TORONTO CATHOLIC PARENT INVOLVEMENT COMMITTEE Minutes of a Meeting of the Toronto CPIC

Transcription

1 Meeting Time & Location: 7:13 PM to 10:03 PM York Quigley Room Chair: David Rodriguez Secretary (note-taker): Shirley Chang, NTC Reporting & Transcription Inc. Parent & Community Members Present (voting Members): Other Members In Attendance (ex officio and non-voting): Apologies for Absence: Absent: W1 Geoffrey Feldman W2 W3 W4 W5 W6 Sandra Darquea W7 David Rodriguez W8 O P E N W9 Arnie Amaral W10 O P E N W11 W12 Derek Rosario PMAL 1 Edmund Wang PMAL 3 Com Rep 1 Com Rep 3 W1 Maria Pileggi W2 O P E N W3 Patricia Lopez W4 W5 Cheryl Bristol-Matte W6 Dennis Hastings W7 Karen Lue Tam W8 W9 Jude Dias W10 O P E N W11 Edith Pearson W12 Jackie Delaney PMAL 2 PMAL 4 Gewan Samlal Com Rep 2 Andrew Walker TCDSB Director of Education or Designate Rory McGuckin TCDSB Trustee Representative or Designate Nancy Crawford TCDSB Parent Engagement & Toronto CPIC Liaison Carla Marchetti Colleen Hobson (W4), John De Pinto (W5), Veneise George (W8), Kevin Morrison (W11), Milva Romano (PMAL 3), Todd Pearson (W2), Elio Freitas (W3), Lina Cannarozzi (W4), Sharon Empensando (PMAL 2), Antonio Bertani (CR1), Guests and Public in Attendance: TCDSB Ward 2 Trustee Ann Andrachuk TCDSB Ward 7 Constituency Assistant Theresa Pastore Ward 8 Parent Ruth Oliveros No other guests present Next Meeting: Tuesday February 26, :00 PM 1 Welcome, Call to Order, Roll Call, Declaration of Quorum and Prayer The Chair welcomed everyone, called the meeting to order and led the roll call at 7:13 PM. The Chair led the opening prayer. After a determination of Members present, the Chair declared that as quorum was confirmed, the meeting was duly convened and legally constituted. 2 Adoption of Proposed Agenda After those present had an opportunity to read and review the proposed Agenda, and a call for additions and changes was made, the following motion was Page 1

2 proposed: 13/01-01 MOVED THAT the proposed Agenda, including additions and changes, be formally adopted as the Meeting Agenda. Moved: D. Rosario W12 Second: G. Samlal PMAL-4 Carried 3 Review, Approval & Confirmation of Minutes of Prior CPIC Meetings The last regular Toronto CPIC meeting was on Wednesday, November 14, The review and confirmation of the Minutes of the Regular Toronto CPIC Meeting of Wednesday, November 14, 2012 was deferred. 4 Report from the Chair The meeting of Thursday, December 6, 2012 was a meeting of the Subcommittee of the Whole to discuss the Spring 2013 Parent Conference. The summary of the 23 sessions (distilled from 63 workshop session candidates) agreed to by the 18 members present was ed on Thursday, December 13, 2012 to all Toronto CPIC members. Mr. Feldman presided over the Meeting. Mr. Rodriguez reported: 4.1 Toronto CPIC meeting dates recommended by Executive Subcommittee Meeting Dates Wed., January 16, rd Meeting of Tues., February 26, th Meeting of Tuesday, April 2, th Meeting of Wednesday, May 8, th Meeting of Thursday June 20, th Meeting of Tues., September 10, th and Final Wed., October 23, 2013 Inaugural of Thur., November 21, st Meeting of Thur., December 19, nd Meeting of Location 4 Report from the Chair 13/01-02 BY DIRECTION OF THE Executive Subcommittee, BE IT RESOLVED THAT the proposed meetings dates be adopted as the meeting dates for Moved: Executive Subcommittee Note: Since the recommendation and its enabling motion comes from a Subcommittee no second is required. Carried 4.2 Ward 8 Trustee Election December 10, 2012 Two Toronto CPIC members ran for the vacant Trustee seat: G. Tanuan and K. Page 2

