St. Vincent de Paul School 665 Willowbank Trail Mississauga, Ontario L4W 3L6 Tel: (905) 848- 5397 Fax: (905) 848-0738 Principal: Mr. L. Dodaro Secretary: Ms. Susan Ferenc Trustee: Mr. Mario Pascucci (905) 302-3096 Chair of the Board of Trustees Fax: 905-890-0888 OfficeTelephone: 905-890-0708 ext. 21061 mario.pascucci@dpcdsb.org www.TrusteePascucci.ca Pastor: Fr. John Facey (905) 270-2301 Superintendent: Mr. C. Blanchard (905) 890-1221 September 2013 Prayer of Return Awaken my mind and give me a spirit of wonder. Jesus, As these first days of school begin, I bid farewell to summer fun. Help me to awaken my mind and give me a spirit of wonder. Capture my attention with the marvels of your world. Intrigue my curiosity to the mysteries around me. Help me to always be an attentive student, and a friendly classmate Bless my teachers, my friends and Let your Good News sink into my heart as I begin each new day this school year. Community One of the marvelous things about community is that it enables us to welcome and help people in a way we couldn't as individuals. When we pool our strength and share the work and responsibility, we can welcome many people. Jean Vanier Amen PRINCIPAL’S OPENING MESSAGE I would like to thank everyone for a warm welcome. I look forward to many community events, sacraments, graduations and opportunities for learning. I would like to welcome all new families who have joined our community and especially our new full day JK/SK children who are starting school for the first time. We look forward to working with our Parish Priest and his Parish staff, as well as our Catholic School Council. We welcome parent volunteers on many levels. Please come to the office for police check information or Catholic School Council Nomination forms. I know we will have an exciting year through the leadership of our staff and students. Welcome! ST. VINCENT DE PAUL STAFF 2013-2014 JK/SK Gr.1/ 2 Gr. 3/4 Gr. 6/7 Lib./P.T. F.S.L./P.T. E.R.W. E.C.E. S. Costa E. Langenfelds H. Anderson A. Velagic V. Pileggi L. Ciminelli D. Hayward J. Franchino JK/SK M. Sita Sills Gr. 2/3 L. Ceniti Gr.4/5 R. Murphy Gr. 7/8 M. Ricardo SERC S. Dutka Plan.Time M. Casciaro E.S.L. K. Lugiewicz E.C.E. C. Ceravolo Support Staff: C.Y.W. Psychologist Social Worker Speech Pathologist Head Custodian Secretary Principal H. Mesaric A. Day L. Taylor L. Buckle J. Myzychka S. Ferenc L. Dodaro Please Note: All staffing is tentative due to the high possibility of reorganization on September 13, 2013. School Day 9:00 a.m. 11:00 a.m. 12:00-1:00 p.m. 2:30 p.m. 3:30 p.m. School Entry Recess Lunch Recess Dismissal P.A. Day Friday September 13th is scheduled as a Professional Activity Day. This day will be dedicated to school improvement planning and reorganization if required. Combined Classes/ Reorganization: As the population of St. Vincent de Paul declines, combined grades continue to be a necessary reality at our school. This is a reality in many schools in the Mississauga East Family. As teachers prepare class lists they consider many factors, such as learning styles of students, a balance of abilities, and class culture. Being in a combined grade is in no way prejudicial to a child’s education. Within Ontario, all schools are bound by a strict teacher: pupil ratio. This will be particularly evident as we strive to meet the hard cap of 20:1 in the primary grades and the guidelines of 26:1 in grades four to eight. Until we finalize our enrolment in mid-September, all class arrangements and teacher placements will be tentative. Please see the memos from the Board: “Elementary School Organizations Plans for 2013-2014 and “An Introduction to Combined Grades.” Posted on our Website. Safe Arrival Program For safety reasons, it is very important to notify the school by calling 905-848-5397 if your child is going to be absent or late. This communication is vital to ensure the safety of your child. If we do not hear from you, Mrs. Ferenc, our secretary, will be calling to verify your child’s absence. Student Verification Forms We appreciate your co-operation in keeping us up-to-date regarding pertinent information for your child I.e. changes in address, telephone numbers etc. Accurate information is vital should we need to contact you in an emergency situation. Please ensure that you complete and return the Student Verification Forms that will be sent home with your child early next week. Emergency Evacuations Staff and students regularly practice emergency evacuation and lockdown procedures. These include: a safe exit from the building in the event of a fire, and safety actions in the event of an intruder or bomb threat. If an evacuation requires us to relocate, our alternate location is John Cabot Secondary or Westminster Church. Physical Education Participation As required by the Dufferin-Peel CDSB students are required to complete this permission form, informing us of any prior injuries or physical limitations or concerns. Your son/ daughters teacher will be sending these home for you to complete. SCHOOL COUNCIL’S CORNER: Elections The Catholic School Advisory Council shall include, but not be limited to: parents and guardians of children in the school a community representative from the parish in which the school is located the school Principal a teacher assigned to the school a non-teaching staff member assigned to the school Nominations forms for the parent/guardian representatives will be available at the main office beginning Sept. 5, 2013. Completed nomination forms must be received by the main office by 4:00 pm on Thursday September 12, 2013. The election will take place if necessary on Thursday September 12, 2013 between the hours of 6:30 and 7:00 pm by secret ballot. Eligible voters must vote in person and proxy voting is not permitted. An election will be held if the number of candidates extends beyond the number of positions. If not, the candidates shall be acclaimed. Our first Council meeting will be in early October, date determined by the new council. We are