October 23, 2023—This is a summary of the October 23, 2023 public meeting of the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board. Official minutes will be approved at the next regular meeting.
Acknowledgement of Traditional Lands
Recited by Ron Speck, Trustee, North Hastings: As Trustees for Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board and as settlers to this land, we acknowledge and honour the land on which we reside, occupy and meet as part of the traditional territories of the Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat and Anishinabek people. These Indigenous Nations agreed to mutual sharing obligations and responsibilities as stewards of the land and water. Today these responsibilities and obligations extend to all Peoples. These lands are steeped in rich Indigenous history, traditions and modern cultures that are proud and vibrant. The Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board supports and is committed to the stewardship of the land, and the responsibilities we hold to ensure that learning, education programs and services support all staff and students.
Presentation: On the Move with Math at Park Dale School
Students at Park Dale School in Belleville are improving in learning math. The school is a Focus School at HPEDSB, as identified by the Ministry of Education. The school team shared the approach to teaching and learning, highlighting successes, which include using high impact instructional practices; engaging in professional learning; and knowing their learners. Families are engaged through school open houses and collaboration is key to making improvements.
Thank you to the presenters: Bentley Farrell, Student; Faris Lashari, Student; Lindsay Bolton, Teacher; Leah Gariepy, Teacher; Jake Wallwork, Vice-principal; and Cassandra Windsor, Principal.
Report from external organizations
Ontario Public School Board Association (OPSBA)
- OPSBA hosted an online workshop called Meaningful Engagement as part of its Good Governance Leaders Academy.
- OPSBA hosted a townhall that was facilitated by law firm Neinstein LLP, on the potential opportunity for Ontario school boards to join a mass tort lawsuit that names social media companies Meta, Snap(Chat) and TikTok as the defendants.
- Local Government Week was last week and was promoted throughout HPEDSB.
- OPSBA has prepared these submissions to the government:
- Submission on Surplus School Board Property + Schools on a Shared Site
- Pre-Budget Consultation on Education Funding and the upcoming Grants for Student Needs
- The Eastern Region Meeting on November 4, 2023 will be hosted by Upper Canada DSB at Gananoque Intermediate Secondary School.
Reports from Standing Committees
Governance and Policy Meeting October 16, 2023
By-law revisions
Board members approved the suggested By-law revisions effective, October 23, 2023. Clarification was required in a few sections following one year of use by the Board. The edits do not substantively change the By-law. Find out more starting on page 26 of the October 23, 2023 agenda.
Student Learning, Well-being, and Equity Committee, October 2, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Reculturing of individual education plans (IEPs)
- EQAO update
Physical Planning, Finance and Building Committee, October 10, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Capital projects and construction updates
Report from Statutory Committees
Audit Committee
Regional Internal Audit Plan
Board members approved the 2023-2024 Regional Internal Audit Plan. For 2023-2024, the focus is expected to be on the cyclical, mandated risk assessment, allowing HPEDSB and Regional Internal Audit Team to assess the current risk environment and align their work accordingly. Find out more starting on page 86 of the October 23, 2023 agenda.
Parent Involvement Committee, October 18, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Alison Kelly and Harley Hill were elected as co-chairs for this school year.
Special Education Advisory Committee, September 26, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Reculturing of individual education plans (IEPs)
- Personnel updates
Supervised Alternative Learning Committee, September 21 & 27 and October 4 & 19, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- A recap of the number of students approved for Supervised Alternative Learning so far this school year.
Report from Advisory Committees
Equity and Inclusivity Advisory Committee, October 11, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Reviewed the Equity Action Plan
Indigenous Education Advisory Committee, October 4, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Professional learning for Eastside Secondary School staff during the September PA day, hosted on Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory
Student Voice, Plan for 2023-2024
Highlights from this report included the following:
- The three student trustees attended the annual fall conference of the Ontario Student Trustees' association this past weekend
Administrative Committee Reports
Mental Health Leadership Team, September 19, 2023
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Topics from this meeting were reported at the September Board meeting during the Student Services update.
Chair’s Report
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Participation on a Learning Foundation committee.
Director’s Report
Highlights from this report included the following:
- Preview of a new student achievement data web page, which will go live later this week
- The focus this year is on data use and data literacy, putting real time data into the hands of school administrators to enable them to make informed decisions and measure the impact of those decisions.
- Hosted the EQAO team last week during meetings with school administrators to review data and assist principals use it for school improvement planning and improved student outcomes.
- The Director of Education attended a Vital Signs Report meeting, met with the Hastings County CAO and has been meeting with local federation presidents.
- The Director of Education visited schools last week to distribute Ray of Sunshine recognition to 10 employees. They were nominated by their peers for bringing joy to the workplace.
- Tomorrow (Tuesday) is the first of three community breakfasts, with one in Belleville, then Picton, then Bancroft. Invitations were sent to community partners that support students, programming and/or safe schools. The aim is to engage with partners to hear about education topics important them and ensure we are working collaboratively and efficiently to provide the best possible coordinated outcomes for students and families.