3 (continued) Morrison. A former Toronto CPIC member also ran for the seat: I. Fortino Garry Tanuan was elected Trustee. Due to the election of Mr. Tanuan, Toronto CPIC now has a vacancy in Ward 8. The Nominating & Election Subcommittee (Mr. G. Samlal) will formalize the process for how the vacant position will be filled and will make recommendations to the full Committee. 4.3 PRO Grant Reporting Mr. Rodriguez explained the different kinds of funding CPIC receives: o 1) Base GSN Funding. For CPIC meetings, communication purposes (print, website, etc.) and operational expenses. Costs to facilitate parent attendance at meetings are also covered (e.g. child minding, mileage, etc.) o 2) PRO (Parents Reaching Out) Grant Funding. For larger things like CPIC conferences. Up to $30, can be requested annually. There are 15 categories of allowable expenses under PRO Grant rules. Note: Ministry of Education PRO Grant funds are restricted-purpose Fund PRO Grant 2009/2010 [FR 614] PRO Grant 2010/2011 [FR 813-1] PRO Grant 2011/2012 [FR 822-1] Approved $ 27, $ 18, $11, Holdback ( $ 5,400.00) ($ 1,800.00) ($ 2,300.00) NET $ 21, $16, $9, Disbursed ($ 26,805.50) ($ 16,563.48) ($ 5,207.73) Balance $ $1, $6, Difference vs Holdback ( $ 5,205.50) Owed by MoE ($ ) Owed by MoE $ 3, Owed to MoE A. Walker raised concerns that certain line items in the 2010/2011 budget were significantly over budget, and whether the situation has been corrected. Mr. Rodriguez explained that the budget is a moving target in that things change from the time of the application to the time of approval, and that while CPIC may submit an application for $30,000 CPIC typically receives much less, and that the budget needs to be looked at holistically as opposed to on a line item basis. 4 Report from the Chair (continued) 4.4 Spring 2013 Parent Conference: Saturday, April 6, 2013 Mr. Rodriguez reported that there is a commitment from Anne T. Henderson to be the keynote speaker for the event. She will deliver a 1.5 hour keynote speech, Page 3

4 4 Report from the Chair (continued) as well as three (3) workshop sessions. There is the possibility of partnering up with another PIC Thames Valley PIC (TVPIC). Things are not yet finalized. If the partnership works out, the event may be bigger than CPIC alone can handle, and the venue may need to be changed. It was suggested that an event planner be considered to handle the event. There are currently two prospective candidates. A. Andrachuk suggested that CPIC engage a parent who is an event planner to volunteer before hiring an outside event planner since CPIC is all about parent engagement. Ms. Andrachuk knows of two individuals in her ward who are professional event planners. If an event planner is hired, a certain level of performance and results can be demanded of a paid individual, as opposed to someone who is volunteering their time. 4.5 Executive Officers Meeting Saturday, January 12, 2013 A meeting of the executive officers was held on Saturday, January 12, 2013 by teleconference. 4.6 Meeting with Director of Education - Thursday, December 20, 2012 Mr. Feldman and Mr. Rodriguez met with the Director of Education on Thursday, December 20, Items discussed included: Parent Council / CSAC Leadership Conference Nov. 24, 2012 Family-School Partnership (School Climate) Survey Spring 2013 Parent Conference Unused / Surplus PRO Grant Funds Enhancing Toronto CPIC Visibility o Website o Toronto CPIC Bulletin Boards in TCDSB schools o Toronto CPIC Twitter account Working with TAPCE 4.7 Toronto CPIC Calling Card / Business Card Redesign The tent card style was explained, and was approved by the Executive. The new card will hold more information about what CPIC is about, not just basic information such as a name and telephone number. 4.8 Toronto CPIC s Vision for Parent Engagement The Vision for Parent Engagement is a road map of where Toronto CPIC would like to see the TCDSB and TCDSB schools in the not-too-distant future. It is a set of defining characteristics most of which are not true today: Page 4

5 Parents are fully engaged in and supportive of their child s learning Parents feel welcome to contribute to and in the school in a variety of ways Parents who are unable to come to the school have other ways available to them to connect and contribute Parents are aware of, knowledgeable of and involved in school improvement planning The school improvement plan indicates parents have been involved in its development, implementation and evaluation Parents are using strategies at home to further the goals expressed in the school s improvement plan Parents and families are involved in all major decisions at their school or the TCDSB Principals welcome and embrace parents as partners in education, and seek ways to involve them in the learning community TCDSB policies and practices are parent friendly and reflect the belief that parents are important and valued contributors to student academic success and well-being The Vision for Parent Engagement was approved by the Executive. 4.9 Recommendation to Improve Visibility / Branding of Toronto CPIC Mr. Rodriguez discussed a pilot program for a Toronto CPIC Bulletin Board to provide to improve visibility and branding of the organization in TCDSB schools and to expand CPIC s channels of communication. This will require each member to pick two (2) schools in their ward that they will be responsible for. There was discussion on how the logistics of the pilot program would work out, but the recommendation as it currently stands is whether CPIC will give the go ahead to try the pilot program. 5 Financial Report of Toronto CPIC Treasurer 13/01-03 BY DIRECTION OF THE Executive Subcommittee, BE IT RESOLVED THAT a pilot program for a Toronto CPIC Bulletin Board in TCDSB schools as a strategy to improve the visibility and branding of Toronto CPIC be undertaken. Moved: Executive Subcommittee Note: Since the recommendation and its enabling motion comes from a Subcommittee no second is required. Carried Unanimously Mr. Rodriguez assumed the presiding officer s chair. The Chair reported that the transition to the new Treasurer should be done in about a month. The financial report was covered off with the PRO Grant reporting earlier. Page 5

