St. Gertrude Catholic School Council (CSC) Meeting
Meeting Minutes Thursday, January 14, 2016
Attendance
Name
School Administration
Mr. Thomas Thomas (Trustee)
Mrs. Tina De Vellis-Carino,
(Principal) (D-C)
Ms. Karen Yates (Vice-Principal)
Mrs. Gentilli (Teacher Rep.)
Ms. Benevides (Teacher Rep.)
Mrs. Subic (Non-Teacher Rep.)
Mrs. Dri (Non-Teacher Rep.)
Council
Shelley Bonello
Shamika Joseph
Sandy Dutra
Tanya Wah Kan
Present Absent
X
X X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
6:00 pm Meeting called to order:

Welcome and introductions
Prayer:

Led by Mrs. DC and Ms. Yates
Approval of Agenda and Meeting Minutes:

Today’s meeting discussion items were reviewed and approved. The November
minutes were approved. The December minutes were approved upon completion of
minor edits requested by Mr. Thomas Thomas.
Treasurer’s Report:





In November it looks like there is a deficit in the account but that is because the
pizza for the month has not been accounted for. We are now caught up so the new
records will reflect that.
There is a current balance of $4,359.
Donations at Christmas were approved for $500 for families in need; however, we
only received an invoice for $300.
Mrs. DC confirmed that the remaining balance will be spent at Easter for families in
need.
After review of the financial reports, the Treasurer’s Reports were approved.
1
Principal’s Report:
PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinowelcomedanynewattendees
.PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinosharedthefollowingGoodNews:
ToyDrive‐ChumCityChristmasWishsentaletterthankingSt.Gertrudecommunityfor
theirgenerosity.ThankyoutoourYouthFaithAmbassadorsalongwithstaffadvisors,
MmeBahsous,Mrs.Bagnarol&MsBarren,whocollectedmanybagsoftoyswhichwere
donatedtoChumCityChristmasWishtoysforneedyfamilies.Studentswereaskedto
donateanageandgenderappropriategift.Alargemovingtruckwasneededtotakeall
thedonatedtoysaway‐.
ChristmasBasketsOurschoolSocialWorkeraskedourhelpforneedyfamilies‐The
familieswereverygrateful! o
o
o Ambassadors/Liturgical – Advent Retreat- thank you to Mrs. Lackey and Mrs. Dela Cruz for
organizing
o StainGlass:Mr.Bhasmetwiththegrade7&8students‐theyareintheprocess
ofcompletingthesecondpartofthedesign–completiondate:May2016
 March82016RaptorsNightisscheduled.D‐Pwasabletogetdiscountedseatsand
severalschoolsaretakingpartinthiscommunitybuildingevent.Wearesellingthetickets
for$40.ThisincludestransportationviaschoolbusleavingSt.Gertrudeat5:30pm.To
purchaseticketsandboardthebus,allstudentsmustbeaccompaniedbyanadult.Seatsare
limitedto46.Otherswillbeplacedonawaitlistuntilwegetanother46/bus.All–
students,familiesandtheirfriendsarewelcome!ThankyoutoMr.Shelsenfororganizing
thiscommunityevent.
 WearemeetingourECOgoaltoreducepaper!Over85%offamilieshavealreadyprovided
uswithemailcontacts.ManyalsofollowusonTwitterand/orcheckoutourschool
website.Regularupdatesaresharedwithfamiliesviaalltheseelectronicversions.Some
importantitemscontinuetobesentashardcopiestothosefamilieswhoarenotonour
mailinglistandarepostedonthebulletinboardbythefrontdoors.
Sports/Clubupdate:
 Jan.19theInt.teamsaregoingtotheACCtoplayagainstotherteamsinGTAforafun
exhibitiongame.ThankyoutoMr.ShelsenandMmeSilvafororganizingthisextendedday
 IntermuralBasketballishappeningduringlunchforGrade4’sonTuesdays.ThankyouMrs.
YooandMrs.DeLucafororganizing.
 BasketballTryoutsforIntermediateJr.boys&girlshappeningnowandJuniorcoming
soon‐thankyoutoMme.Silva,Mr.Migdal&Mr.Lonardi
 Knittingclub‐Mrs.Graham‐Murrin&Mrs.Jorgeleading
PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinosharedthefollowingInformationitems:


