The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. — Monday, January 30, 2023 at the Waterloo Region Catholic Education Centre.
General Information About WCDSB Board Meetings
Information About the Board of Trustees
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The first thing a visitor to any WCDSB school notices when they walk through the door is the vast mosaic of races, ethnic backgrounds, cultures, and languages represented by our students.
Indeed, our schools are home to students from almost 110 different countries, who speak more than 100 different languages.
So, it really is more than just a “saying” when we proudly state our schools truly do welcome the world!
In 2021-22, our Newcomer Reception Centre (NRC) welcomed 492 newcomer students to the WCDSB.
And between August and November 2022 alone we welcomed 294 newcomer students to our schools – including 24 students from Ukraine (who joined the 21 Ukrainian students who had already joined us between January and August, 2022).
Meanwhile, our St. Louis Adult Learning & Continuing Education campuses continue serving hundreds of students from dozens of families annually.
In 2021-22, St. Louis programs served the following:
As the WCDSB moves toward more inclusive language, the school board is moving away from use of the terms English Literacy Development (ELD) learners and English as a Second Language (ESL) learners and is instead moving toward speaking in terms of Multilingual Learners (MLs) or Multilingual Language Learners (MLLs), which respects the linguistic backgrounds of our students without centering English as the only language in which one can learn.
We want to celebrate multilingualism as a gift — and celebrate as our students learn more than one and, often, multiple languages.
As we move toward the third decade of the 21st century, multilingualism becomes an ever more valuable asset for our students.
While celebrating multilingualism is a daily occurrence in our schools, there is a particular, community needs-based emphasis in certain individual schools – among them, St. John CES and Resurrection CSS in Kitchener.
In the 1930s and 1940s St. John’s was home to students from numerous newcomer families. Those families – mainly from Eastern Europe – were attracted to the neighbourhood by the giant Dominion Tire plant (it eventually became Uniroyal) a short distance from the school.
The plant closed in 1993, and in the three decades since then the neighbourhood has transitioned to become home to families from many different countries.
The school is now home to students from more than two dozen different countries who speak more than two dozen languages other than English.
As significant number of newcomer families from Eritrea live within the St. John’s boundary which has made Tigrinya the most predominant language other than English spoken in the school.
St. John is part of the Resurrection CSS family of schools, which is a tremendous support for the MLs and MLLs attending St. John, since Resurrection CSS (along with St. Mary’s High School) both include fully-resourced ML/MLL Departments.
The department at Resurrection includes a department head and 11 teachers – along with a further 14 teachers who teach the school’s subject-adapted courses. They serve approximately 300 students, whose skills range from early English proficiency to those who are more proficient in English and simply require additional support and coaching to maintain their academic progress.
A small number of new students arrive to Canada lacking literacy skill in their own home language, with makes intensive support imperative.
In addition to the ML/MLL supports provided by the WCDSB, Resurrection also has an on-site Settlement Worker from the YMCA to assist newcomer families in navigating Canada’s complex immigration, health care and education sectors.
Like St. John’s, the most prominent language other than English spoken at Resurrection is Tigrinya. There are also a significant number of Spanish-speaking students. Other languages commonly heard in the hallways include Korean, Arabic, Chinese and Blin (a language spoken in Eritrea).
The ML/MLL program at Resurrection has been so successful that several students have volunteered to be language mentors for younger elementary school students. Part of this includes recording tutorial videos to assist students in leaning common English words.
In this video clip, students Azamit, Iledona and Selam translate the names of the days of the week from English to Tigrinya.
Waterloo Region’s Catholic schools are a true reflection of 21st century Waterloo Region – which for a number of years has been among the top destinations for newcomers to Canada.
As our community has grown and become ever more diverse, so have we.
After 185 years of providing Quality, Inclusive, Faith-Based education, we remain as proud as ever to remain Heart of the Community: offering Success for Each and A Place for all.
Kindergarten registration is open NOW.
Click here to register today!!!
January 26, 2023
All Student transportation cancelled, all schools are open
It’s time to sign up for the 2023-24 school year – and registering to attend one of Waterloo Region’s 43 Catholic elementary schools has never been easier.
