CSAC Pizza Lunch Update

Due to a school trip on Friday, December 14, the CSAC Pizza Lunch planned for that day is rescheduled, for Friday, February 8th.

Volunteers are always appreciated for our CSAC Pizza Lunches. Please contact the school office if you can help out for an hour.

Calendar Updates

Our online CSAC & school events calendar has been updated for the month of December 2012. It's routinely updated for you, so check-in often!

The virtue for the month of December is charity.

School Christmas Concert: Thursday, December 13

Just a quick note to confirm the date for this year's school Christmas concert (Thursday, December 13th, starting a 7 pm).

JK - Grade 6 students will perform in this year's concert.

More details to follow in the coming weeks for sure.

Tues, Nov 20: Important CSAC (Budget) Meeting

Your Catholic School Advisory Council (CSAC) next meets at 6:30 PM, on Tuesday, November 20th. This is an important, budget focused, CSAC meeting and your opportunity to vote on CSAC's expenditures towards education and parent engagement improvement this school year.

The meeting starts at 6:30 PM, sharp, and will conclude by 8:30 PM. Free coffee & tea available.

As always, we encourage all St. Agnes school parents to attend this and every meeting of your CSAC. See you then!

Finally, your CSAC's meeting schedule for the entire year is now posted within our site's live calendar. Our calendar is constantly updated with new CSAC and school events, so please check in regularly.

St. Joseph's Morrow Park Lease Extended Through June 2015

The following article appears in the current e-newsletter from the TCDSB (note that registration for the newsletter is found under the "Information Links" section of our blog):

TCDSB and Tyndale Sign Lease Extension for St. Joseph’s Morrow Park

In the spirit of continuing cooperation, the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) and Tyndale University College & Seminary are pleased to announce the extension of the lease of St. Joseph’s Morrow Park Catholic Secondary School until June 30, 2015.

The TCDSB has also received permission from the Ministry of Education to purchase the site at 500 Cummer Avenue to accommodate construction of the new St. Joseph Morrow Park Catholic Secondary School. Planning for the new school has started and construction will commence once City of Toronto approvals are received. The scheduled completion date for the newly built $24.75 million secondary school is September, 2015.

To read more:

http://www.tcdsb.org/News/NewsReleases/Documents/TCDSBTyndaleLease2012.pdf

Calendar Updates

Our online CSAC & School events calendar has been updated for the month of November 2012. It's routinely updated for you, so check-in often!

The virtue for the month of November is peacemaking.

RSVP Reminder: Oct 30 Social Networking Safety Seminar

This is just a reminder to RSVP (to the school office), ASAP, for the Social Networking Safety seminar arranged by your CSAC.

The seminar is on Tuesday, October, 30, from 7 - 9 pm in the school's gymnasium.

The seminar's material is geared towards adults (child care will be available onsite). An age appropriate version of the material will be delivered to the Grade 4 - 8 students by the speaker (Paul Davis, of Online Social Networking Safety) during that day and a few student representatives will be asked to attend the evening session to relay what they've learned.

This seminar was fantastically well received by all those who attended last year and your CSAC highly recommends that you make every effort to attend this year's free seminar (sponsored by the Ministry of Education).

Please spread the word and be there on October 30th!

New Resources Posted

Your CSAC is pleased to advise that important new resources are now available on our blog.

Now added are the following resources:

• Current (2011/2012) EQAO results for St. Agnes
• EQAO Guide for Parents
• TCDSB Learning Improvement Plan for St. Agnes (with an introduction provided by Mr. Shea)

While visiting our site, take note of the existing resources:

• Ministry of Education multi-lingual tip sheets for parents
• People for Education multi-lingual tip sheets for parents
• TCDSB homework guidelines & tips
• TCDSB homework help (math, Gr. 7 - 10)

You'll find all of these resources, and more (including the St. Agnes Klean Kanteen promotional video) under the Information Links section of the blog (bottom left corner of the home page).

October 23 CSAC Meeting

Reminder: The October CSAC Meeting is tonight, October 23, 6:30 - 8:30 PM, in the school library.

A copy of the Meeting's Agenda is posted on our blog, under the Key CSAC Documents area (top right corner of the home page).

