All epic artists have been ARTrageous in their own time. Grade 7&8 Students will be inspired to create, plan and explore their own unique style during the two day program. Register online by Friday Jan 25th
The new 2018-2021 WCDSB Multi-Year Strategic Plan was presented to the Board of Trustees on Monday, January 14, 2019.
The work of developing this Strategic Plan commenced in the spring of 2018, under the direction of the Board of Trustees, at which time stakeholders were engaged in a survey that asked them to reflect both on the current MYSP and their vision for our priorities going forward. This plan has been positioned as an extension of the 2015-2018 plan and finds its roots in that work. The Strategic Priorities identified by the previous Board of Trustees have remained core to this document, but the two Strategic Directions for each priority and the corresponding goals represent new work and visioning. An Executive Summary of the plan is available by clicking HERE.
In the fall of 2018 the Senior Team worked with the above framework to develop the comprehensive new MYSP. A significant debt is owed to the Senior Team who worked diligently to ensure that priorities and goals were responsive, and would propel the board forward. Further consultation took place with stakeholders in the early fall to inform the refinement of that work and all administrators were given the opportunity for final feedback before the plan was finalized.
Our sincerest thanks to everyone who has had a contributing voice in the development of our new 2018-2021 Waterloo Catholic District School Board Multi-Year Strategic Plan: Living in Faith. We believe it will provide us the direction and the framework to guide our Board forward as one of the true leaders and innovators in Catholic Education in the world.
Loretta Notten, Director of Education Bill Conway, Chair of the Board
WCDSB staff wish to bring “Joy to the World” …. with a twist.
‘Tis the season – and the Resurrection C.S.S. Grade 9 Vocal Music Class and some very excited and #WCDSBAwesome WCDSB Principals wish to spread their Christmas joy in their special rendition of the “12 Days of Christmas”. Merry Christmas everyone…!
Monday, December 3, 2018 – Meeting Agenda Package
Monday, December 10, 2018 — Meeting Agenda Package
On December 3, 2018 the Board of Trustees of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board elected Cambridge / North Dumfries Trustee Bill Conway as Chair of the Board, and Waterloo / Woolwich / Wellesley Trustee Melanie Van Alphen as Vice-Chair of the Board.
Most recently Vice-Chair of the Board, Trustee Conway succeeds Cambridge / North Dumfries Trustee Wendy Price, who remains as a Trustee.
The Inaugural Board Meeting was preceded by a special Mass, celebrated by the Most Rev. Douglas Crosby, O.M.I, Bishop of Hamilton. The Mass featured a special Commissioning Ceremony of members of the Board of Trustees, who were elected in the October 2018 municipal elections.
As part of the ceremony, the Board warmly welcomed first-time Trustees Kevin Dupuis and Tracey Weiler, both of whom represent Kitchener / Wilmot.
The new Board of Trustees is comprised of the following representatives:
Bill Conway (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Manuel da Silva (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Kevin Dupuis (Kitchener / Wilmot) **
Jeanne Gravelle (Waterloo / Wellesley / Woolwich)
Wendy Price (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Greg Reitzel (Kitchener / Wilmot)
Brian Schmalz (Kitchener / Wilmot)
Melanie Van Alphen (Waterloo / Wellesley / Woolwich)
Tracey Weiler (Kitchener / Wilmot) **
Meghan Nemeth and Izabella Tyc are the Student Trustees.
** = first elected in 2018 election
At the December 10th Public Board Meeting, newly-elected Board Chair Bill Conway presented his first Chair’s Report. The report is available on page 33 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
The Multi-Year Strategic Plan provides the road map for the staff of Waterloo Catholic District School Board and proclaims to the broader community our goals and aspirations. Per Section 283(3) of the Education Act the Director of Education must submit an Annual Report at the first Board meeting of December of each year reporting on the progress of the Board against the stated goals. As was reflected when the June 2018 Report Card brought to board on the Multi-Year Strategic Plan 2015-2018, there has been strong progress against all nine of our strategic directions, within our three priority areas.
The report takes a primarily electronic format this year – which is to say, while there will be a limited number of hard copy versions of the report, the primary design was intended for web presentation, and the hope is that the points of celebration will be seen equally strongly in word and picture.
We are tremendously proud of the accomplishments of our staff and students, and the vibrant connection that exists between home, parish and school.
