This is a summary of the public meeting of the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board, held June 17, 2024.
Acknowledgement of Traditional Lands
Erica Charlton, Trustee, Belleville/Thurlow, offered the Land Acknowledgement.
Presentation: Destreaming key learning
This presentation shared a summary of activities and key learning about destreaming during this school year. Destreaming in Grade 9 was introduced by the Ministry of Education to allow students another year to develop skills and build understanding of course selections before making choices about their future pathways.
One effect of destreaming on student learning was that a higher number of students (over 50%) said they were more confident in Math now (June) than they were in September. Teachers reported that cross panel (elementary-secondary) learning teams enabled teachers to talk with one another about teaching best practices.
Thank you to presenters Ben Claxton Destreaming Coach, Bill Thompson, Destreaming Coordinator and Chris Lee, Destreaming Coach.
Rise and report from Committee of the Whole
At this closed meeting, a discussion was held regarding correspondence with a recommendation, as well as an update on a legal matter.
Report from external organizations
Ontario Public School Boards' Association (OPSBA)
Highlights from this report included the following:
- the copyright overpayment litigation is completed and school boards will receive cheques directly from OPSBA;
- OPSBA elections will take place at the AGM in July;
- the 2024 Canadian School Boards Conference is July 3-5 in Toronto;
- the Healthy Democracies Student Leadership Award is open for applications; and
- reference to the provincial Cabinet shuffle.
Standing Committee reports
Governance and Policy Committee: June 10, 2024
- Board members approved Policy XX: Board Governance. This policy will be renamed Policy 2: Board Governance and through this approval, policies 4, 5, 9 and 10 will be revoked. Find out more starting on page 28 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
- Board members approved a recommendation to begin the initial planning for a new multi-year strategic plan and work with a third party to accomplish this task with an Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee established at the first Board meeting of the 2024-2025 school year. Find out more starting on page 38 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
- Board members approved meeting dates for the 2024-2025 school year. Find out more starting on page 40 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Student Learning, Well-being and Equity Committee: June 3, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Student Achievement Plan parent/guardian survey;
- graduation rates for past five years; and
- Math Achievement Action Plan highlights and progress on key performance indicators.
Physical Planning, Finance and Building Committee: June 11, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- update on the sale of the former Queen Elizabeth School in Picton; and
- overview of the 2024-2025 budget.
2024-2025 Budget
Board members approved the 2024-2025 budget, which is balanced, is based on the forecast enrolment, priorities and funding, and has a $35,000 surplus.
Prior to the release of funding information by the Ministry of Education, HPEDSB reflected on the current budget status, then planned for potential funding changes. HPEDSB staff used data gathered from the community engagement survey results when making budget decisions.
While navigating the new funding framework, HPEDSB staff used the following to achieve the balanced budget:
- business rules to assign resources equitably across the Board;
- StaffingPlus software to optimize classroom staffing allocation Board-wide; and
- aligned funding to expenses.
Find out more starting on page 46 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Statutory Committee reports
Audit Committee: June 5, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- welcomed new committee member;
- reviewed a report about the Regional Internal Audit; and
- approved meeting dates.
Board members approved the External Auditor’s Audit Plan for the 2023-2024 fiscal year end. Find out more starting on page 72 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Special Education Advisory Committee: June 6, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Special Education regional programs; and
- goals for the upcoming school year.
Supervised Alternative Learning Committee: May 29 and June 11, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- two SAL approvals in May; and
- 75 students on SAL during Semester 1 and 104 for Semester 2, for a total of 179.
Advisory Committee reports
Equity and Inclusivity Advisory Committee: May 29, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- good news stories shared by committee members and community partners;
- equity events held during this school year;
- update on the School Climate surveys for students, parents/guardians and staff.
Indigenous Education Advisory Committee: June 5, 2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- finalizing the Community Partner Model, which takes a collaborative approach among students, partners and HPEDSB.