Parents can access the Online Pre-Registration form by clicking on the Register for School link on the WCDSB Homepage and then choosing Kindergarten Registration.
To finalize your child’s registration, please contact your local Catholic school directly.
~~ When registering your child to attend a Catholic elementary school you must be prepared to provide proof of the child’s date of birth and either the child’s Catholic baptismal certificate or the Catholic baptismal certificate of at least one parent or guardian.
~~ If you are non-Catholic (including a non-Catholic newcomer to Canada), but wish to explore a Catholic education for your child(ren), please review the WCDSB Admissions to Catholic Elementary Schools policy. Our secondary schools are open to students of all faiths.
~~ A complete list of WCDSB schools that will offer the Extended Day Program in 2023-24 will be web-posted before the end of this current (2023-24) school year. Please call your school directly for information about the Extended Day Program. A complete list of WCDSB schools currently providing the program is available via this link: Extended Day Program.
~~ For information about French Immersion programs in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, please click here: French Immersion Registration Information.
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 48 schools and five adult education facilities serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 186-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
The Education Act requires school boards to develop multi-year plans that are three years or more in scope.
The WCDSB’s 2022-2025 Multi-Year Strategic Plan is aimed at achieving the Ministry of Education’s goals of increased student achievement and well-being — and equity, inclusion and opportunity for all students – while simultaneously animating the vision of the board, upholding the principles of our Catholic Social Teachings and positioning all students to meet the Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations.
The last WCDSB Multi-Year Strategic Plan reached its conclusion in 2022.
In the Spring of 2022, the WCDSB conducted a stakeholder survey to determine what should remain from the previous plan, and what should be the essential elements of the next MYSP.
There was broad consensus that the existing WCDSB Mission, Vision & Beliefs should remain unchanged.
There was also broad consensus that the following key areas of focus were essential to student success and wellbeing:
A further key consideration was to ensure the new plan had clear and obvious links to other critical board plans, including;
Finally, a foundational aspect of the plan is that each Strategic Direction will bring an intentional focus on three specific, yet inter-related audiences:
The three Strategic Directions are:
The actions articulated within each of these Strategic Directions will be monitored and evaluated on an annual basis using a variety of data sources and evidence-based indicators.
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 48 schools and four adult education facilities, serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary, and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 186-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
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Congratulations to Resurrection CSS student Caitlin Kraemer and former WCDSB student Ava Murphy for their success so far at the Women’s Under-18 World Hockey Championship in Sweden.
Caitlin leads Canada in scoring in the tournament with six goals and an assist in three games, following Canada’s 3-1 victory over the United States on January 11.
Ava (with a goal and assist) was the star of last year’s gold medal winning 3-2 victory over the United States.
We wish Caitlin, Ava and the entire National Team all the best as they head into the semi-finals on January 14.
It’s time to sign up for the 2023-24 school year – and registering to attend one of Waterloo Region’s 43 Catholic elementary schools has never been easier.
Parents can access the Online Pre-Registration form by clicking on the Register for School link on the WCDSB Homepage and then choosing Kindergarten Registration.
To finalize your child’s registration, please contact your local Catholic school directly.
~~ When registering your child to attend a Catholic elementary school you must be prepared to provide proof of the child’s date of birth and either the child’s Catholic baptismal certificate or the Catholic baptismal certificate of at least one parent or guardian.
~~ If you are non-Catholic (including a non-Catholic newcomer to Canada), but wish to explore a Catholic education for your child(ren), please review the WCDSB Admissions to Catholic Elementary Schools policy. Our secondary schools are open to students of all faiths.
~~ A complete list of WCDSB schools that will offer the Extended Day Program in 2023-24 will be web-posted before the end of this current (2023-24) school year. Please call your school directly for information about the Extended Day Program. A complete list of WCDSB schools currently providing the program is available via this link: Extended Day Program.
~~ For information about French Immersion programs in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, please click here: French Immersion Registration Information.
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 48 schools and five adult education facilities serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 186-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
