UPPER CANADA DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD

We need to update our current strategic plan, which will guide our organization in its efforts to achieve this goal in the new world that is developing around us. Your feedback is pivotal for the successful development of our next strategic plan for 2020-2023.

Arlie Onion is an award recipient for demonstrating all six qualities of Service Excellence in her role as a Human Resources Information Specialist and Supervisor to the Human Resources Assistant group.

Robert Brooks and Bruce Monkman, both intermediate teachers at North Grenville District High School are award recipients for their ongoing and constant effort to demonstrate the six qualities of Service Excellence in their teaching roles.

The Upper Canada District School Board surveyed Grade 7-12 students to get feedback on their experiences with distance learning and how the current model could be improved in the future. ​

Sarah Stone is an award recipient who embodies and demonstrates all six Service Excellence qualities in her leadership role as Principal at Vanier Public School.

As we conclude the 2019-2020 school year at the end of this week, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for working in partnership with our teaching staff and school principals during this unusual time in our history. We have sincerely appreciated how you have committed to helping your child stay engaged in their learning.

Today, the Ministry of Education released its guidelines for how school districts should plan for reopening and welcoming students in the fall. School boards are being asked to develop plans for three scenarios:

Trustees with the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) met on Wednesday, June 17, 2020 for their regularly scheduled Board of Trustees meeting. Trustees and senior staff joined the meeting by teleconference to ensure physical distancing, however the meeting was broadcasted live. Trustees discussed several items:

South Crosby Public School’s eco-team, known as the “Green Panthers”, are the first ever recipient of the Raw Materials Company Inc. (RMC) Environmental Award that recognizes schools for environmental initiatives and recycling spirit.

After hearing of George Floyd in the news and discussing with their class, Naismith Memorial Public School siblings Lukas, Marlise and Esmay Ibrahim decided they wanted to take action to help eliminate racism and to improve equity and inclusion within their community.

June is National Indigenous History Month and June 21 is National Indigenous Peoples Day. The Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) is putting increased focus on Indigenous Education this week to bring attention to Indigenous culture, history and to aid in relationship building between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous communities.

As we draw closer to the end of this current school year, we want you to know we are well into planning for the 2020-2021 school year. There are still many uncertainties about the upcoming school year and we are awaiting information from the Ministry of Education on expectations. While we wait, our school district has been working on a re-opening plan. We look forward to sharing this with you when we have more direction and clarity from the Ministry.

Trustees with the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) met on Wednesday, June 10, 2020 for a Special Board of Trustees meeting. Trustees and senior staff joined the meeting by teleconference to ensure physical distancing, however the meeting was broadcasted live. Trustees discussed two agenda items:

We are entering the time of year where there is considerable planning for the remainder of this year and for the next school year. There is still a lot of uncertainty, but we are committed to sharing what we know, when we know it.

Chair of the Board, John McAllister, delivered opening remarks to speak to those in the Upper Canada District School Board and in the larger community about concerns of racism and injustice over this past weekend, in the United States. Chair McAllister shared how classroom learning prepares our students to thoughtfully and respectfully respond to the offensive presence of racism in our world.

Trustees with the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) met on Wednesday, June 3, 2020 for their regular Board of Trustees meeting. Trustees and senior staff joined the meeting by teleconference to ensure physical distancing, however full audio was broadcasted live.

The well-being of all members of our school communities, including students, families and staff, is a top priority for our school board. The province released its testing plan on Friday May 29, 2020, Protecting Ontarians Through Enhanced Testing. Here is what you should be aware of.

We appreciate all the work that you as parents and guardians are doing at home to keep your children engaged in their learning and especially offering them support and encouragement during a unique and uncertain time in our history. This has not been an easy time for any of us. We want everyone to know that there are resources available if you, your child and/or your family are feeling overwhelmed or need to access community resources. See our Mental Health and Wellness Virtual Library and local contact information within your community.

The Upper Canada District School Board surveyed UCDSB parents and guardians to get feedback on our current distance learning model. Results showed that the majority of respondents said assignments are appropriate and the workload is manageable; and that they are pleased with the communications they are receiving from both their school and the school board.

Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Education Stephen Lecce announced today that the school closure period will extend until the end of June, which means that students will not be returning to our school buildings for the rest of this school year. Given the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, this decision is not surprising and we fully appreciate the care and caution that the provincial government is using to approach this decision.

