MINUTES

BHS School Council Minutes - Tuesday October 25, 2016

The meeting called to order by Joe Dalrymple at 6:30 p.m.

In Attendance: School Staff

James Patenall (Principal)

In Attendance:

Joe Dalrymple, Mary Lou Foster, Heather Vickers, Kelly Paron, Pamela Goss, Wendy McLean, Jennifer Killin, Stephanie Jones, Christine Barkey and Tenzin Shomar.

Introduction – Joe opened the meeting and introductions were made.

Approval of Agenda - Motion to adopt agenda was unanimous. Motion carried.

Treasurers Report

 No money in any accounts as of yet as funds are just being received from the Ministry and the School Board.

Administration Report - The highlights are as follows:

 Principal James Patenall introduced himself to council. His first day at BHS was October 3rd. This is his first placement has Principal and prior to this he has been in a vice principal role for over 6 years where his philosophy is that school is a place of learning not punishment. Open and regular communication with students, staff and parents will be a focus.

 Grade 9 Retreat was held and approximately 125 grade 9’s participated. This is an event hosted by the B-Link leaders to promote new friendships and team building for the grade 9’s.

 Progress reports went home and on October 20th Parents night was held.

 Various sports teams and clubs are in full swing at BHS.

 Commencement will be held on November 4 and Charlotte Filip will be returning to give the Principals address to the graduates.

 Upcoming projects planned for BHS include an electronic sign, a renovation to the Learning Commons (Library) which will provide a 21st century approach to learning for students by promoting collaboration. Finally, all classrooms will have a technology upgrade. (i.e. smart boards or white boards will be installed)

 Current enrollment is 987 students and there are currently 8 portables on site.

Upcoming Events

 October 28 – PA Day

 November 2th – take your kids to work day for Grade 9’s

 November 4th - Commencement

 TERM 1 EXAMS – January 27th to February 2nd 2017

 2 trips being planned for the spring of 2017; Tanzania and Vimy Ridge

 March 2017 OSSLT for grade 10’s to be rescheduled

Student Report

 Tenzin explained his role as a KPR student trustee.

 There are many new teachers and students at BHS including 2 exchange students.

 Tenzin is a B-Link leader this year and the grade 9 retreat was a great experience.

 Preparations for the Relay for Life are currently underway.

Clarington School Council Association Update

 First meeting of the school year was held on October 19.

 Focus was on best practices and setting norms for council; set start and end times, no cell phones, not a venue to deal with conflicts.

 KPR focus as a whole is Math, in secondary schools there will be math coaches and additional math teachers in applied classes.

 Trustees want to know the great things that are happening at KPR schools.

 The group discussed how councils can effectively recruit and increase parental attendance/involvement at school council meetings. i.e. Edsby has a council section.

New Business

 A concern regarding final exams in portables was raised. Mr. Patenall indicated that in the future holding exams in portables will be avoided if possible.

 Parent Reaching Out Grant – Council did not apply for the grant last spring but will consider starting the application process in order to be ready for the May 2017 application deadline.

 Cancellation of Grade 9 Dance – There were only about 70 tickets sold (of approx. 220 grade 9 students) so it wasn’t financially feasible to hold a dance for a small number of students. The hope is to schedule another dance for the Grade 9’s as long as there is enough participation.

 The school website will be revamped shortly – transitioning to “Websby”

 A lengthy discussion was held regarding the cancellation/postponement of the grade 10 OSSLT. The pilot of computerized testing is concerning to council. There are not enough computers for all students and this resulted in 2 testing groups. The group that was unfortunate to be second sat around all morning and it was felt that the sitting caused restlessness and anxiety. The Durham Board had a PA day for all students not writing the OSSLT so that all staff could focus on the grade 10’s and all grade 10’s could write the test at the same time since all classrooms and computers were available. Furthermore, many kids may not be comfortable with taking the test on the computer and may want to take the test using paper and pen. ACTION ITEM: Council agreed that a letter from council to the board, the Minister of Education, and to the head of EQAO is required to point out the concerns we have regarding the change to computerized testing and the impact this change will have on the students. Any changes should support an increase in student success and should not be made to increase the efficiency of administering the test.

 BHS Council Election of Council Executive – All positions filled by way of acclamation

2016 – 2017 BHS Council Executive

Position                                         Member

BHS Council Chair:                         Joe Dalrymple

BHS Council Secretary:                   Mary Lou Foster

BHS Council Treasurer:                   Heather Vickers

BHS Region Council Rep:                Kelly Paron

BHS Student Rep                            Tenzin Shomar

Future meetings will all start promptly at 6:30. The next meeting is scheduled for November 29, 2016.

Tentative dates (after the November meeting) are as follows;

January 17, 2017

February 21, 2017

April 18, 2017

May 23, 2017

Meeting adjourned at 7:47pm