St. Dunstan School February 2014 Principal L. O’Neill Secretary M. Romer Trustee Peter Ferreira 416.805.7110 Superintendent D. Amaral 905.890.1221 PARISH St. Joseph Church 5440 Durie Road Mississauga, ON L5M 2J6 905.826.2766 SCHOOL HOURS Grades 1-8 8:30-11:30 & 12:303:00 Grades JK-SK 8:30-11:00 or 12:303:00 St. Dunstan School 1525 Cuthbert Ave. Mississauga, ON L5M 3R6 905.567.5050 http:// www.dpcdsb.org/ DUNST Dear God, You have done such a marvelous job of creating us and the world around us. Among your greatest gifts are our friends and acquaintances. They are the yeast in the dough of life – they make life lively and interesting. We come to You now asking for the grace and strength to keep a sense of respect. We hope that by recognizing and honouring the shared Spirit in everyone we meet, we can contribute to making our school a safer, more caring, more inclusive community. May Your gift of respect help us to live each day with the confidence that we are in the company of people who are not strangers but who are our spiritual brothers and sisters. We ask this in the name of Jesus our Brother, who lived to show us your way. Amen. February is Black History Month and it is an opportunity to share the historical and present contributions of African Canadians. Black History Month has been celebrated in Canada since the 1950’s. Black History Month is an opportunity for Canadians to recognize the significant contributions individuals of African heritage have made, and continue to make, in areas such as education, medicine, art, culture, public service, economic development, politics and human rights. We also celebrate the Winter Olympics in Sochi. This is a magnificent example of different cultures coming together to celebrate the sprit of competition and cooperation. At St. Dunstan every class will be involved in Winter Olympic events throughout the Olympics. STUDENT TRANSPORTATION OF PEEL REGION (STOPR) BUS CANCELLATIONS/SCHOOL CLOSING DUE TO BAD WEATHER 2013 – 2014 SCHOOL YEAR A reminder that during the winter months inclement weather may cause disruption of bus transportation and regular school operations. A decision to cancel school transportation and/or to close schools is usually made by 6:00 a.m. and will be announced on the following radio and TV stations: VIRGIN RADIO FM 99.9 CFNY FM 102.1 CFRB AM 1010 CJBC (FR) AM 860 AM 1540 CITYPULSE CHUM AM 1050 CJCL AM 590 EZ ROCK FM 97.3 FM Z103.5 AM 640 GLOBAL NEWS CBC Dolphin Athletics The Intermediate Co-Ed Hockey Team recently competed in the All Saints Invitational Tournament. The Dolphins played 6 games over 2 days highlighted by Martin G’s 7 goal performance in one game. The team’s hard work and perseverance paid off as the students won a bronze medal in Tier 2. Congratulations to the following members of the team: Jimmy M., Nicholas S., Emily P., Maja M., Marcus D.,Gianluca R., Julian C., Martin G., Antonio T., Christopher A., Anthony P., Monica P., Owen P., Ivan M., Kevin L., Robert M. and Owen M. Thank you to Mr. Ward and Mr. Szpunar for coaching the team. CFTR AM 680 CHFI FM 98.1 CHIN FM 100.7 FM 93.1 FM Q 107 CFTO The Junior Girl’s Basketball Team completed their season where they continued to improve their basketball skills and increase their basketball knowledge. Congratulations to the following members of the team: Marianne A., Jordan O., Myla R., Hollie N., Tessa B., Breanna M., Gabriella H., Stella F., Tori A. and Emily T. Thank you to Mrs. Percuklijevic and Miss Monardo for volunteering their time and expertise to coach the team. The Junior Boy’s Basketball Team have also completed their season and they will be tipping off on Tuesday against St. Catherine of Sienna in a playoff game. The winner of this game will advance to the Mississauga South Family Tournament. The primary students are currently competing in a very vigorous intramural soccer season. The games are very competitive and the students are extremely enthusiastic. Full Day Kindergarten Registration for 2014- 2015 We are continuing to accept registrations for the 2014-2015 school year. Junior Kindergarten - Children must be 4 years old by Dec. 31, 2014 Senior Kindergarten - Children must be 5 years old by Dec. 31, 2014 Parents/Guardians should bring the following documents when registering their child: proof of age original Roman Catholic Baptismal Certificate (for parent and child) or Baptismal Certificate of other rites in