6 6 Unfinished (Old) Business & Matters Arising from the Minutes of Prior Meetings Unfinished Business / Items Deferred from Prior Meetings There is nothing to cover under this item. Motions for Which a Notice of Motion Was Provided There is nothing to cover under this item. Matters Arising from the Minutes of Prior Meetings There is nothing to cover under this item. 7 Subcommittee Reports & Recommendations STANDING (PERMANENT) SUBCOMMITTEES 7.1 Budget & Priority Setting Subcommittee Mr. Feldman advised there was no update to report. 7.2 Governance & Procedure Subcommittee Mrs. Pileggi advised there was no update to report. 7.3 Nominating & Election Subcommittee The subcommittee was asked to deal with the vacancies in Wards 2, 8 and 10 and to finalize the process by which the vacancies would be filled. 7.4 Conference Planning Subcommittee The subcommittee was asked to propose a meeting schedule to meet every two weeks until the April 6, 2013 Parent Conference. SPECIAL (TEMPORARY / AD HOC) SUBCOMMITTEES 7.5 Parent & CSAC Ambassador Subcommittee (11/03-11) This Subcommittee was created by resolution 11/03-11 passed at the March 31, 2011 meeting of Toronto CPIC. Due to the election of G. Tanuan to Trustee for Ward 8, there is a vacancy for Chair of this Committee. G. Tanuan has kindly agreed to assist the new Chair, and the members are asked to think about who may best fill the vacancy. 8 Reports from Parent Members: Ward Representatives Ward 1: Mr. Feldman thanked Trustee Jakovcic for putting a paragraph in his November newsletter about CPIC. CPIC appreciates the exposure, and we hope other Trustees will consider doing the same. Ward 3: Ms. Lopez reported she was approached by a Spanish speaking magazine to promote CPIC. It will be a new venture, and the idea is to start small Page 6

7 first with the Mission Statement of CPIC. The messaging will be consistent with CPIC and the TCDSB s requirements. Ward 5: Ms. Bristol-Matte reported on Breakfast with Santa that was held in her ward, and a local magazine, SNAP, was on hand taking lots of pictures, and published the event in their paper. Ward 6: Ms. Darquea reported on a school community breakfast that was hosted in the ward just before Christmas. 1,200 students were fed breakfast. The superintendent and Trustee participated in the breakfast. S. Darquea also reported on a fundraiser for Loretta College, and will hopefully have an update in February. Ward 6: Mr. Hastings reported extensively on his activities in the ward, including the fact he visits all his schools in his ward. Mr. Hastings reported on each school and the projects each school is working on. 9 Report from the Trustee Representative or Designate Ms. Crawford reported her appreciation for CPIC making the effort to schedule its meetings so as not to overlap Trustee meetings, so that she is able to attend. This is Trustee Crawford s first CPIC meeting of the year as the new Trustee Representative. She hopes to have something to present next month on budget consultation. The Trustees would like to know how CPIC can bring requests, concerns, etc. to the Trustees regarding student achievement. They want to know what CPIC hears? What they observe? What s working well? What s not working well? The Trustees are also currently looking at possible barriers, for example, language, and are hoping to develop TCDSB Policies that are parent friendly. 10 Report from the Director of Education or Designate Mr. McGuckin thanked Mr. Rodriguez for his presiding officer duties this evening. Mr. McGuckin commented that Mr. Rodriguez allowed divergent thinking to take place in a respectful way. It was one of the best chaired meetings he has ever attended, and hopes it will be a model for future meetings. Mr. McGuckin reported on a survey done on the multi-year strategic plan. Not enough parents participated, however. It was mostly teachers. They have gathered the stats and comments. There was a lot of negative material, which was good to hear. The Board is going to pull out the salient features of that and find a way to do things differently, using those comments to guide them. On the subject of the budget consultation, parents have the opportunity to shape Page 7

8 the budget, and so we need to get them involved. CPIC should work with the Parent Councils to reach out to parents to get them involved in budget consultation meetings. 11 New Business and Motions Arising Therefrom 11.1 Status of MoE Grant Funds to TCDSB Parent Councils/CSACs Mr. Feldman would like to see reporting of grants more frequently. Mr. Rodriguez would like to get a report of unused funds in order to get an understanding of the amounts. There could be a significant amount not used by CSACs. Mrs. Marchetti was requested to provide a report at the next CPIC meeting. Mrs. Marchetti responded that there are reports on the unused PRO and PIC funds. She contacts the schools directly to encourage them to use their funds, because they are best spent at the local level. She could use help from CPIC members to spread the word around as well. 12 Announcements & Date, Time & Location of Next Meeting The next meetings of are on Tuesday, February 26, 2013 at 7:00 PM [Meeting #4] Tuesday, April 2, 2013 at 7:00 PM [Meeting #5] Wednesday, May 8, 2013 at 7:00 PM [Meeting #6] All at the: Catholic Education Centre. Room to be announced. There will be subcommittee and Executive meetings as needed. 13 Adjournment 13/01-04 MOVED THAT the meeting stand adjourned. Moved: M. Pileggi W1 Second: A. Amaral W9 Carried The Chair declared the meeting adjourned and Members rose at 10:03 PM Page 8

9 Respectfully submitted to the Members of Toronto CPIC, David Rodriguez, Chair Approved By resolution of the assembly (13/02-03) on Tuesday, February 26, 2013 Page 9