All parents or guardians of St. Agnes students are welcome and encouraged to attend this and any CSAC meeting. 

Free Seminar: Safe Social Networking

Where: St. Agnes School Gymnasium.

When: Tuesday, October 30, 7 - 9 PM

Speaker: Paul Davis (from Online Social Networking / socialnetworkingsafety.net)

 

Those that attended last year know this is a seminar not to be missed.

 

Online Social Networking. Everyone seems to be doing it in one form or another. Tweeting, Facebooking, BBMing, Blogging, Youtube or LinkedIn… someone you know may have sent you a link to view a "status update" or look at a new posting they updated. It may have been done using an IPhone, Blackberry, Android, Smartphone, Tablet PC or simply a home computer. Welcome to the Social Networking world of today - Online. Arguably one of the most powerful and most popular online activities.

Back by popular demand, and through the Parents Reaching Out Grant offered through the Ministry of Education, we have invited Paul Davis of Online Social Networking Safety to come back to St. Agnes to peak to our students and parents on the overall safety of our children on-line.  Paul Davis was at St. Agnes in February 2012 and his presentation received rave reviews by all those that attended and participated!    

 

 

This is a FREE seminar, targeted for parents (information may not be suitable for children - childcare will be available onsite during the seminar). Please pass it on!

 

Topics:  Facebook, CyberBullying, HandHeld Devices, Texting, Legal Matters, and a Common Sense Approach to dealing with the technology your children have, or are asking you for!

Please RSVP by contacting the school office on/before October 26th: 416-393-5345.

 

New CSAC Members and Next Meetings

The St. Agnes CSAC Member elections for the 2012/2013 school year were completed on Wednesday, September 26th, at the CSAC General Meeting. I'm pleased to advise that the CSAC Members and Executive have been elected and are as follows:

Executive
Chair: David Purves
Vice Chair: Michael Lio
Treasurer: Maria Aprile
Recording Secretary: Beverly Emer

School Representatives
Ellen MacGrath (Teacher)
John Shea (Principal)

Community Representatives
John McAteer
Mary Sue Nutson

Members at Large
Renu Bourne
Patrizia Hasou
Natasha Khazraie
Tina Martins
Tara McAteer
Rebecca Mullen
Anne-Marie O'Donnell
Rina Tucciarone

Please also note that the dates for the next two CSAC meetings have been confirmed. They will be on Tuesday October 23 and Tuesday, November 20. Each meeting will be in the school's library, starting at 6:30 PM and finishing by 9 PM. All parents/guardians of St. Agnes students are encouraged to attend any meeting they can. Free, on-site, child care is often made available during the meeting but please confirm this with the school office, during school hours, on the day of the meeting.

The November meeting is an important Budget meeting, where CSAC's expenditures will be planned for the coming school year, largely in response to the needs indicated by the school's teaching staff.

Best regards,


John McAteer
Chair, CSAC Nomination Committee

Calendar Updates

Our online CSAC & School events calendar has been updated for the month of October 2012. It's routinely updated for you, so check-in often!


The virtue for the month of October is Gratitude.

TCDSB Letter RE: Access to Schools Policy

September 20, 2012

Dear Parent/Guardian:

We have had an excellent beginning to the 2012-2013 academic year with in-school and after-school activities involving teachers, parents, students, and volunteers in full swing.

Fall is a particularly busy and exciting time for all 200 of our school sites with many visitors coming and going for registration, special events and sports activities. We estimate that close to 17,000 students will be involved in fall athletic activities alone.

The Toronto Catholic District School Board’s priority is always the education, safety and well-being of its students and staff. It is in this spirit that we want to remind everyone in our school community, especially those who are new to the Board, of our Access to Schools Policy.

For detailed information on these policies please visit www.tcdsb.org or contact TCDSB’s Communications Department at 416-222-8282 ext. 5314

We look forward to another great year of student success in all areas, from our classrooms, to our gyms and on our athletic fields.

Thank you for your continued support and cooperation

Sincerely,

Bruce Rodrigues
Director of Education

Ann Andrachuk
Chair of the Board

CSAC Member Nomination Form Reminder

Hi.

