Trustee Pamela Gough update – March 18, 2013

From the Office of Ward 3, TDSB Trustee Pamela Gough:

Sent on behalf of Trustee Pamela Gough:

Ward 3 Trustee Pamela Gough’s Update March 18, 2013

I hope your March Break went well! We have a full line-up of ward forums set to go between now and the end of the school year. For those of you who are chairs/co-chairs of School Advisory Councils, each Ward Forum is preceded by a 6 pm meeting of SAC chairs, at which we talk about matters that are top of mind at the moment in an open-ended way. This is my chance to hear from you about the issues that are important to you, and your chance to share information with parent leaders in other schools.

Are you spring cleaning? Second Street JMS has just opened a new parenting centre and could use good books for toddlers and pre-schoolers, parenting books, and toys for toddlers. They are also doing a school clothing drive to fundraise for the school council’s activities. If your school community has some good kid’s clothes or books to donate, please contact SAC Chair Tressa Thornton-Crowe at 416-201-8449 or drop them off at the office. The school’s address is 71 Second Street, Etobicoke.

Find out the latest in education news- follow me on Twitter at @pamelagough!

In this issue:

·     Budget process for 2013-2014

·     Norseman FDK community information meeting March 18

·     PROmoting family literacy with PRO grants: Ward Forum March 19

·     Bloorlea Red Cross one day babysitting course April 6

·     Learning Exceptionalities 101: Ward Forum April 23

·     Deadline this Friday for TDSB Awards of Excellence

1.    Budget process for 2013-2014

The TDSB is in the midst of setting the budget for the next academic year. One of the first steps along the way is the determination of school-based staffing needs. This happens in March in order to meet timelines set out in collective agreements and to give schools the time they need to build their programs and staff timetables for the following year.

At the Board meeting of March 6, the trustees voted to approve a model of staffing developed by Director of Education Donna Quan which reflected a predicted decline in enrollment at the secondary level and an increase at the elementary level. Largely driven by the scheduled roll-out of full day kindergarten in combination with demographic changes, this staffing model puts the TDSB on a path to producing a balanced budget for the next academic year as required by the province. I am always interested in your budget feedback and welcome calls and emails. In addition to the TDSB’s broad participatory budget process, I will be holding a Ward Forum on budget matters in May in advance of the final budget decisions in June.

2.    Norseman FDK community information meeting March 18

Norseman JMS is going have a small wing of three new classrooms added this summer to accommodate increased enrollment from full day kindergarten, which starts in September. I’m hosting a community meeting on this tonight, March 18, for parents and residents of the neighbourhood, starting at 7 pm. All welcome.

3.    PROmoting family Literacy with PRO grants: March 19 at Park Lawn JMS

Tomorrow’s Ward Forum will be focused on best practices in family literacy/school library initiatives and how to secure funding to support them. Engage Literacy, a group dedicated to supporting school libraries and literacy, will give a presentation on ways to increase literacy initiatives in your school. This will be followed by a discussion on how the TDSB library system works and a workshop on how to successfully apply for up to $1000 in provincial Parents Reaching Out (PRO) grants, which all school councils are eligible for, and which can be used for family literacy events.

School Councils who have successfully applied for PRO grants in the past, please bring your grant applications to share ideas with other schools who may be new to the process. Childcare and snacks will be provided. If you need childcare, please rsvp to Debbie.Wagdin@tdsb.on.ca

Where: Park Lawn JMS, 71 Ballacaine Drive (Berry Road/Park Lawn), Library

When: Tuesday, March 19, 7 pm to 8:45 pm

Please see the flyer attached to this newsletter and distribute widely.

4.    Bloorlea Red Cross babysitting course April 6

I will be hosting a full-day Red Cross babysitting course on Saturday, April 6^th at Bloorlea Middle School. The course is aimed at students 10-15 years old and will give them the basics of babysitting and how to start their own babysitting business, including how to develop their first resumé. Unlike most babysitting courses, which are spread out over several nights, this intensive course is all carried out over one day. Students will receive a certificate upon completion. More details here. To register, contact the Red Cross at 416-480-0195 Ext. 2309 or email torontofirstaid@redcross.ca .

5.    Learning Exceptionalities 101: Ward forum April 18

I’m planning another workshop in my parent academy series. Is your child learning disabled, gifted- or both? Save the date of Tuesday, April 23 for an evening on how to support students who learn in different ways. You will learn how students with learning exceptionalities are identified, including the LD-gifted combination, and how they can be supported in their learning both at home and at school. Please note the change in date from April 18^th in my earlier newsletter.

Where: Seventh Street JS, 101 Seventh Street (near corner of Islington and Lake Shore Blvd. W.)

When: Tuesday, April 23, 7 pm to 8:45 pm.

6.    Deadline this Friday for TDSB Awards of Excellence

Do you know an outstanding educator, school administrator, or school support worker? Nominate them for a TDSB Award of Excellence! Ward 3 has many dedicated and outstanding people working in its schools. Deadline is Friday March 22 and details are available here. Check out my trustee website here for a comprehensive list of the many other awards available:

Subscribe by contacting Debbie.wagdin@tdsb.on.ca. For more information, check out my TDSB website at http://www.tdsb.on.ca/gough. Email me at Pamela.gough@tdsb.on.ca.  For the absolute latest information, follow me on Twitter at @pamelagough! Please forward this email to friends.