Dear Parent/Guardian,
As we come to the end of May, we have already started to experience warmer temperatures in Toronto and for many of our schools, that means uncomfortable conditions are possible inside classrooms. 

Across the TDSB, while some schools are fully air conditioned and some are partially air conditioned, others have no air conditioning. During these warmer temperatures, particularly during days of extreme heat which are no doubt around the corner, our schools do their very best to keep students cool by closing blinds, using fans, relocating to cooler areas where possible, encouraging students to drink water, reducing strenuous activities such as some gym activities, etc. As always, if there are students that have a particular susceptibility to heat or have medical concerns, students and/or parents are encouraged to speak with the Principal and they’ll do their best to accommodate them during warmer days.
The TDSB is in the process of creating cooling centres at all of our schools that don’t have full building air conditioning. This plan would cool large areas such as gyms or libraries so that students would have access to a cooler area on days of extreme heat. While we have recently accelerated the rollout of these cooling centres, given the hundreds of schools involved, the plan is expected to take approximately 4 years to fully implement. In the meantime, staff are now working to install temporary air conditioning units in school libraries to act as a temporary cooling area for any school that does not have A/C or does not already have a cooling centre. This work is expected to be complete by the end of this week. 

We appreciate your understanding of the situation as we work to make our schools as comfortable as possible during this warmer weather. For more information on heat at TDSB schools, including the challenges we face to provide full building air conditioning, visit: http://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Severe-Weathe

May School Council Outreach

• As a Butterfly Way Ranger, I have free seeds for TDSB Ward 21 schools. If you would like some for your school, please email me at Amanda@amandacain. Planting a pollinator garden is a great outreach initiative for parents and kids to work on together. Help the David Suzuki Foundation bring back the monarch butterflies by joining to plant milkweed in their yards, parks and schoolyards this spring.
• Monarch butterflies had a good winter, but they remain perilously close to extinction. Milkweed is the only plant that monarch butterflies lay their eggs on and is the primary source of food for monarch caterpillars. Scientists have identified milkweed planting as the most important action people can take to help support threatened monarch populations.

PIAC 

• "Best Practices in Parent Consultation" Survey with the school councils and parents in your Ward. The survey will be open until the end of May. The survey results will be used in our final draft of our Best Practices recommendation to the TDSB. https://goo.gl/forms/fDP3mqk8RwENwNV22
• The Ontario provincial election is officially underway. Join 2,300+ schools across the province by registering for at StudentVote.ca and receiving your free resource materials.
• NOTICE:
  PACE/TDSB just deleted school council bank account login access. PACE, via an email to the Principals, is relegating parent members (councils) to "delegate status", which is defined by PACE as:
  "Delegate" means an Initiator Delegate or a Read Only Delegate, as applicable." 
  Councils need to contact business services immediately to clarify this "delegate" status and ensure that council members still have signatory and administrative access to their own PACE bank accounts.

North West Paula McLaughlin 416-395-8042
[email protected]
South West Walter Novachefski 416-395-8044
[email protected]
North East Anita Gaskin 416-395-8043
[email protected]
South East Wendy Heis 416-395-8041
[email protected]

• School Boards are REQUIRED to consult with school councils on any changes to policies or guidelines that affect school council fundraising activities. There was no consultation conducted with school councils on any changes to the current fundraising or fund management guidelines. The TDSB has no policy allowing staff to seize control of council accounts or finances.

TDSB

• The Student Health Support Policy is a new policy being developed and its objective is to provide effective support to the TDSB students, including those with prevalent medical conditions, to fully access school in a safe, accepting, and healthy learning environment. Prevalent medical conditions have the potential to result in a medical incident or a life-threatening medical emergency and include anaphylaxis, asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, sickle cell disorder, and other conditions and disorders. We would like to share this draft policy with you and seek your input. The draft Student Health Support Policy is posted for your review and comment at:http://www.tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Policies-Procedures-Forms/Policy-Consultations. Please share with us your thoughts, questions and recommendations on the draft policy by email to [email protected] on or before the closing date.