This is just a quick reminder that today (September 19) is the final day for submitting Nomination Forms for the 2012/2013 CSAC Member elections. Please consider this wonderful opportunity for engagement in your child's education and submit your Nomination Form to the school office today.

The Nomination Form is posted to our blog, in the "St. Agnes CSAC Key Documents" area (top right corner of the site's home page).

Our CSAC elections for the 2012/2013 school year will be held during our General Meeting (all parents encouraged to attend) on Wednesday, September 26th, from 7 - 9 pm, in the school's library. Please check with the school office, during school hours on the 26th, for the availability of childcare during the meeting.

If you have any questions regarding our CSAC, I'll be at the CSAC BBQ tonight, working the BBQ area itself, from 5:30 - 6:30 pm. Please don't hesitate to speak to me then.

Thanks very much.


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC Nomination Committee
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

School BBQ Reminder

Hello.

Just a quick reminder that the St. Agnes student family and staff BBQ, organized and sponsored by the St. Agnes CSAC,  is on the evening (5 -  8 pm) of Wednesday, September 19th. Note that your order forms (food and drink) are due by Wednesday, September 12. If you missed your form (they were sent home by the school in every student's backpack, on September 6th), please contact the school office, ASAP.

Thanks . . . and see you soon!


John McAteer
Chair, Agnes CSAC

St. Agnes CSAC BBQ (Sept 19)

Your St. Agnes CSAC (Catholic School Advisory Council) is thrilled to announce that this year's BBQ, for student families and school staff, will be on the evening (5 - 8 pm) of Wednesday, September 19. Spread the word!

This annual event, sponsored by our CSAC and organized by our CSAC's Maria Aprile, is a wonderful opportunity for parents and kids alike to meet new friends, reconnect with older ones and chat with the school teaching staff, all in a leisurely, fun-filled environment. Spread the word!

Order forms for the BBQ will be coming home soon in backpacks. Please look for them and return them to the school by Wednesday, September 12. Spread the word!

See you at the BBQ and . . . you know . . . spread the word!

Thanks very much.



John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Some Important News for September

Tick, tick tick . . .


That's right, the first day of school, Tuesday, September 4th, is right around the corner.

Remember that school starts at 8:30 AM and ends at 3:00 PM this school year, with a supervised playground 35 minutes before school and 15 minutes after school.

Also, please note that your St. Agnes CSAC's first General Meeting, where elections will take place for CSAC Membership for the 2012/2013 school year, will be on Wednesday, September 26th, in the school library, starting at 7 pm. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend this (and indeed every) CSAC meeting. All parents can vote on the CSAC elections (or any issue scheduled for a General Meeting).

With regard to elections, I'll be circulating a CSAC Nomination Form in the first week of September. If you'd like to be on our fantastic CSAC, please ensure to return that Form to the school by Wednesday, September 19. For convenience, I've posted a CSAC Nomination Form under the "St. Agnes Key Documents" area of our blog (top right corner).

If you'd like more information about CSAC, please write to me, using the "click here to contact your St. Agnes CSAC" link on our blog (bottom left corner).

We hope to see you at the September 26th CSAC meeting, and please, consider and pass on the information about CSAC elections. It's a very small time investment in your child's education that you and your child will be glad you made.


Best regards,


John McAteer
CSAC Chair

St. Joseph Morrow Park Relocation: Update

If you've been following the relocation efforts for St. Joseph Morrow Park (SJMP) over the past few years, you know that, in brief, the SJMP property was sold to Tyndale College in 2006 and since then SJMP operates on the Bayview Avenue property under a lease (that expires in June 2013) with Tyndale. The TCDSB has been searching for a new location for SJMP since the property was sold.

Until recently, the TCDSB's plans were to relocate SJMP to the Blessed Trinity (BT) school property and construct a combined primary and secondary school on that property, to house both BT and SJMP (you can read the sign posted on the BT property in that regard as of this day). However, the required funding for that project (specifically, the primary grades portion) could not be secured. Eventually, the TCDSB sought to purchase a property owned by the TDSB, in the Alamosa community (southwest pocket of Finch and Leslie) and move BT there and construct a new SJMP, only, on the current BT site. That plan has also not materialized.