Please visit https://annual.wcdsb.ca/ to view the report.
The Education Act requires school boards to develop multi-year plans that are 3 years or more in scope. The multi-year plan provides focus and direction to the board to achieve both the Ministry of Education goals but just as importantly, the vision of the board.
The province has clearly identified its aspiration that Ontario’s educators will be supported in learning continuously and will be recognized as among the best in the world. The Waterloo Catholic District School Board’s Multi-Year Strategic Plan has endeavoured to be faithful to these articulated priorities, as well to our Catholic Graduate Expectations and the principles of our Catholic Social Teachings.
The current three-year Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP), approved in December of 2015, concludes at the end of December 2018. In the spring of 2018 a system survey took place to both inform the report card on the current plan and to inform direction for the next iteration of the MYSP.
The new plan continues to be anchored by the role our faith plays in all our experiences in our Catholic schools, our vision for equity and inclusion, the focus areas of graduation rates, numeracy achievement in grade 6 and 9 and secondary literacy achievement, as well as fostering and celebrating our strong culture of innovation.
For a summary of the 2018-2022 MYSP, please see pages 27-32 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
In Waterloo Region’s Catholic Schools our Equity, Diversity and Learning (EDL) Committee has set a goal of building educator capacity to serve all students and assist in removing identified barriers to success. In our Catholic context, we employ a lens of liberation theology with a strong emphasis on the social teaching of preferential option for the poor. Simply stated, this involves empowering students and their families to advocate for change so that they may not just survive but thrive in our school communities. Additionally, we have committed to supporting our school administrators and educators in understanding and working to remove barriers that exist for students in accessing their learning.
Throughout this school year, we are following the Ontario Education Equity Action Plan’s key priorities in four areas:
The report is available on pages 21-24 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Committee of the Whole Board Meeting
Monday, January 14, 2018
Regular Public Board Meeting
Monday, January 21, 2018
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 49 schools and four adult education facilities, serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 182-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
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For more information, please contact:
John Shewchuk – Chief Managing Officer | (519) 578-3660 | john.shewchuk@wcdsb.ca
Regular monthly Board and Committee of the Whole Board meetings of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board’s elected Board of Trustees are open to the public, and members of the public are always welcome to attend.
Please CLICK HERE to view the agenda for the December 10, 2018 Regular Public Board Meeting.
Please CLICK HERE to visit the Board of Trustees page on our website.
Please CLICK HERE for the Waterloo Region Catholic Education Centre’s location information.
Meetings generally adhere to the following schedule:
Committee of the Whole
Second Monday of each month at 6:00 p.m.
Regular Board Meeting
Fourth Monday of each month at 6:00 p.m.
Special Education Advisory Committee
First Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m.
Delegations wishing to address a committee or the Board are required to e-mail alice.figueiredo@wcdsb.ca by the Wednesday prior to the meeting. Each delegation will be allowed ten minutes.
The Board of Trustees of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board has elected Cambridge / North Dumfries Trustee Bill Conway as Chair of the Board, and Waterloo / Woolwich / Wellesley Trustee Melanie Van Alphen as Vice-Chair of the Board. The meeting was held Monday, December 3, 2018 at the Waterloo Region Catholic Education Centre.
Most recently Vice-Chair of the Board, Trustee Conway succeeds Cambridge / North Dumfries Trustee Wendy Price, who remains as a Trustee.
The Inaugural Board Meeting was preceded by a special Mass, celebrated by the Most Rev. Douglas Crosby, O.M.I, Bishop of Hamilton. The Mass featured a special Commissioning Ceremony of members of the Board of Trustees, who were elected in the October 2018 municipal elections.
As part of the ceremony, the Board warmly welcomed first-time Trustees Kevin Dupuis and Tracey Weiler, both of whom represent Kitchener / Wilmot.
The new Board of Trustees is comprised of the following representatives:
Bill Conway (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Manuel da Silva (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Kevin Dupuis (Kitchener / Wilmot) **
Jeanne Gravelle (Waterloo / Wellesley / Woolwich)
Wendy Price (Cambridge / North Dumfries)
Greg Reitzel (Kitchener / Wilmot)
Brian Schmalz (Kitchener / Wilmot)
Melanie Van Alphen (Waterloo / Wellesley / Woolwich)
Tracey Weiler (Kitchener / Wilmot) **
Meghan Nemeth and Izabella Tyc are the Student Trustees.