French Review

• With over 90,000 students in Core French and another 28,000 students in French Immersion/Extended French programs come system successes and challenges. We are proud of the Board’s successes in retention rate, inclusion of students with special education needs as well as accessibility and transportation. At the same time, challenges include multiple entry points, equity of access, and transportation.
• As part of the Director’s Response to the Enhanced Equity Task Force Report, a review of all French Programs will begin in Spring 2018. In collaboration with the TDSB Research Department, this review will focus on the current status of all French Programs, including the structure, content of the teaching and learning, and policies and procedures related to French. We look forward to receiving feedback about the successes and challenges of the various French Programs through face-to-face consultation with parents/guardians, Trustees, staff, students and community members and an online survey (available soon!).

View last year's report here: Annual Report: Enrolment, Successes, Challenges of French Programs.
DATE
LOCATION
Thursday, May 24
7:00 to 9:00 pm, Advisory Committees Consultation 
(5050 Yonge Street - Committee Room A)

• School communities across the province are encouraged to register for Bike to School Week 28 May-1 June 2018. Visit the Bike to School Week website for a wealth of resources, including posters, activity ideas, incentives, and prizes. The step-by-step Guide for Schools is a great place to start.
• ​Summer School: The TDSB provides a wide range of enriching summer programs for children, youth and adults. For more information, including a complete list of 2018 summer programs, click here.

1. Trustee Patel will be hosting another Ward Forum on April 26, 2018. Please register here to attend.  We will discuss how changes in provincial education funding will effect our children's success. Poster is attached.
2. Scarborough Trustees will be hosting a meeting pertaining to the changes in provincial funding for schools and will discuss how this will impact our schools. Poster attached.
3. The Ontario College of Teachers Speakers Bureau can connect you with College professionals with expertise in the protection of the public interest who can speak on a wide variety of professional standards and regulatory governance topics. This service is available across Ontario to professional associations/regulators and groups providing services to students, parents/families, teachers, business professionals, new immigrants and more, click here to see the topics
4. Curious about the qualifications of your child's teacher? The College Council grants the Ontario Certified Teacher (OCT) designation to qualified, competent members in good standing only. Visit our public register, Find a Teacher, to see the qualifications of Ontario's certified teachers.
5. Did you know the TDSB offers specialized school Academies for elementary students interested in singing (Scarborough), Health and Wellness, Sports and Wellness and Boys Leadership? Visit here to learn more and attend an school open house.

 PIAC TDSB Update

1.  Applications for 2018-19 PRO Grants are now being accepted on-line by the Ministry of Education. Deadline to apply is June 5, 2018 at 11:59 PM EST. Under the Ministry's Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants for School Councils program, school councils are eligible to receive up to $1000 to support projects that help identify and remove barriers that may prevent some parents from fully participating in their children's learning. For information on the application process, please visit Parents Reaching Out Grants at: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/reaching.HTML
2. School councils with TDSB e-mail challenges may contact [email protected] will be rolled for the beginning of the next school year 2018-2019 (Sept/Oct)For the 2017-2018 school year , Council accounts will continue as a shared mailboxPasswords have been extended to one year. Password management (ability to change own password) will be explored for council supports for 2018.
3.  As part of the Director’s Response to the Enhanced Equity Task Force Report, a review of all French Programs will begin in Spring 2018. In collaboration with the TDSB Research Department, this review will focus on the current status of all French Programs, including the structure, content of the teaching and learning, and policies and procedures related to FrenchConsultation meetings will be held throughout the month of May. For details visit: http://www.tdsb.on.ca/Community/Public-Consultations/French-Review 
4. How does the TDSB communicate with you? The survey will provide PIAC Consultations with basic information about parent experiences with TDSB communications and consultation formats. The data will be used in drafting our Best Practices documents: https://goo.gl/forms/CAQyRWG3vJVf6iab2Many schools have been asking for clarification around child minding guidelines during council meetings etc. Please see the document below for your school to put into practice.
5. Parents have been asking about childcare guidelines for in school events. Please see below for the PIAC response.