On July 24th, I emailed our TCDSB Trustee, Mr. John Del Grande seeking an update on the SJMP relocation plans and he as advised that "At the present time, Blessed Trinity will stay where it is and we are negotiating a new site for SJMP currently owned by the TDSB." The "new site" he refers to is the former Cummer Avenue Public School property, located on the north side of Cummer Avenue, just west of Bayview Avenue.

Mr. Del Grande provided me with a copy of the TCDSB's July 6, 2012 letter to the BT and SJMP parent community, wherein the Board confirms this information and indicates that approval for that purchase and the relocation plan is expected from the TDSB and the Ministry of Education "within the next few months".

For your additional information, I've posted the Board's July 6th letter on our CSAC Blog, bottom left corner, under the heading "SJMP Relocation Update: July 2012". From that letter, it would seem that the Board still has an issue to resolve, regarding the accommodation of SJMP students once their lease expires (June 2013) and until their new school is built on the property the Board is now attempting to buy.

I'll try to keep you posted.

Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

TCDSB 2012/2013 Budget Input Opportunity

I've received the following message from the TCDSB and provide it for your information and consideration:

As part of our Budget consultation process, the Toronto Catholic District School Board invites its major stakeholders for their input into the development of the 2012-2013 Budget.

The Board is pleased to invite the community to attend A Public Consultation Meeting on May 29^th at 7:00 p.m. at the Catholic Education Centre, 80 Sheppard Avenue East. The evening will include a brief overview of the TCDSB draft budget, as well as an opportunity for participants to ask questions or share their ideas for consideration by the Board.

To facilitate the organization of the meeting, participants who wish to speak at that meeting are encouraged to register with the Recording secretary at 416-222-8282 ext. 2293.

Those who are unable to attend, are invited to visit the board’s website at http://www.tcdsb.org/board/budgetandfinance/pages/20122013budgetconsultation.aspx and send written submissions to “Budget Consultation” c/o TCDSB, 80 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto, ON M4L 1M5 or by email to budget@tcdsb.org.

The Board is committed to ensuring that programs and services will continue to support high levels of student achievement, pursue equity of opportunity and learning outcomes by aligning to one or more directions of our Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP):

· Fostering Student Achievement and Well-Being

· Living our Catholic Values

· Strengthening Public Confidence

· Providing Stewardship of Resources

· Achieving Excellence in Governance

· Inspiring and Motivating Employees

Our hope is that you will identify the areas that are priorities for you, for our students and for our schools.

For those who prefer to share their ideas through an online survey, please visit the board’s website at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/consultation2012 by no later than Friday, June 1, 2012.

If you have any questions about the survey or the consultation process, please email your inquiry to budget@tcdsb.org.

For more information about the Board’s Multi-Year Strategic Plan, please visit the Board’s website at www.tcdsb.org, and refer to the goals of the plan as you complete the survey.

We thank you all for taking the time to participate in the budget consultation process.

Regards,

John McAteer

Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Free Online Interactive Reading Resource Provided by the Ministry of Education

The Ontario Ministry of Education has recently purchased a subscription to Scholastic’s BookFlix for K-Grade 3 students. BookFlix is an interactive, online literacy resource that pairs classic video storybooks with related nonfiction texts. This engaging resource will help early readers (K-Gr. 3) develop and practice essential reading skills. Bookflix is quite intuitive and easy to navigate. Each unit includes the following elements:

· Watch the Story: streaming video of the story. A Read Along option can be activated to display the audio portion of the story, with word-by-word highlighting, as it plays.

· Read the Book: related nonfiction text presented in a flipbook format. The Read Along option can be activated to hear the text read aloud with word-by-word highlighting. Key content vocabulary words are highlighted in yellow. Placing the cursor on the highlighted word will display its definition, and the ear icon can be clicked to hear the definition read aloud.

· Puzzlers: interactive games related to the specific pair. Ear icons can be clicked to hear the game directions, as well as all statements and definitions, read aloud.

· Meet the Author: a profile of the author of the story. An ear icon can be clicked to hear the profile read aloud.