** = first elected in 2018 election
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 49 schools and four adult education facilities, serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 182-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
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For more information, please contact:
John Shewchuk – Chief Managing Officer | (519) 578-3660 | john.shewchuk@wcdsb.ca
Monday, November 12, 2018 – Meeting Agenda Package
Monday, November 26, 2018 — Meeting Agenda Package
The Teacher Learning and Leadership Program (TLLP) is an annual project-based professional learning opportunity for experienced classroom teachers. Through the TLLP, the Ministry of Education has, for the past decade, supported hundreds of teacher-led projects across the province. The program funds proposals from classroom teachers who seek a peer leadership role in curriculum, instructional practice or supporting other teachers.
Goals:
There has been no communication to school boards from the Ministry regarding requests for proposals for Teacher Learning and Leadership Program (TLLP) for 2019-2020. While this leaves the future of TLLPs uncertain, the WCDSB will continue to support current TLLPs and search for ways in which these collaborative endeavours align with other initiatives and priorities.
To view the complete report, please see pages 7-11 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
We began our three-year pastoral plan with the theme People of Love in 2015-2016. During the 2016-17 school year our focused theme was on People of Hope. Over this past school year our focus has been People of Faith.
Each year of the current pastoral plan has been animated across the district with the use of an artifact that is used in all our schools to unify our school communities around the common theme. In October of the 2017-18 school year, we used the experience of our annual Spiritual Development Day to launch the third year of our three-year pastoral plan, and to introduce the pilgrimage cross, the artifact selected to animate and amplify our theme throughout all school communities.
As we prepare to conclude our present pastoral plan, we are encouraged by the fact that in our most recent Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP) survey, 87% of survey responders agreed or strongly agreed that school communities were engaged in understanding and living our three-year pastoral plan. Our goal with the soon-to-be-released new Pastoral Plan will be to carry this same momentum forward.
For a complete summary of the 2016-2018 Pastoral Plan, please see pages 12-14 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Within the Waterloo Catholic District School Board, there are many support services available for students with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Through a collaborative approach within a school team, the classroom teacher works alongside the Special Education teacher to develop and provide appropriate programming for students diagnosed with ASD. Other school-level support staff involved may include an Educational Assistant and/or Child and Youth Care Worker.
Additional supports are also available for students who are:
To view the full report, please see pages 53-55 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Trends in the number of newcomer students processed through the Newcomer Reception Centre continue to increase year over year. The vast majority of these students have English as an Additional Language learning needs.
There are more than six hundred students at the WCDSB who are in their first two years in Canada and almost 1,000 students in elementary schools who are in their first four years in Canada. The board currently serves students from 114 different countries who speak a total of 118 different languages.
To view the full report, please see pages 56-59 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) released its new policy on accessible education for students with disabilities, along with recommendations on how to best meet legal obligations under Ontario’s Human Rights Code.
The policy:
On November 26, 2018 the Board of Trustees received a detailed report on how the WCDSB plans to address the requirements of this new policy. The report is available on pages 60-63 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Student Trustees Izabella Tyc and Meghan Nemeth presented their monthly report on activities in WCDSB’s secondary schools. The report is available on pages 64-65 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Monday, December 3, 2018
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 49 schools and four adult education facilities, serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 182-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
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For more information, please contact:
John Shewchuk – Chief Managing Officer | (519) 578-3660 | john.shewchuk@wcdsb.ca
Monday, October 15, 2018 – Meeting Agenda Package
Monday, October 29, 2018 — Meeting Agenda Package
An update on Renewed Math Strategy initiatives was presented to the Board of Trustees on Monday, October 15, 2018. The report contains:
To view the complete report, please see pages 7-16 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
The Information Technology Services (ITS) department has had a very busy summer preparing for the 2018/19 school year. ITS successfully completed many technology related projects and initiatives that aligned with the Multi-Year Strategic Plan — which will enable staff and students to excel in the coming year.
Key areas of focus for introduction of new technologies, upgrades and maintenance were:
To view the complete report, please see pages 17-26 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
The 2015-2018 Multi-Year Strategic Plan committed to creating and engaging in a multi-year plan to transform school libraries into collaborative student-friendly spaces called Learning Commons. The transformation consists of minor renovations to library spaces and investments into furniture, technology, and equipment that support 21st century learning practices.
