Resources for School Councils

School Councils may find some of the following information useful to them throughout the school year.

School Closing Report

People for Education has produced a new School Closing Report, along with the media release. 
You can also access the report and the board-by-board school closing data at this link:
http://www.peopleforeducation.com/schoolclosings2009
Media release is available here; click here to view the full report.


PRO Grants Presentation - May 26th

CSPA welcomed Doug Tateishi from the Ministry of Education to talk about PRO grants. Please view his presentation here.  He also provided handouts for project guidelines and the application form.  Doug is making himself available for questions at the following number: 613-225-9210 ext. 157.
NEW Timeline for Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants

It's time to fill in those PRO Grant applications once again.  The ministry has changed the timelines for the application process so that councils that are successful will be notified in the fall and will have the full school year to spend their grant money.  The grant application deadline for the 2010-2011 school year is June 11, 2010.
Be sure to discuss this at your next school council meeting and submit an application.  Read about getting your PRO Grant application started to help with the first steps in the process.




School Council Challenges

Panel of experts, including CSPA's Joanne MacEwan, facilitated a workshop on school council challenges. Please follow the link for notes and tips from this workshop.


Grants Available for Schoolyard Greening

Evergreen is a registered national non-profit environmental organization with a mandate to bring nature to our cities through naturalization projects. Evergreen motivates people to create and sustain healthy, natural outdoor spaces and gives them the practical tools to be successful.  One of Evergreen's core programs, called Learning Grounds, focuses on transforming school grounds.

The Toyota Evergreen Learning Grounds program helps schools create outdoor classrooms to provide students with a healthy place to play, learn and develop a genuine respect for nature.  They offer access to an integrated package of expert assistance and funding:

  • Expert Assistance - Send them your questions about getting started, planning, design, plant selection and fundraising and they'll answer them promptly by e-mail. You can also contact the Ottawa area Learning Grounds consultant,  Ann Coffey (613-746-8668).

  • Funding -

    • Funding is available to publicly-funded Canadian schools and not-for-profit daycares.
    • Schools can apply for funding from $500-$2,000; daycares from $500-$1,000.
    • Applications are accepted starting September 4, 2008. The final deadline is January 16, 2009.
    • All applications must be postmarked by January 16, 2009.
    • APPLY EARLY. FUNDS OFTEN RUN OUT BEFORE THE FINAL DEADLINE.
    • New this year: Funding is no longer awarded solely on a first-come, first-serve basis.

For more detailed information, visit the Evergreen website at www.evergreen.ca

Active & Safe Routes to School

Green Communities Active & Safe Routes to School is a community-based initiative that promotes the use of active and efficient transportation for the daily trip to school, addressing health and traffic safety issues while taking action on air pollution and climate change.

The Active & Safe Routes to School website provides resources, tools, information and links for schools and communities to create their own unique Active & Safe Routes to School program. All of the resources for teachers are linked to the Ontario Curriculum using the Curriculum Unit planner.


Help with Sewing

Do you need help with repairing and cleaning gym or classroom curtains? Help is available:
The business is called: "You Name It, I Can Sew It"
Phone # is 613-258-5248 (contact is Rhonda Trebinskie).

Principal Profiles

Each year school councils are asked by the Board to submit a principal profile. The Principal Profile should outline the desired characteristics in a principal that would best fit the specific needs of your school and school community. The Board refers to this Profile during the principal tranfer and placement process. Submissions from school councils come in various formats - point form, letter-style format. Some people use the samples provided by the Ministry's document School Councils: A Guide for Members, 2001. Councils looking for guidance in creating a principal profile can check out the samples below:
  • Sample points provided by the Deputy Director's office
  • Principal Profile 2008 - St. Monica School

    School Council Insurance

    Every year a few councils raise the question of whether they need to buy liability insurance for council activities. The short answer is that Board sanctioned activities are covered under the Board's insurance policy. School Council activities such as dances, private parties, conventions, etc. that are NOT approved or sanctioned by the Board (through the school principal) require a School Council to obtain their own liability insurance coverage. Details of the Board's coverage for volunteers can be found here.

    Funding for Next Year

    Thinking about school council funds and grant applications for next year? Check out our Guide to Grants to review the funding options available to school councils and make some preparations for next year's council activities.

    School Council Best Practices

    On April 16, 2007, the Board's Director's Forum focused on the topic of best practices for school councils. Principals were asked to bring at least one council member for an evening of dialogue and idea sharing amongst different councils across the board. Read the Director's Forum Review for a summary of the evening's events. The final report from that event will be available here when it is complete.

    Also available to all councils is the St. Clare School Council Handbook. This is a manual that the St.Clare council put together containing all the information, templates, and forms needed by their school council members. Other councils are encouraged to download a copy and customize it for their own school.

    School Council Constitution

    All School Councils in the province are required to have a constituion which complies with Ministry Regulations and Board Policies.

    The new constitutions should contain the following elements:
    • An election procedure
    • A conflict resolution procedure
    • A procedure to replace a member
    • A communication strategy
    • The principal should be a non-voting member.
    • Your table officers should include: Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and a CSPA rep.
    • You should establish a procedure to communicate with all your school's parents and to get input from them on important issues. Your council has to communicate more than just amongst its members.
    • Ministry guidelines dictate that your Council can advise on ANY matter relating to the education of your children and the operation of the school. The Council is, still, advisory to the Principal.
    • Elections must occur in the first 30 days of school year, not spring.

    When writing your constition, check out the CSPA Constituion Guide and create your own constitution using our CSPA Constitution Template.

    Fundraising

    If your council is discussing fundraising, you might want to check out the Fundraising Philiosophy created by Our Lady of Peace school council to help guide their choices.

    For fundraising ideas, check out the CSPA Fundraising Cookbook.


    Scientists in School

    Scientists in School     is a dynamic and growing charity dedicated to sparking children's interest and love of
    science through hands-on discovery.  Scientists in School's 45 curriculum-aligned, half-day workshops bring
    science to life for students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 as they  "learn by doing" right in the classroom. 
    And, we make science FUN. Teachers benefit too from our inquiry-based approach and the resource packages we
    provide (chock full of information and activities) for every workshop. Scientists in School operates in over
    175 communities, delivering more than 21,000 workshops and inspiring over 570,000 children each year.
    For more information or to book a workshop, please visit here.

    • Last Updated: 2010-06-12

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