also in search of anyone willing to help out at specific times during the year, such as helping to distribute pizza on pizza days, sub days, Fundraising Committees, etc. Please call the school to leave your name or share your name with us at the Open House or at a Council meeting. Summer Construction/ Renovations: During the summer we were fortunate to receive renovations to many classrooms, hallways, all washroom facicilities, traffic lines and the gymnasium. The school received fresh painting in many classrooms, hallways, and the gymnasium walls. The school has a fresh new look inside. This will give us an opportunity to revisit our school mascot and the artwork in the gymnasium for school spirit. No Child Without Brochures St. Vincent de Paul is one of 96 schools in Dufferin Peel with the “No Child Without” program since the program’s inception in 2006. The No Child Without program offers free Medic Alert bracelets for children age 4 up to their 14th birthday. The child must be attending a school that is participating in the program to receive free Medic Alert bracelets. More information about the program can be found at http://www.nochildwithout.ca/ and information brochures are available at the main office. PROGRAM & CURRICULUM Open House/Curriculum Night Our annual Open House/Curriculum Night will be held on Wednesday, September 18th . This event will take place from 5:45- 7:15 pm. This is an opportunity for you to meet your child’s new teacher(s) and learn about their programs. All parents/guardians are encouraged to attend this event and also attend the Scholastic Book Fair coordinated by Mrs. Pilleggi during the week of September 23th. We look forward to seeing you. Further information regarding food and refreshments will follow. VIRTUES We are called as Catholics to put into practice, and model for others, the teachings of Christ through our words and actions. Throughout Dufferin Peel, we will be integrating virtues formation into all areas of our school life within the context of our faith. The “Virtues Program” reinforces the qualities of positive character development, with a specific virtue being highlighted each month: Food Allergies and Birthday’s In addition, several children suffer from a lifethreatening allergy to peanut, nut products, and egg allergies. With this in mind, please do not bring any treats to the school for a child’s birthday. A better alternative would be pencil gifts, stickers, etc. Visitors to the School The safety of all the children attending our school is vital. All parents and visitors entering the building must use the front doors, sign in at the office and obtain a badge identifying them as a Visitor. All Schools in Ontario have a new “Front Doors Locked” policy, letter sent in June and posted on our website. We ask that you be patient when entering the building. Student Agendas The St. Vincent de Paul School student agenda is an invaluable tool that can be used by your child to meet his/her learning needs. Not only does it allow students the opportunity to begin to develop good study habits, it also serves as a valuable communication tool between home and school. We thank our School Council for paying for the cost of student agendas for all students in grades JK to 8. HEALTH & SAFETY Medication & Allergies CRIMINAL OFFENCE DECLARATIONS All volunteers who help at St. Vincent de Paul must have a Criminal Reference Check. If you plan to continue to help at our school on a regular basis or will be looking to volunteer next year, why not pick up a Criminal Reference Check Application in the office. There is no charge for the process and by completing the form there will not be any delay in being part of early school year activities. Please make the school aware of any important medical information regarding your son/daughter in order that we can properly prepare in the event of an emergency. For the safety of all children, medication must be stored in a safe place. Forms must be completed by your doctor in order to distribute medication. Terry Fox Run Our annual Terry Fox Run will take place on September 27th. We are in the process of planning for another successful tribute to Terry Fox, and aid his mission to raise funds for cancer research. A huge thank you to Ms. Dutka for organizing this event. September - Faith November – Conscience January – Self-Control March – Kindness May – Acceptance October - Empathy December – Hope February –Respect April – Love June – Fairness School Website: http://www.dpcdsb.org/VPAUL Please visit our website for updates and information regarding Faith, Catholic School Council, School events, etc. Looking ahead: Sept. 12th – Catholic School council Election Sept. 13 th – Professional Development Day Sept. 18th – Open House 5:45- 7:15pm September 27 th – Terry Fox Day- details to follow Pizza Lunches- same as last year, will begin last week in Sept. or first week in October- more info. To come. ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER!!!! This September 2012 Monthly Newsletter will be the only newsletter sent out by hard copy to the entire school community. Last year, we started the process of sending out an electronic newsletter. If you wish to receive the newsletter electronically, please fill out the form below listing all email addresses that you wish to have the newsletter sent to. A select number of hard copy newsletters will be available at the front office and the newsletter will be downloaded to our school website http://www.dpcdsb.org/VPAUL Name of Children: ______________________ ________________________ _________________________ Email Adresses:_____________________________________ Email Adresses:_____________________________________ Email Adresses:_____________________________________ Email Adresses:_____________________________________ Oct. 7th - Picture Day Oct. 14 th – Thanksgiving Nov. 4th – PictureRetake Day More dates to follow, please visit our website for Sacramental dates as well as Catholic School Council Dates and many more…