To access from home, use the following link, username and password:

http://www.scholastic.ca/education/bookflix_ontario

USERNAME: toroncdsb

PASSWORD: toro5988

Please use this resource at your convenience and spread the word about it  . . .  and where you learned about it.

Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

The Passing of Mrs. Ammendolia's Father

It is with sadness that I convey the news to our school's parent community on the passing of Mrs. Ammendolia's father, Mr. Salvatore Caminiti, on Tuesday, May 22nd.

Below is the information received from our School Board regarding Mr. Caminiti's passing and funeral arrangements:

Salvatore Caminiti	Who passed away May 22nd. He was the father of Lucia Ammendolia, Secretary at St. Agnes Catholic School and grandfather of Julia Ammendolia, Teacher at St. Bernard Catholic School and Stefania Failla, Occasional Teacher at TCDSB.
Visitation: Service/Mass:	Newediuk Funeral Home 2058 Kipling Avenue Etobicoke, ON Thursday, May 24th 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Friday, May 25th 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. St. Roch Catholic Church 2889 Islington Avenue Toronto, ON Saturday, May 26th 10:00 a.m.

As a school community, we offer our prayers to Mrs. Ammendolia and her family. Flowers and condolences will be sent to the family on behalf of our CSAC and school.


Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Free June 4 Seminar at St. Martha Catholic School

I wanted to relay a seminar invitation that has been circulated by the St. Martha's CSAC to all GTA CSAC's (as we have) for their free seminar (with childcare) on the evening of Monday, June 4th. RSVP by Wednesday, May 30. St. Martha is on Sheppard Avenue, in Downsview. Here's the full invitation:

St. Martha Catholic School Advisory Council (CSAC) invites all parents to attend:

How to Get Out The Door in the Morning

Special guest with Doone Estey, BA, MA

(Certified Adlerian Parent Educator, a longtime workshop facilitator

and mother of 4 teenagers)

RSVP is required in order to provide adequate Pizza & Refreshments for Parents in attendance and to arrange Childcare. Everyone is Welcome!!!

When:  Monday June 4, 2012 @ 7-8:30 PM

Where:  St. Martha’s Gymnasium (1865 Sheppard Ave. W.)

• Are you too controlling, not controlling enough?
• Too many power struggles in the morning?
• Wish you had more cooperation and less backtalk?

What you will learn:

• Responses that create more cooperation
• The use of consequences and other positive discipline methods
• How to handle everyday problems such as mealtime, getting dressed and dawdling
• The parenting style that has the best long-term impact on your child

For Teachers and Parents alike - Bring Out the Best in Children by Fostering Respect, Cooperation and Responsibility

RSVP email csac.stmartha@tcsdsb.org or call (416)397-6800 ext. 88344, by Wednesday May 30, 2012, indicating:

• Your Name
• Number of attendees
• Number of childcare spots required and ages

Best Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Your Input Please (Quick Poll on Seminar Topics)

As you may recall, in February, your CSAC provided a fantastically popular Internet Safety seminar (for parents and an age appropriate version of the older grades). This seminar was funded by a Parent Reaching Out Grant received from by the Ministry of Education.

To plan for next school year's CSAC seminar(s) and our new application for this Grant, your CSAC received a number of topic suggestions which are now shown in a Quick Poll on our site (very bottom right corner). Please take just a moment to let us know which subject most appeals to you. The Poll will close on the evening of Thursday, May 31st.

As always, thank you for your input.

Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

CSAC May 22 Meeting

Dear Parents & Guardians of St. Agnes Students,

Your Catholic School Advisory Council’s (CSAC’s) next meeting is on Tuesday, May 22 (7-9 PM, in the school's library). This is the final meeting planned for this school year. Some Agenda items of interest include:

• Principal Shea's report on the school’s tentative staffing model for next year (which teachers will teach which grades, combined grade classroom plans) and the Board’s Safe and Caring Catholic School Climate Survey results (student survey of St. Agnes);
• Potential areas for student safety improvement;
• Election planning for next year’s CSAC (your chance to become even more involved in your child’s education and improve our school).