Sacramentalgifts‐updateprovidedbyMsYatesandTreasurer
FrenchImmersion:
o Nov.2015Parentinfonight,
o On‐lineApplications‐January112016
2





o OnceaFIspotisaccepted,thestudent’snameisremovedfromallotherwaitlists.
o TransportationisNOTprovidedtoFI
o Reminderthatpunctualityisveryimportant
o March4‐deadline
FullDayKindergarten(FDK)‐Sept2016
o Jan25‐29KindergartenRegistration
o Parentsmaypickupapplicationformsbeforereg.nightandreturnthemonreg.
night.
o FKDisavailabletoinBoundarystudents1st‐FlexibleBoundariesarenotaccepted
atthistime.
o Aug.30–ifspacepermits,outofboundsstudentmaybeofferedaFDKspot
SpeechesCompetition
o Feb.12English‐Mrs.Lackey&MsDelaCruzorganizinginschoolcompetition
o March12CWLcompetition@St.FXParish
o Feb.17French‐MmeBenevidesorganizingspeechesinFebruary
ChessClub‐comingsoon‐detailstofollow
Feb25MathMania‐MsCassanotolead‐detailstofollow
Feb.11ScienceOlympics‐detailstofollow
PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinomadethefollowingrequests:







Safearrivalprogram‐parentsareencouragedtocallschoolifchildwillbeabsent‐
thiswillsaveoursecretariesacalltoparents/guardians
WishListitems:
FundsforSchoolPlay‐$1500
X‐Movement‐4daysofstudentactivities&eveningforparents($3500)
ElectronicTextsforgr.7&8tosupplementoutdatedGeo&Historytexts($1000)
MardiGrasKickoff‐pFeb1@1pm
Computercart‐$5000
PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinointroducedVicePrincipal,KarenYateswhopresentedthe
CatholicGraduateExpectations–Surveyresultswere
PrincipalT.DeVellisCarinosharedthefollowingImportantDatestoRemember:
Jan 11 Jan 11 Jan 12 Jan 12 Jan 13 Jan 14 Jan 18 Jan 19 Jan 20 Jan 20 Jan. 24 Jan 25 Rosary Apostolates French Immersion Online Application Opens Extended French Meeting at San Lorenzo Ruiz 7pm Virtues Assembly ARC mtg, 6:00 Council mtg, 6pm PA DAY ACC Bball Tournament First Reconciliation, Gr. 2 @ St. FX Parish @ 9:30 am PARC‐ Open House Meeting at St. Joseph S.S. 6‐9 pm First Communion Prep Mass at ST. FX 1:30pm FDK Registration @ 7 pm 3
Jan 26‐29 FDK Registration 9:00‐3:00 Jan 28 Confirmation Prep Mass at St. FX 7pm Jan 31 First Communion Prep Mass at St. FX 1:30 pm Feb 1 Virtue Assembly & Mardi Gras Kick off Feb 2 Youth Faith Ambassadors Retreat Feb 2 Report Cards go home Feb. 3 Gr. 7’s to Crawford Lake Feb. 4 & 5 Parent Teacher Interviews Term 1 Feb 8 Dairy Farmers Presentation, FDK Feb 22 Dairy Farmers Presentation Feb 23 Dairy Farmers Presentation Feb 9 Mardi Gras Dance Feb 10 Ash Wednesday Feb. 11 Science Olympics Feb 12 Speech Competition‐ Eng. Feb 14 French Immersion Online Applications Due Feb 15 Family Day Feb. 15 FI electronic Lottery held Feb. 15‐19 FI lottery results shared via email Feb 16 Extended French Immersion Applications Due Feb 17 Speech Competition‐ French Feb 19 Lenten Mass at St. FX Parish @ 9:30 am Feb 25 Math Mania March 4 Deadline to register at FI school (if accepted) Mar 8 Raptor Community Night Mar 9 PARC mtg Mar. 12‐20 March Break Mar 21‐25 Holy Week Mar 25 Good Friday‐ NO School Mar 27 Easter Sunday Mar 28 Easter Monday‐ No School April 4 Dental Screening April 13 First Communion Retreat April 16 First Communion April 19 Dance Competition Committee Updates:

