You're invited to Spark!

School Councils are invited to send two members to Spark!, an interactive event designed to help councils generate ideas to boost parent involvement at their schools. Complete the registration form by April 26.

Tuesday, May 7, 6 p.m.
Fletcher’s Meadow Secondary School
10750 Chinguacousy Rd., Brampton


Participants will:

• enjoy a free dinner prepared by Fletcher’s Meadow students
• meet the Parent Involvement Committee and learn how to boost parent involvement
• hear success stories from schools in Peel
• learn about the Parents Reaching Out grant and have a chance to ask a Ministry of Education representative questions
• brainstorm and connect with other council members from your family of schools or geographic area

Share your success story

Councils are also invited to submit a success story. If your story is selected, you will deliver a five-minute presentation at Spark! and receive a $200 grant to be used to support parent involvement at your school. All school councils that submit a success story will have a chance to win a $200 grant as well. Please use the online form to submit your success story no later than April 12.

2013-14 PRO Grant application timeline announced!

The Ministry of Education has just announced that applications for the 2013-2014 Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants program are now open.

You can find the information here: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/reaching.HTML

The deadline to apply is May 21, 2013.

Project guidelines for school grants are available here: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/schools.html

Upcoming event - save the date
The Peel board's Parent Involvement Committee will host Spark!, an event for school council members to share parent involvement ideas, on May 7, 2013. The event will feature a presentation on PRO grants from the Ministry of Education. Expect to receive registration information next week. Councils will be invited to send two members. Schools are also invited to submit parent involvement success stories.

You may have heard that I'm leaving the Peel board. My last day is this Friday. If you have questions about PRO Grants, parent involvement or school council, please contact Carla.pereira@peelsb.com. It's been a pleasure working with you (and for you) for the past eight years.

Take care,
Alison

We're seeking new members for the Parent Involvement Committee - deadline April 26

 

We are now in the process of inviting parents to apply for four positions on the committee. The positions are two-year terms (Sept. 2013 to August 2015). In early May, a selection sub-committee consisting of current parent and trustee members will review all parent applications and select representatives using the following Parent Member Selection Criteria as a guide:

• reflects the diversity of the community
• understands the importance of parent, family and community engagement
•  has experience working with newcomers to Canada, Ontario or Peel
• has volunteer experience – including experience on school council
• has previous experience in Peel board parent involvement activities
• demonstrates advocacy and community development skills
• has a present level of involvement in the education system
•  demonstrates a keen interest in public education

 

Download the application package here.

Forms must be returned by April 26, 2013.

About PIC

Under the Ministry of Education's Parent Involvement Policy, all boards must have a committee comprised of a majority of parents that is directly linked to the director of education and trustees. The Peel board Parent Involvement Committee (PIC) meets regularly throughout the school year to review the board’s plans for parent involvement as they relate to parent, family and community engagement, and to make suggestions to schools, councils and the board regarding additional parent outreach.

As mandated by the ministry, the purpose of Peel board's PIC is to:

·         support, encourage, and enhance meaningful parental involvement within schools and across the district, including, outreach to parents who find involvement more challenging

·         work collaboratively with the school board to support student success

·         seek out the advice and ideas of school councils, and other parents and partners as they plan and implement strategies to involve more parents at the regional level

·         develop strategies for enhancing parental engagement and outreach

Membership is a majority of parents, reflecting the diversity of the parent community. 

Family engagement activities linked to learning lead to student achievement

According to Dr. Karen Mapp, family engagement activities linked to learning have the greatest impact on student achievement... seems obvious, doesn't it? Think about the activities you run as a school or council. Are they linked to learning?

Share some examples!

Thanks,
Alison

Webinar with Dr. Karen Mapp, author of Beyond the Bake Sale

I had the opportunity to attend a presentation last year hosted by the Ministry of Education featuring Dr. Karen Mapp, Professor at Harvard Graduate School of Education and co-author of ‘Beyond the Bake Sale’.

Her presentation really broadened my understanding of family engagement. I’d love to create an opportunity in the future for our school council members, principals and other school staff to hear from her. In the meantime, I’ve come across a webinar hosted by the Halton Catholic Parent Involvement Committee featuring Dr. Mapp. If you can find the time, I'm sure you'll find it's an hour well spent.

(http://youtu.be/xmp8M4qMjsc)

Feel free to post your thoughts here. I'd love to start a discussion on this.

Happy Friday everyone!  
Alison

Parent Involvement Committee meeting, plus People for Education survey

I just posted the agenda for next Monday's (Jan. 28) Parent Involvement Committee meeting. The meeting is starts at 5 p.m. in the Trustees' Area of the HJA Brown Education Centre, 5650 Hurontario Street in Mississauga. Agenda items include:

Co-chair election
Discussion about 2012-13 budget
Update on Peel region projects

Remember, these meetings are open to the public.

Also, we received this message from People For Education to our Parent Involvement Committee email account:

Dear Network Members,

The school council surveys have now been posted, so people can complete them online.  Please forward these links to all of your school contacts:

School Council Survey – English :  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PK3ZHFQ

Sondage auprès des conseils d’école – Français :  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/P8MYHKG

This is the only survey that looks at the roles and activities of school councils, so it is important that we hear from as many schools as possible.  The deadline to complete the survey is March 28, 2013. Please share this information widely.

Thanks,

Jacqui

Jacqui Strachan

Director of Outreach and Parent Support

People for Education

416-534-0100 or 1-888-534-3944

Jacqui@peopleforeducation.ca

Follow me on Twitter: @jacquistrachan

Join the P4E Online Community: http://discuss.peopleforeducation.ca/

They're asking that only one survey be submitted per school council. Please make sure your chair is aware of this. I will forward the link to our 'all school council chairs' distribution list as well.

Thanks,

Alison

Have you made your bylaws yet?

If you don't already have them, one of the things your council should do this year is create bylaws. The Ministry of Education requires every school council to have bylaws covering election procedures, conflict of interest, resolving conflict and filling vacancies.

Bylaws governing other areas of operation may also be developed. Bylaws created by the school council must not conflict with any provisions of Ontario Regulation 612/00 or the Peel board’s School Council Policy.

For tips on how to create bylaws, watch our webinar:

(http://youtu.be/lic53qdawxs)


Use our templates as a starting point.

Once you have your bylaws approved, make sure to have them posted to the school council section of your school website. Check out how they're posted at Plum Tree Park. Website posting needs to be done by an employee at the school with access to update the website. There's help available through the Communications Department. If you want to fix up your school council section and the school team with access needs a refresher, they can always contact me (Alison) at alison.farbar@peelsb.com or Kayla at kayla.tishcoff@peelsb.com.

Thanks,
Alison