JOHN F. ROSS C.V.I. – SCHOOL COUNCIL MINUTES
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
7:00 pm
Attendance: Deb Drake, Charmaine Whitmore, Kelly Lee Burton, Mary Livingston, Terry Hadaway,
Rachel Thompson, Heather Janes, Paul Smith, Michaela Strueder-Kypke, Mary Zahedi, Tom Dagg
(Principal), Elise (Student Council)
Welcome and Introductions
• Kelly Lee Burton welcomed everyone to the School Council meeting.
Student Council
• Elise provided a verbal summary of current Student Council events:
o mental health week is the first week of May 2015;
o eco initiatives - 5 sets of dishes were purchased to reduce waste, community garden to
be developed by the end of April with planting in May, Big Dig, May 29th - trees around
school property and perennials will be planted, and an outdoor classroom is being
developed – a 10-year plan with a design competition;
o a brand competition is underway to design a student council logo, slogan, posters;
o a spirit video for next year and film festival is completed; and
o Student council members are preparing for next year, analyzing what worked and what
didn’t and making corrections for next year.
• Elise advised that the development of the Junior Council has been helpful in that they have
taken on several tasks such as monthly charities and morning announcements. However, it may
also be responsible for the decrease in applications for Senior Student Council, as students
believe after taking the junior council course that the position is too much work. Since an
adequate number of student council applications have been received, however, this decrease
will not impact student council activities and projects next year.
Administrative Report – Tom Dagg
• Spread the Net was successful, raising over $41,000. The assembly with Rick Mercer went well
with lots of enthusiasm and a good celebration of efforts over the past year.
• Eco-schools initiative – a community garden is being developed in order to move toward gold
status. Mr. Dagg and the school continue to work on improving school grounds based on one
landscape design from 6 years ago. Walkways and patios are completed and raised gardens are
the next step. This is a 10-year plan requiring significant fundraising. The minimum cost
estimate is $50 to $70,000. Mr. Dagg has provided some money already to begin the process.
The big dig on May 29th is to prepare for creating pathways.
• A dual credit program is being run this semester. This is a fitness program for needy students to
obtain 2 credits in a very short period of time. It is a full day course running this semester April
28 – May 27th.
• Funds have been allocated for a miniature green house to be built on the property. It is possible
to germinate in the greenhouse and can be used 3 seasons of the year, excluding winter.
• There is a new board wide evaluation policy via the Board Assessment Policy in the Board
Improvement Plan. All courses must now have a final examination within the exam schedule
dates. Mr. Dagg is struggling with what to do for some courses including drama, technologies,
co-op and family studies, as it is difficult to develop an assessment that is meaningful for these
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classes. There are several difficulties with providing exams for all courses. This policy is required
to be in place by the upcoming fall semester. Consistency of practice is the reason for the board
implementing this initiative. However, the quantitative marking and type of final exam will not
be consistent. Parents are welcomed to ask for clarification, listen to other points of view and
provide feedback to the board.
Mr. Dagg announced his retirement effective June 2015.
There is no indication yet of a labour strike and there has been no restriction of services
provided by teachers to date. Planning is underway, however, from the board in case of a strike.
There are 724 sections this year – an increase in the number of programs based on enrolment
remaining the same, French immersion, ESL and international students, and accelerated classes.
This will mean less available space in the school including a decrease in computer labs and an
increase in the use of computer carts as well as a dance class in the stage and studio.
Hiring of staff is in progress.
A Professional Development Day will occur April 24, 2015. Mr. Dagg and his team have been
working one year on this presentation on Critical Thinking. This will be in conference format
with 2 well-known presenters. Topics and workshops for the day include the following: Inquiry
and Authentic Assessment, Transitions from Secondary to Post-secondary, Supporting Students
with IEPs in the classroom, Implementing Success Criteria, Effective use of Social Media,
Personal Technology in class as Educational Tools, and Use of Promethean Boards (an upgrade
from Smart Boards).
Financial Report – Deb Drake
(1) Pro-Grant 2014-2015
• Deb advised that this has been a priority and is now completed. All translated materials have
gone to the ESL department.
• The evaluation surveys still need to be reviewed and a report completed at a later date.
• We have overspent $8.53 on this initiative and therefore the entire grant has been disbursed.
(2) Pro-Grant 2015-2016
• The Pro-Grant application for next year is not yet complete; however, it will be submitted by the
due date. Only the website filing is required.
(3) School-based Funding Grant
• $7.60 remains in this year’s grant. The only outstanding expenses are the refreshments for
tonight’s School Council meeting and next meeting and therefore the grant will be spent.
• The report still needs to be filed due June 2015.
New Orleans fundraiser – Deb Drake
• A fundraising event is once again available via New Orleans Pizza. They will donate $5 per order
to the school. However, the only known stores are in Rockwood and Fergus. It was decided
that although the return has been minimal in the past, school council will send an email to the
general distribution list to promote the fundraiser. Deb will write up the information and send
to Rachel to distribute. The event will occur May 4, 5, and 6.
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Parent Café Invitations – Deb Drake
• Parent handbooks and maps are completed and ready for the Café in August.
• Deb and Terry will complete the invitation letter to go out June 2015 to the new Grade 9
parents.
Upcoming seminars and workshops – Deb Drake
• The following events are posted on the School Council bulletin board in the E.L. Fox Auditorium
hallway:
o Food and Anxiety, April 29, June Avenue school
o Living with ADHD, April 28, Rick Green, Rockwood Centennial School
o Mental health for teens, May 17, Centre Wellington District High School
o Understanding your child’s IEP, May 2, Palmerston High School
o UGDSB Digital Open House, May 2, Palmerston High School
o PIC Spring Event, Centre Wellington, Human Rights Activist is the main speaker with
several break- out sessions on parent and education related topics. See the website for
more details.
Parent Surveys – Deb Drake
• Approximately 40 surveys were completed at Parent-teacher interview day, council meetings
and the Parent Café.
• Deb will review and evaluate the surveys in the near future and provide the results.
Next Meeting: Tuesday, May 19, 2015, 7:00pm
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