Sacramental gifts: Ms. Subic will give Tanya contact information via Ms. Yates for
pricing for gifts. In the meantime, Ms. Yates will order the sacramental cards.
OAPCE:

No update as the OAPCE rep was not in attendance.
4
Fundraising:


Hot lunches:
o Lunch Pails term ends in February. Shelley Bonello will call to extend for
another term. Based on a review of finances, the Lunch Pails program does
not hinder or affect costing for pizza and sub lunches.
o Council approved the motion to continue with pizza and subs for the next
term.
Mardi Gras: Council approved the purchase of 4 pails of pancake batter from
Bobby’s Hideaway for approximately $130 as this year we were not able to get it fully
donated. Council also approved the expense of individual maple syrup containers,
which will be ordered by Mrs. Lackey. Mrs. DC indicated that she would look into a
donation from No Frills for juice, paper plates and plastic cutlery. The purchase of
juice boxes was also approved if Mrs. DC is not able to get them all donated.
o Funds from the Mardi Gras will go towards purchasing t-shirts for all students,
staff and administration at the school (white t-shirt with navy font “St.
Gertrude”). Parents will have the option to purchase a t-shirt at an expense to
them. T-shirts will need to be purchased by a tendered company.
PARC:




Ms. Yates will follow up on the a question asked by Council, which is how many
families selected St. Gertrude as their first choice for French Immersion; and how
many students who are supposed to have St. Gertrude as their home school but go
outside of the school for a special program, i.e., Gifted program.
Thomas Thomas nor the Trustees will be attending the open house on January 20th.
It was acknowledged that any initiative planned by the school and funded by Council
integrates both the French Immersion and regular track students. For example, this
year and last year, Council sponsored the Little Red Theatre, a French Immersion
play.
Chris Helme, ARC rep, provided an update from the first ARC meeting.
o There 16 reps – 2 from each school.
o The meetings are a conduit for schools to bring ideas to the community.
o The reps vote on ideas; Board does not vote.
o Ministry Guidelines and the November 24th report were reviewed.
o The East Credit River has the largest surplus of spots. A third of the meeting
was spent on reviewing emails received to the PAR email address.
o As part of the process, the Board went out to the larger community to see if
there was any interest in any of the locations. The answer was no.
o St. Dunstan is in every option.
o Rationale used is what the forecast of enrolments will look like. Factual
enrolment was down 40%. They didn’t use significant census data. Part of the
issue is attributed to a decline in birth rate, change in demographics and real
estate market changes.
o The rationale would have been well-served to be in the report.
o The conclusion was reached without alignment to data presented.
o The goal is to reduce capacity and increase utilization, maintain schools in the
5
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
central catchment area and keep schools with fewer repairs. It was also noted
that major roadways as boundary lines were considered.
It still did not explain why they are look at our school and splitting the French
Immersion and regular track students.
They came up with some options – they want good Catholic presence in
various areas.
These were applied in general.
St. Gertrude is an older school and there is a public school nearby.
Without the French Immersion enrolment, the regular track enrolment for the
school would be below capacity.
Parents in close proximity to the school enrol in French Immersion because its
close and they are within the boundary; the remaining French Immersion have
to move outside.
An email has been sent to PAR regarding the fact the French Immersion
program students could potentially be moved for the third time if option 1 is
selected. Initially, children who were in a home school for kindergarten, then
moved to St. Gertrude for French Immersion and then moved to St. Gregory if
option 1 is selected, thus making them have to move 3 times.
Option 3 has the hugest reduction of seats.
The rationale currently used doesn’t work or show transparency in how the
Board got here with their decisions. Option 3 closes the most seats. In any
evaluation you need to show the steps; there needs to be evaluation criteria
for consistency in comparison of each option.
