommended process for school boards to follow in the event of a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 in a school. As per this guidance document, the TDSB takes its lead from Toronto Public Health, which is responsible for determining if an outbreak exists, declaring an outbreak, and providing direction on outbreak control measures to be implemented. It’s important to note that even though an outbreak may be declared in the school, Toronto Public Health will assist in determining which cohort(s) may be sent home or if a partial or full school closure is required based on the scope of the outbreak. For more information on this and other safety measures, please see https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Return-to-School/Health-and-Safety
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Federal Support for Return to School
Information from OPSBA
On Wednesday, August 26, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced up to $2 billion in support for provinces and territories through the Safe Return to Class Fund. The federal government left it to the provinces to determine how to use the money, however some examples they provided included investing and supporting adapted learning spaces, improved air ventilation, increased hand sanitation and hygiene, and purchases of personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies. The Prime Minister also announced an additional $112 million in funding for First Nations to support community measures to ensure a safe return to school on reserves.
The provincial government responded, with Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Education Stephen Lecce announcing that $381 million would be flowing to the province this fall, with the rest likely coming later this school year, pending federal approvals in December. The provincial government is allocating the funding in the following areas (Please note amount for TDSB specific is added):
Reopening Plan Implementation - $200 million - TDSB $10M for Emerging Issues and $6.5M for Teachers
- $100 million to complement the health and safety components of school reopening plans, in consultation with local public health units, including the hiring of custodians, HVAC, improvements, internet connectivity for students and other local needs. - TDSB share $10,059,269
- $30 million to support additional PPE for schools.
- $70 million for the temporary hiring of educators as required - TDSB share $6,470,512
Student Transportation - $70 million - TDSB $1.5M
- $44.5 million in support of the Driver Retention Program (DRP).
- $25.5 million for route protection and to help reduce the number of students on buses - TDSB share 1,534,748
Special Education and Mental Health Supports Enhancement - $12.5 million - TDSB $.7M
- Will allow boards to hire and train additional staff and provide more mental health supports for students.
Additional Public Health Nurses - $12.5 million
- Supports up to 125 additional nursing positions in public health units across the province to help schools manage potential COVID-19 cases.
Remote Learning - $36 million - TDSB $3.7M
- Will help ensures that every school board offering virtual learning has a dedicated principal and administrative support for both its secondary and elementary virtual schools - TDSB share $3,712,878.
The province is also setting aside $50 million for any future pandemic learning needs.
Please Note - Senior Staff are continuing to analyze this funding to ensure that we are allocating it in the best way possible to enhance our plans for such items as smaller class sizes, more caretakers, additional cleaning for schools and school buses and additional technology to support student learning. This will take a bit more time, but we will share more details as soon as possible.
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Administrative Changes in Ward 8Principal and Vice-Principal Changes in Ward 8 Effective September 1, 2020
Change is our only constant at the TDSB! We have had a few staff changes approved at the recent board meetings. The following are the known leadership changes in Ward 8 schools effective September 1, 2020:
- Davisville Junior Public School – Brandon Culakovski, Vice-Principal at Davisville
Jr. PS was transferred to Vice-Principal, Westwood Middle School. - Forest Hill Collegiate Institute – Joanne D’Addio was transferred Vice-Principal at FHCI was tranferred at Vice Principal at William Lyon Mackenzie CI and we welcome Anita Love has been promoted to the position of Vice-Principal of Forest Hill CI from the York Region District School Board.
- John Polanyi Collegiate Institute – Deborah Blair, Principal at JPCI has retired and we wish her well on her retirement. We welcomed George Mavraganis, retired Principal to support the work in August and are pleased to announce Margaret Greenberg as the new Principal of JPCI. Vice Principal Jennifer Kurtz was transferred to Downsview Collegiate and Vice-Principal Catherine Chang to Marc Garneau. We welcome Dexroy Haughton and Hema Gayadeen as the new Vice-Principals at JPCI.
- Lawrence Heights Middle School - Wendy Banhan, Vice-Principal at Lawrence Heights was transferred as Vice-Principal of Calico PS. We're happy that Stephen Scott, Vice-Principal at Flemington PS will also be supporting LHMS.
I am also pleased to announce that Superintendent in Learning Network 4, Curtis Ennis has been promoted to Acting Executive Superintendent for Learning Centre 2. I know you join me in congratulating Curtis and welcoming Denise Humphreys who will be Acting Superintendent in Learning Network 4. We also welcome Uton Robinson, as our new Executive Superintendent for Learning Centre 1 and thank Sandy Spyropoulos who did double duty last year but now continues as Executive Superintendent for Learning Centre 4.
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 equity, 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!
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Water Bottle Filling StationsSome good news. At the August 26 Board meeting, staff updated Trustees on a plan to accelerate our current program to install at least one water bottle filling station at every school. In addition, staff are working on a system standard for the number of filling stations based on student population.
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Resources for Preparing for Back to School
Returning to school after so many months away may be a challenging and scary experience. To help get all students and families ready for September, we have put together some resources to help with the transition.
TDSB Online Conversations
TDSB's Parent and Community Engagement Office and the Parent Involvement Advisory Committee are hosting a series of engaging and informative online conversations. Hear from leading experts and participate in question and answer sessions. Following the sessions, recordings are posted online.
Mental Health and Well-Being Videos
Learning opportunities for Parents and Caregivers developed by the TDSB Professional Support Services Team:
COVID-19 Hygiene - Videos for Kids
Mask Information Videos - Toronto Public Health
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School Year Calendar 2020-2021The official school year calendar for the Toronto District School Board runs from September 1 to June 30, inclusive and has now been approved by the Ministry.
- First day of classes for all students is September 15 - Elementary entry will be staggered from the 15-17 - For secondary, either Tuesday September 15 or Wednesday September 16 based on the cohort assignment.
- The last day of class for elementary students is June 29
- The last day of class for secondary (full year) students is June 25
- The last day of class for secondary (semestered) students is June 28
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Dec 21, 2020 - January 1, 2021
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Secondary PA Day (Semestered Schools Only)
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Secondary School PA Day (Full Year Schools)
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