Staff Reports
Capital and Building Renewal Projects update
A significant portion of the building renewal funding provided by the Ministry of Education is aligned to address urgent and high priority needs that are identified through the Condition Assessment Program. The Ministry’s direction is to focus on major building components and systems. This includes: the building substructure (e.g., foundation, basement walls); the building shell/superstructure (e.g., roof, exterior walls, and exterior windows) and systems (e.g., HVAC, ventilation, plumbing, fire protection) that have been identified as having reached their lifespan.
HPEDSB currently has more than $213 million in building renewal needs and elementary buildings are, on average, 59 years old and secondary buildings are 68 years old. Approximately $18.2 million of capital construction work was completed in 2022-2023. Find out more starting on page 91 of the October 23, 2023 agenda.
EQAO results
Upon reviewing EQAO data for HPEDSB, some sustained achievement can be seen in multiple areas of provincial assessments and also some positive growth in math at Grade 6 and the Grade 10 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test results. The data is being used amongst educators to: see trends in student learning and progress, to assist with improving student achievement and well-being at individual, classroom, school, and board levels; gain insight into whether students are meeting curriculum expectations in reading, writing, and math at key stages of their education, as well as student’s attitudes and habits towards learning; to identify areas of growth and need, specific to the board priorities in reading and mathematics, that may require more intentional teaching and student learning opportunities Find out more starting on page 93 of the October 23, 2023 agenda.
Math Achievement Action Plan
The Ministry of Education (MOE) has developed a Math Achievement Action Plan whereby HPEDSB priority schools were identified based on 2021-2022 EQAO math assessment results. To improve math achievement in these schools, the MOE has provided funding for math facilitators to work directly with students and teachers in the identified Grade 3, 6 and 9 classrooms. MOE funding has also been provided for HPEDSB to purchase digital math tools and to provide an incentive for educators to complete math additional qualifications courses.
The HPEDSB MAAP is completed using the MOE’s Taking Action in Mathematics document. The MAAP includes targeted needs (informed by multiple data sources, including EQAO), and identification of targeted strategies at each of the board, school, and classroom levels aligned to the three pillars found in the Taking Action in Mathematics document. Key performance indicators (KPI) are provided as tools to measure results toward improvement in mathematics achievement in each pillar. Boards are also required to provide a separate Priority School Provincial KPI report to the Ministry which includes data related to level of achievement on math report cards, individual attendance rates equal or greater to 90 percent, and students attitudes and confidence about math. Find out more starting on page 94 of the October 23, 2023 agenda.
Calendar of events
Upcoming trustee events
- Public Education Symposium: January 25-26, 2024; registration will open in November.
Upcoming committee meetings
- October 26: Special Education Advisory Committee
- November 1: Supervised Alternative Learning
- November 6: Student Learning, Well-Being and Equity Committee
- November 8: Audit Committee
- November 13: Physical Planning, Finance and Building Committee
- November 15: Supervised Alternative Learning
- November 15: Parent Involvement Committee
- November 20: Inaugural Meeting of the Board
- November 21: Governance and Policy Committee
- November 21: Mental Health Leadership Team
- November 23: Special Education Advisory Committee
- November 23: Food for Learning Committee
- November 27: Organization Meeting of the Board
- November 29: Supervised Alternative Learning
Upcoming school events
- Bird’s Creek Public School:
- November 1: New Social Emotional Learning Skill – Social Awareness
- November 3: Responsibility Assembly
- November 9: Remembrance Day Assembly with guest speakers from the Canadian Peace Museum
- November 15: School wide Math Problem Solving Challenge
- November 27: Grade 8 pictures and retakes
- Deseronto Public School:
- November 8: Indigenous Veterans and Remembrance Day Assembly
- November 23: Bus Safety Presentations
- Eastside Secondary School:
- November 2: International Baccalaureate (IB) Family Night
- November 14: Ontario University Fair
- November 23: Grade 8 Parent Information Night
- Madoc Township Public School
- November 8: Bus Safety Presentations
- November 9: Remembrance Day Assembly
- November 30: Grade 8 Orientation at Central Hastings School
- Prince Edward Collegiate Institute:
- November 9: Remembrance Day Assembly
- Queen Elizabeth School:
- November 9: Remembrance Day assembly
- November 27: Community Assembly
- November 23: Grade 8 Information Night and Open House at Eastside Secondary School
- Every Thursday: Hot lunch for students
- Tweed Elementary School
- November 14: Grade 7 Immunizations
- November 28: Grade 8 Day at Central Hastings School
- November 30: Grade 8 Information Night at Central Hastings School
- V.P. Carswell Elementary School
- November 9: Remembrance Day Assembly
- November 14: Anti-Bullying Assembly
- November 27: Scholastic Book Fair
For more information, please contact Kerry Donnell, Communications and Privacy Manager, 613-966-1170, extension 62354, or 613-847-0696, or [email protected]