An email has been sent to PAR asking what criteria will be used by the Board
of Trustees in the final decision.
If we have to move our children, there is a public school next door. Parents
may decide to take their children out of the Catholic school system and move
them to public due to proximity.
St. Raymond and St. Gregory also have public schools beside them.
At the PAR meetings, attendance is taken. We need more families from the
St. Gertrude community to attend.
At the open house, there will be a brief presentation. The Board’s Planning
Dept. will be available to answer questions. There will be a survey.
The ARC members can make suggestions and change the options.
Trustees can change their options at any time.
St. Dunstan is sending in a lot of email from their community. Their emails are
very negative towards other schools. We have to make sure we don’t do that.
Emails from the St. Gertrude community cannot be negative.
If we move to St. Valentine, there will be overcrowding; 10-12 portables will be
needed. It does not make sense to move our children from classrooms to
portables.
Overcapacity will be addressed at the next ARC meeting.
There are 3 most useful ways to help; send an email to PAR, which needs to
be focused with strong options to the Committee/PAR email; lobbying to
trustees; speaking at delegation night.
Ideal for a recommendation to be looked at by the Planning committee and
goes into a final report to the Trustees.
St. Gertrude can work with another school in coming up with a
6
recommendation.
o ARC will walk through the schools Green Energy Consumption Report. St.
Gertrude comes out the best.
o One parent member, her church rented St. Gertrude for 10 years before
moving to their current church. The church community is very passionate
about supporting St. Gertrude. People want to sign a petition circulated at the
church community, which will be sent to Thomas Thomas. Church
parishioners are encouraged to attend the open house.
o One parent spoke to the Director of French Immersion at the Board and they
were unaware of what was happening until after the decision for the 3 options
were made.
o When sending communication to PAR, cc: Thomas Thomas.
o Reminder to ensure that no one is negative in their messaging; do not be
negative towards Trustees, the Board or other schools.
o The Board has indicated they will not look at EQAO results.
o Some parents disagree that the Board is not looking at EQAO results; they
believe there needs to be some benchmark.
o There was a US-based study about displacing students from higher ranking
schools to lower ranking schools and the effects of performance in the moved
school.
o You can use EQAO stats in your communication, however, it is up to the
Trustees to decide whether or not to review it.
o Thomas Thomas has indicated that the EQAO results will not be considered.
o If Option 1 is selected, and the regular stream students are moved to St.
Valentine, the feeder school for high school for the St. Gertrude students
would be St. Francis Xavier.
o Thomas Thomas spoke to Marianne Mazzorato, the new Director of
Education, and she has indicated that this is the process and ultimately the
decision will be made by Trustees.
o It was agreed that emails received as part of the attendance at the December
council meeting would be used as an email distribution list from the St.
Gertrude Parent Council email.
o The St. Gertrude presentation can be added at the next meeting in February.
The St. Gertrude ARC reps can present and add it to the agenda; they can
answer questions. John Duong will have a presentation prepared by
February.
New Business:


X-Movement as a physical activity for all grades. They are an Australian game-based
program. They have an option for parent engagement activity in the evening. The
cost is approximately $3,500, which includes the parent night. A date will be penciled
for May.
o Council has approved the X-Movement activity.
PRO Grant – we have to look at booking a speaker on social media and how to
create a positive digital footprint, which is what we included in our proposal that was
approved by the Ministry.
7


o Can have it be interactive and run by either teachers or an external speaker.
o 15% can be spent on food for parents.
o The event will be discussed at the next meeting.
Skate Night – this will be discussed at the next meeting.
E-books for history and geography – Council have approved the purchase of ebooks for a total of $1,000.
Future Meeting Dates:

March 3, 2016 at 6:00 pm
Meeting Adjourned: 8:20 pm
8