Student Voice Committee
Highlights from this report included the following:
Ad Hoc Committee report
Director's Performance Appraisal Committee
Board members approved presenting Katherine MacIver, Director of Education, with a management letter and dissolve the Director's Performance Appraisal Ad Hoc Committee effective June 17, 2024. Find out more starting on page 130 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Chair's report/trustee sharing
Shannon Binder, Chair of the Board, acknowledged the recent tragic death of a Trenton High School student and offered condolences to the family and everyone affected during this difficult time.
Presentation to outgoing student trustees
Shannon Binder, Chair of the Board acknowledged the outgoing student trustees and presented them with a memento of their time on the Board.
We wish all the best to outgoing student trustees. Pictured L to R: Katherine MacIver, Director of Education; Julia Webster, Eastside Secondary School; Aashvi Shaw, Centennial Secondary School; Amanda Robertson, Belleville/Thurlow; Clara Vance, North Hastings High School; and Shannon Binder, Chair of the Board.
Incoming student trustees for the 2024-2025 school year were introduced at the meeting last month: Alisha Makkar, Centennial Secondary School; Julia Cranshaw, Eastside Secondary School; and Matthew Shalla, North Hastings High School.
Trustees shared the following updates:
- participation in the Belleville Pride Parade;
- tour of the new Easthill Elementary School;
- attendance at the Queen Victoria School closing event;
- Baseball Day at the Field of Abilities;
- attendance at the Retirement Dinner and Celebration;
- attendance at the North Hastings area Track and Field event, along with a shout-out to the volunteers;
- visit to the York River PS Kindergarten class which did an inquiry about fish habitat; and
- school-wide cultural lunch at North Hastings High School.
Director's report
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Expressed appreciation to the Chair of the Board for recognizing the student death. All at HPEDSB are heartsick for the family, friend and the staff at Trenton High. The Director and Superintendent McFarlane attended the public vigil last Friday night to support the family and community. A comprehensive internal review of procedures and processes is underway, and HPEDSB is committed to preventing a situation like this from ever happening again by implementing any changes needed.
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Welcome to the new Education Minister, Todd Smith. We are pleased to have the minister so close and look forward to working with him.
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Last week the Parent Involvement Committee hosted an online learning session with Alice Te, who presented about an anti-oppressive framework and the parental role.
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Alice’s presentation was well positioned as we acknowledge two distinct celebrations this month:
- June is Pride month and with it comes the Pride Parade, which many HPEDSB staff participated in.
- Indigenous People’s Day is June 21 every year. The Governor General of Canada proclaimed June 21 as National Indigenous Peoples Day in 1996, an occasion for Canadians to come together, reflect on and celebrate the unique heritage, traditions, resilience and contributions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples across Turtle Island.
- Congratulations to Ian Ketcheson, Bayside Secondary School, who won Silver in Welding at the Skills Canada competition in Quebec.
- For the second year, HPEDSB hosted in-house DELF examinations for students to certify French language skills. Locally, 20 students took part in exams with another 50 students travelling to to DELF examination centres.
- Congratulations to teacher Angela Burr, Madoc Township Public School, who was awarded the Prime Minister’s Teaching Excellence Certificate of Achievement. Angela's calling cards are inclusivity, patience and the ability to cultivate and grow students' natural curiosity. She has an aptitude for building a classroom that feels like a community and family, where every student feels valued and included.
- Last week we hosted the annual Retirement Dinner and Celebration, with 28 retirees and guests in attendance. We wish all 59 retirees, whose service totals 1,521 years. One retiree has been with HPE for 42 years!
Staff reports
Building renewal projects valued between $500K and $1 million
This report listed the eight tenders for building renewal projects over $500,000 and less than $1 million that have been evaluated and awarded during the 2023-2024 year. Find out more starting on page 131 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Student Achievement Plan update
Public consultation on the Student Achievement Plan is mandated during the last two months of the school year and the first two months of the next year. A parent/ guardian survey is currently underway to seek feedback on the HPEDSB priorities, goals, actions and modes of sharing information. The survey has been shared with parents/guardians through email and is also being promoted through social media until it closes on June 24, 2024. Find out more starting on page 132 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
Calendar of events
Several school events, committee and Board meetings are scheduled for the remainder of June. Find out more starting on page 134 of the June 17, 2024 agenda.
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