Given the circumstances and the uncertainties of this global pandemic, and in consultation with public health authorities, the Upper Canada District School Board has no option but to postpone June 2020 graduation ceremonies at all of our secondary schools and at our TR Leger School of Adult, Alternative and Continuing Education until June 2021.

Tomorrow marks the two-month anniversary when we first informed you that the provincial government ordered schools to be closed as a public health measure to slow the spread of COVID-19. This has resulted in a huge change for all of us, including how we work, study, and learn.

The following schools in the UCDSB across the East-West region will experience a change to the timing of the start and/or end of the school day, otherwise known as bell times, effective September 2020.

The Upper Canada District School Board continues to provide regular updates on our operations as we work and learn in different ways to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Many of our students and their families have questions about examinations, the school prom, graduation ceremonies, and other issues. Here is what we are able to share today.

​This week is Education Week, and while it looks much different than usual, we want our students and families to continue to stay connected – to their learning and to each other. This week is also Mental Health Week. To acknowledge both these important events, we are encouraging you and your child to reach out to someone you haven’t connected with recently, find out how they are doing and share one thing you’ve learned over the last month.

May 4-10 is Canadian Mental Health Week and the Upper Canada District School Board is highlighting ways you can stay well this year in these uncertain times.

Over these past weeks, our government has been inspired by you and your children’s eagerness and flexibility in transitioning toward remote learning. We know that this has not been easy, especially with the profound impact COVID-19 has had on your lives and livelihood. The ability to keep our students engaged in their learning journey has been remarkable.

As you may have heard on the news yesterday afternoon, the Minister of Education announced that all publicly-funded schools will remain closed to students until at least May 31, 2020. This decision was based on the advice of public health officials. While we all want to see our students back in their regular classroom as soon as possible, we fully agree with the government that keeping our students and staff safe is the top priority.

Last week the Premier extended the Declaration of Emergency until May 12, which signals that schools will not open on May 4, 2020 as planned. We have not received any formal notice of this yet but expect to hear more from the Ministry of Education and the Premier about the school year over the next few days. You can count on us to update you immediately, once we receive any further information from the provincial government on this important topic.

I hope all of you had an enjoyable long weekend, even if it may have looked different than other years for you and your family. If you did not see my video message, posted both to the UCDSB website and social media, I hope you will take the time to do so. Through this video, I provided a general update to parents and caregivers on what we are attending to throughout the school district as we start this new week.

UCDSB Director of Education Stephen Sliwa shares an update with families and well wishes.

As we begin a new week, I want to update you on our progress with Phase 2 of distance learning in our school district, and to further share resources made available to support student mental health and well-being during this unprecedented time.

Two resources all our families should be aware of are the United Way and Eastern Ontario 2-1-1.

In an effort to support health care and essential service workers in our communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Upper Canada District School Board has been able to respond positively to requests from municipalities to open four emergency child care centres within our school district.

The following letter was issued to parents by the Ontario Ministry of Education. I am writing to you today exactly two weeks since our government declared a State of Emergency in the province. I know this period has not been easy for you or your children, especially as the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak begin to have increasing effects on your day-to-day lives and livelihoods.

In an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19 and help flatten the curve on the virus, the Ontario government has officially closed schools until May 4 for students.

If you do not have Internet access at home, or you feel you are lacking in enough devices for your children to use, or you have children with a Board-provided device to support their special education programming, we are asking you to take a moment to complete this online survey

The following letter was issued today by the Ontario Ministry of Education. The foremost priority of the government is to keep all Ontarians safe, including our students and educators. Working with our partners and all levels of government, we will do whatever it takes to deliver on this imperative.

The Ontario Ministry of Education has launched its Learn at Home portal, a supplementary resource for elementary and secondary students to practice math and literacy skills, and learn at home during the ministry-directed school closure period from March 14, 2020 until April 5, 2020.

In light of the Premier’s message on March 17 declaring a state of emergency within the province of Ontario in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to provide you with the most up-to-date information we have and how it relates to the operations of our schools and the school board. 

CUPE and Province have reached a tentative deal, UCDSB schools and childcare facilities open tomorrow

If a strike by CUPE members does occur on Monday, October 7, the UCDSB will need to close all of our schools to students. We will not be able to operate our facilities or provide proper supervision and care to our students.

If a strike by CUPE members does occur, the UCDSB will not be able to operate our facilities or provide proper supervision and care to our students. We will need to close all of our schools to students.

Today, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Provincial gave notice of a possible strike as of Monday, Oct. 7.

Board Update Regarding CUPE Labour Action