PEC Minutes - December 2017

Minutes of Parish Education Committee Meeting – December 12, 2017

A.     Call to order

• Meeting Called to Order at 7: 10PM
• Present:  Maria Fonseca, Father Chu, Luisa Cenedese, Megan Bolton, Chris Brant, Deborah Harms, Jennifer Friesen, Jacqueline Johnson, and Layna Neilson.
• Absent: Jason Borkowski

B.     Opening Prayer

• Opening Prayer led by Megan Bolton.

C.     Review of the November 14, 2017 Minutes

• The November 14, 2017 meeting minutes were approved by email provided some wording be changed.   The edited wording was reviewed and minutes were approved.

D.     Discussion Items

1.      Chairperson’s Update:

• Luisa presented updated CISVA Policies via email prior to the meeting. 
  • CISVA policies relevant to parents will be included in the CCS Parent Handbook to provide an easy reference for parents.
• There will be a PEC Workshop on January 24 at IC Delta. 

2.      Principal’s Update

• Spiritual:
  • Advent Assemblies: We will have the first of three consecutive weekly advent assemblies Wednesday, December 6.
  • Christmas Hamper Help: Several intermediate classes and staff will be going to Cloverdale fairgrounds exhibition hall to help pack Christmas hampers in conjunction with Pacific Community Church.  Staff will use the December 13 staff meeting time to do so.
  • Christmas Hampers for Precious Blood: Classes are collecting items for the Precious Blood Saint Vincent de Paul Society
  • First Confessions: First Confessions for Grade 2 students took place November 24.  Sister was very pleased at the students’ (and parents’) level of engagement in Adoration while waiting for their turns for confession.
• Academic
  • Hiring two teachers: We have two positions to fill for 2018.
    • Miss Barboza’s grade 3 position needs to be filled prior to Christmas as she will not be returning after the Christmas break.  We have a very promising candidate for this position
    • Mrs. Sene’s grade 6position will need to be filled for February 1st.  While it would be preferable to hire before Christmas, we could wait until January if a suitable candidate is not found now.
  • Hiring Educational Assistant: We have many applications for this position.  Jason has narrowed the selection to Catholic candidates only and at least two are very promising.  We will interview for this position this week.
  • Staff Growth Plans: Each staff member is required to complete a “Growth Plan” each year to lay out their goals for personal and professional growth.
  • Return of Mr. Sutton: Mr. Sutton has returned from his practicum and is now a fully trained teacher.  He is still awaiting his official certification from the BC Ministry of Education, but this is just a matter of time.  He is currently doing Learning Assistance and IT support.  He will begin teaching French in grades 5-7 beginning in January
     
• Social/Emotional
  • Hiring CYCW: We have many applications for this position.  Jason has narrowed the selection to Catholic candidates only and at least two are very promising.  We will interview for this position this week.
  • Friends for Life Program: Mr. Borkowski has started the Friends for Life Program with our Grade 4 classes.  This is an anxiety reduction and social skills building program.
  • ERASE Bullying Training: Mr. Borkowski and Mrs. Fonseca have both completed their training in the ERASE Bullying series.  Our school has now fulfilled the provincial requirement to have two fully trained staff members.
  • Sexuality and Your Child: Plans have begun for our “Sexuality and Your Child” meeting which will take place on Thursday, January 11th.  Rather than hire Signal Hill to coordinate the speakers we are hoping to do the majority of the presentations in house.  Mr. Pistrin and Mr. Borkowski are prepared to be presenters.  Other speakers are being arranged.
     
• Extra-Curricular
  • Volleyball Season: Volleyball season ended with our grade 6 girls competing in the final tournament in Burnaby.  The level of competition was very high.
  • Basketball Season: We have six teams up and running for the coming season.  All teams have teacher coaches and several have help from parents.  Participation levels are good.
  • Christmas Concert: The Christmas Concert is December 19th with performances at 1pm and 7pm.  Mrs. Mar warns that the concert may be a little longer than in the past since she has basically two concerts with one for primary and one for intermediate.
• Other
  • Communications
    • Mr. Borkowski has received feedback from parents regarding a perceived lack of clarity on issues and events around the school
    • The school website and calendar received updates and a December Newsletter was emailed home.
    •  The return of Mr. Suttion should help immensely in this regard as he is very capable of keeping the website up to date
    • Another part of the problem is the nature of modern communications.  The school has sent out far more communications this year than ever before, but electronic communications seem to be perceived differently than conventional paper notices.
  • Uniform Update: Jason and Luisa have a meeting scheduled with Mr. Howard Vineberg from Top Marks; discussion items will include Boys’ uniform pants.
  • Early Drop Off/Late Pick Up: Mr. Borkowski hosted an assembly and sent a notice to families regarding changes to drop off and pick up.  Very little feedback was received; however some intermediate parents have complained that their children are old enough to be left alone.  The changes have had the desired effect as fewer students are at the school outside of the supervision times.
  • Night Security: There have been numerous disturbances and some vandalism on the property.  In addition to calling the police each time it happens we need to consider further means of making sure our students and property are secure.  Security cameras are a relatively simple and inexpensive way we can deter this activity.
  • Bell System: the school has received two quotes for a new bell system.  The quotes seem high and concerns for the long term use of the new bell system were discussed.  Clarification on all the details and functions of the bell systems is needed before making a decision on which to purchase.

3.      Financial Report

• The budget was reviewed and is on track for a balanced year.

4.      Family Service Update

• 72 of 200 families have completed their Family Service obligation for Term 1 of the 2017/18 school year.
• We have only had 2 inquiries for in person training for OnVolunteers.
• We have tentatively scheduled Staff and coordinator training for Jan 2018.

5.      Maintenance Update

• The Work Bee went well again this month.  A lot of cleaning was done and a list was compiled of what was done in each room.  This information will be used to create a schedule of cleaning items for work bees.
• Jacqueline is still working on gathering quotes for the paving project. 
• Access to the parish center is needed for work bees.  There was a job not done this month due to not being able to get into the room where tables are stored.  Jacqueline will rectify this in time for the next work bee.
• Several cleaning bottles went missing from the work bee cupboard which made cleaning challenging.  Jacqueline has ordered more and they will be labelled “WORK BEE” to help them to be returned if borrowed.  More rags also need to be purchased as we seem to have fewer of those as well.

6.      Parent Fundraising Group (PFG) Update

• The Drop and Shop fundraiser was a success, we are still waiting to calculate the totals.
• The PFG will run the concession at the Christmas concert; an announcement for baking donations will be posted.
• There is a possibility that there may be a tree-chipping fundraiser, but this is not confirmed.

7.      Secretary Report

• No Report.

8.      Vice-Chair Report

• No report.

E.      Closing Prayer

• Led by Megan Bolton.

F.      Meeting Adjourned

• Meeting adjourned at 9:07 PM following the in-camera session.The next PEC meeting will be Tuesday January 16th at 7pm.