communion with the Holy See of Rome (if the child has not been baptized, and the parent or guardian is a baptized Roman Catholic or is baptized in another rite in communion with the Holy See of Rome, the parent/ guardian should bring their own baptismal certificate). updated immunization records proof of Canadian citizenship or of Landed Immigrant status proof of address (utility bill, bank or credit card statement) St. Dunstan School For more information, contact St. Dunstan at 905-567-5050 or call the Admissions Department at 905-890-0708 ext. 24500. promotes responsibility, Important Items respect, civility and academic excellence in a safe learning and teaching environment. School Council News Thank you to our parents who continue to volunteer at St. Dunstan. Our next School Council meeting will take place on February 26th at 6:30 pm in the school library. March Break Our break this year takes place from March 10th to March 14th. Classes will resume on Monday, March 17th. Please note that Friday, March 7th is a PD Day. Family Day This is a reminder to parents that Monday, February 17, 2014 is designated as Family Day. There will be no classes for students on that day. Cold Weather Children will be kept in at recess if the wind chill equivalent temperature is minus 25 degrees Celsius or lower. This is in accordance with the Board Policy. We will, of course, monitor the weather situation on a daily basis. The safety of our students is always of utmost concern. Public Speaking On February 19th, St. Dunstan will be holding our Public Speaking Competition. The Junior students will present their speeches at 8:50 a.m. and the Intermediate students at 12:45 p.m. All parents are welcome to attend. The first and second place winners will represent St. Dunstan at the Mississauga South Public Speaking competition that will be held on Wednesday, February 26th. 168 YEARS OF SUCCESS ONTARIO’S CATHOLIC SCHOOLS An integral part of public education Some contend it is unfair for only one faith to have publicly funded schools. Historically, Ontario’s Catholic education system was established in fairness to Catholics, a religious minority in this province. In 1867, the British North America Act guaranteed that all educational rights held by minorities at the time of Confederation would be constitutionally protected. Without this protection of denominational schools, Confederation would not have been achieved, and the Supreme Court of Canada has upheld this pillar of our nation. Whether other faiths should receive public education funding is a matter of public policy debate. Governments of all political stripes, for various reasons, have decided against it. At the same time, Ontario governments throughout the history of the province have recognized not just the legal rights of the publicly funded Catholic education system to continue, but the merits of keeping it in place. The fact is, Catholic schools have maintained and enhanced their foundational place in Ontario’s public education system as it has evolved. It would be unfair to the Catholic community and the people of Ontario to dismantle a school system that has been an integral part of publicly funded education since 1841. Catholic schools are fully or partially funded in six other Canadian provinces. Education is a provincial jurisdiction, and school governance in each province is unique – including Ontario, where the history, commitment and support for Catholic education is unlike any other. Two provinces in particular are often cited as moving away from Catholic schools. Quebec changed its system to a language-based model in 1997, to reflect that province’s linguistic and cultural reality (which is far different from Ontario’s). In Newfoundland and Labrador, a 1997 referendum supported a single education system to replace the historical model of a myriad of denominational schools. In both instances, the circumstances weredramatically different from Ontario, and should not be compared. In opposing Catholic education, some critics say the United Nations has called Ontario’s funding system “discriminatory.” In fact, the U.N. has not made such a ruling. It was the opinion of members of one committee, and never moved beyond that committee. Both the Canadian and Ontario governments responded to the opinion, strongly defending the existing system. Notably, the matter has not been pursued by the U.N. or any member government.