As part of preparing the multi-year plan, each school was visited by the Library Support Services Supervisor to scope out proposed changes as well as to draft an annual budget for the investments. Administrators, library technicians, and other school staff at each site were part of the planning process.
Year 1 of the plan was undertaken in 2017-2018 with all schools projected to be completed by the end of the 2021- 2022 school year.
The complete project schedule is provided on pages 17-19 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Towards the end of the 2017-18 school year, the Ministry of Education increased funding to school districts to increase the number of guidance and other teachers in elementary schools to better prepare students for a successful transition to high school, and to help Grade 7 and 8 students take their first steps in career planning.
With this funding increase, the Waterloo Catholic District School Board was able to expand the number of student success consultants from two to five, moving from a model of support for only those fifteen schools who require more intensive support, to being able to support all our elementary schools using our Family of Schools model, with some adjustments for equity.
In this new model of support for intermediate students, the Student Success Consultants (SSC) offer a variety of supports to intermediate students and teachers. These areas include the following:
For a deeper look at the work of the Student Success Consultants, please see pages 20-22 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Student Trustees Izabella Tyc and Meghan Nemeth presented their monthly report on activities in WCDSB’s secondary schools. The report is available on pages 34-35 via this link: Meeting Agenda Package
Monday, November 12, 2018
Monday, November 26, 2018
The Waterloo Catholic District School Board, representing more than 96,000 Catholic school supporters, operates 49 schools and four adult education facilities, serving more than 40,000 elementary, secondary and continuing education students in Waterloo Region – continuing a 182-year tradition of quality, inclusive, faith-based education. Follow us on Twitter: @WCDSBNewswire – #WCDSBAwesome.
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For more information, please contact:
John Shewchuk – Chief Managing Officer | (519) 578-3660 | john.shewchuk@wcdsb.ca
WATERLOO REGION (October 30, 2018)
District 8 is proud to announce that the senior boys football Most Valuable Player award will be renamed the Father Mike Award after the late Father Michael Cundari, C.R., who tragically lost his life in November 1986 in an automobile accident.
Better known as Father Mike while serving as principal of St. Jerome’s High School, he was a strong supporter of high school sport and football in particular.
“Father Mike was a tremendous supporter of football programs at every school he was part of,” said Dan Hutter who sits on the District 8 Board of Directors. “As a student, teacher, priest, athlete, Principal or coach, Fr Mike lived by the principles of faith, integrity, honesty, commitment and teamwork, and was always first to celebrate the achievements of his staff and students.”
A ceremony to commemorate the naming of the football MVP award will take place at the District 8 football championships. Joining District 8 and Waterloo Catholic District School Board representatives will be some of Father Mike’s living relatives; Laura Campigotto (sister), Rita Cundari (sister) and Mike Campigotto (nephew).
“Our entire family is both grateful and humbled at the creation of this new award that remembers Fr. Mike,” said Mike Campigotto. “We hope that it will inspire athletes to become leaders in sport, to win with humility and to embrace losing with the pride of giving their all.”
This sentiment of ‘Winning with dignity and losing with pride’ is one regularly repeated with the athletic departments of local high schools, even painted on walls outside of gyms, as it was Father Mike’s motto.
Father Mike taught history and religion at St. Jerome’s and was named the school’s principal in 1980.
“Once he assumed the role of principal, his love for his students became very evident,” said Bernie Farwell who was named principal following the passing of father Mike. “He began each school year speaking to every student at grade-level assemblies impressing upon them the wisdom of setting goals and working hard to achieve them. In this way, each person builds upon the strong reputation of the school and has no regrets at graduation.”
As a supporter of high school sport and the coach of the football and hockey teams, Father Mike would meet with all teams to begin each sport season.
“Father Mike did not emphasize winning in his personal philosophy although the results of his guidance with students consistently saw them reach the top of their game. His motto lives on within so many of us who knew him, worked with him and highly admired him,” said Farwell.
The ceremony will take place on Thursday November 8, 2018 during the halftime of the District 8 senior boys’ football Championship at Warrior Field in Waterloo. Resurrection is set to take on St. David’s or St. Mary’s with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 P.M.
For more information contact:
Derrick Stryker
District 8 Coordinator