The full Agenda is posted in our site's Key Documents area.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you should have any questions regarding the Agenda. Your input is always welcomed and appreciated.

Regards,

John McAteer

Chair, St. Agnes CSAC
csac.stagnes@tcdsb.org

Calendar Updates

Our online CSAC & School events calendar has been updated. It's routinely updated for you, so check-in often!


The virtue for the month of May is Compassion.

Highlights of the February 23rd CSAC Meeting

What follows are edited excerpts from the Meeting's Minutes (posted once the Minutes are approved, at the next meeting). The February 23^rd Minutes were approved at the April 22^nd meeting. The full Minutes are available in the school library.

Mr. Shea provided news and updates on many items including word that many parents had provided negative opinions on the Director’s Cut program (which has been a part of the media component for the Grade 1 through 8 curriculum in recent years). Those in attendance echoed that dissatisfaction with the program, as is. CSAC will post an opinion poll on their site and seek input from the parent/guardian community on this subject for discussion at the next (April 22^nd, meeting).

Mr. Shea reviewed in detail the school's 2011/2012 school year budget funded by the TCDSB. In summary, to date (February 23, 2012), 73% of the school’s budget (of $6,000), has been allocated.

Mr. Shea presented the primary grades capital items wish list. John confirmed that he would include these items in the tax-deductible Capital Fund donation request letter, to be circulated in March.

St. Agnes Klean Kanteens. Got yours yet?

Just a quick reminder that the school's student Eco-Team is promoting Klean Kanteens, to reduced the waste from plastic bottle use with a high quality, affordable, re-usable canteen, embossed with our St. Agnes school logo . . . very nice indeed.

A member of the Eco-Team has produced a great promotional video for their Klean Kanteen program. Check it out. It's posted to our site's Information Links section (bottom left corner of the site's home page).

Watch for the Klean Kanteen order forms, coming home with next week's (April 30 - May 3) Scholastic Book Fair order forms.

As always . . . thank you very much for your continued support of our great school.


Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Spring Scholastic Book Fair: April 30 - May 3 (volunteers needed, please)

Dear Parents,

As you may have seen in the school's April Newsletter, there will be a Spring Scholastic Book Fair taking place in the Library the week of April 30th - May 3rd.  This is being organized by CSAC's Library Committee, therefore, we are looking for a group of volunteers to help facilitate this event. The Fall Book Fair was a huge success and we couldn't have done it without your help!

Monday and Tuesday of next week are just viewing days, so assistance will be needed to help students fill out their wish lists and give them a total dollar amount to take home to you. On these days, we require one volunteer for the morning, and another for the afternoon.  The hours are: 8:45am-  11:45am.

Wednesday and Thursday will be the busiest days as this will be when the classes come in to purchase their books.  We require three volunteers for the morning, and another three for the afternoon.  The hours for the afternoon are: 12:45pm  - 3:15pm.

We need as many volunteers as possible to make this book fair run as efficiently and successfully as possible. Please let me know you are available to help at all during the above mentioned times.  Feel free to contact me at: a.marie.odonnell@gmail.com.  Any time you could devote would be much appreciated. 

 

Best regards,

 

Anne-Marie O'Donnell 

Chair, Library Committee

New School Hours Next Year

In addition to the Catholic School Board's 2012/2013 school year calendar I posted to our site on April 15, at the CSAC meeting on April 18, our Principal, Mr. Shea, advised that the Board has also approved a change to school hours starting next year.

Effective the first day of next school year, September 4, 2012, the school day will start at 8:30 AM and end at 3:00 PM. Further, playground supervision will continue to be available, tentatively, 35 minutes before school and 15 minutes after school.

Mr. Shea advised that Northwood Academy has indicated that this schedule change does not present a challenge to their available services.

Please let me or the school know if you would like further discussion of this topic placed on the Agenda of our next (and possibly final, for this school year) CSAC meeting, on Tuesday, May 22nd.

You can always contact me, c/o your CSAC, via the email link at the bottom of our site's home page.


Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

2012/2013 (Next Year's) School Calendar

For those who like to plan ahead, here is the Board's recently published calendar for the 2012/2013 school year:

Labour Day: September 3, 2012

First Instructional Day: September 4, 2012
Thanksgiving Day: October 8, 2012
Christmas Break: December 24, 2012 through January 4, 2013
Family Day: February 18, 2013
Mid-Winter Break: March 11 through 15, 2013
Good Friday: March 29, 2013
Easter Monday: April 1, 2013
Victoria Day: May 20, 2013
Last day of classes for elementary schools: June 27, 2013

Six professional development days for elementary schools:

November 16, 2012

December 7, 2012

January 25, 2013

February 15, 2013

June 7 & 28, 2013

Six professional development days for secondary schools:

November 16, 2012

December 7, 2012

February 15, 2013,

June 26, 27 & 28, 2013


Regards,


John McAteer
Chair, St Agnes CSAC

CSAC April 18 Meeting

Your St. Agnes CSAC next meets at 7 PM, on Wednesday, April 18th. This is an important meeting and your opportunity to vote on CSAC's expenditures for this school year.

The Agenda is now posted to our site's "Key Documents" area for your review (free Google Docs account required). It will also be circulated via email by the school.

Some key Agenda items of interest include:

• Principal Shea's Update on school developments
• CSAC Finances and Budget Review
• Director's Cut Survey Feedback
• Blessed Trinity/St. Joseph Morrow Park site development

The meeting starts at 7 PM, sharp, and will conclude by 9 PM. Free coffee available.

As always, all parent/guardians of St. Agnes students are encouraged to attend this and every CSAC meeting. Check the site's archive (for October 2011) for all meeting dates or the live calendar for more information.

Regards,

John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Input Requested on TCDSB Draft Learning Material & Activity Fee Policy

The Board has prepared a draft Policy on “Fees for Learning Materials and Activities” for presentation to the Board of Trustees in April 2012.

The draft Policy is available here. It's a 2 minute read.

Please take a moment to review the draft Policy and provide your feedback (quick survey), by April 13th, by following this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/S76MDDV.

Regards,

John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

CSAC Budget Meeting: April 18

Your St. Agnes CSAC next meets at 7 PM, on Wednesday, April 18th. This is an important meeting and your opportunity to vote on CSAC's expenditures for this school year. As with all CSAC meetings, the entire Agenda will be posted within our site's "Key Documents" area for your review (free Google Docs account required), about 1 week in advance of this meeting.

The meeting starts at 7 PM, sharp, and will conclude by 9 PM. Free coffee available.

As always, we encourage all parent/guardians of St. Agnes students to attend this and every CSAC meeting. Check the site's archive (for October 2011) for all meeting dates or the live calendar for more information.

Regards,

John McAteer

Chair, St. Agnes CSAC
Email: stagnescsac@tcdsb.org

Director's Cut: Your Comments Please

St. Agnes would like your thoughts regarding the Director's Cut program. Would you like it to be continued next year or not?

Please take just a moment to register your vote on this question (and relay any further comments you may have on this program) at our blog. We have a survey posted in the bottom right corner of the main page. This anonymous survey will run through Friday, April 6th and the response discussed at the next CSAC meeting, on Tuesday, April 18.

Thank you.

John McAteer
Chair, St. Agnes CSAC

Free TCDSB Online Math Homework Help

The TCDSB's "Homework Help" resource provides free, real-time help to our students taking Grade 7 to 10 Mathematics. It allows them to get help after school hours, when teachers or parents are unavailable to help. It can help students with answering homework questions, reviewing material from previous grades, and studying for tests, exams or the EQAO tests. But remember – it is “homework help” not “homework do” – the tutors are there to support the students and work through questions to help them be more confident learners and better understand the math. The online tutoring feature is available Sunday through Thursday, 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM and other online resources are available 24/7.

A link to this online resource is posted on our CSAC blog, under “INFORMATION LINKS”, with other homework resources and tips.

Calendar Updates

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Highights from the January 18 CSAC Meeting

What follows are edited excerpts from the Meeting's Minutes (posted once the Minutes are approved at the next meeting). The January 18 Minutes were approved at the February 23 meeting. The actual Minutes are available in the school library.

Mr. Shea provided news and updates on many items including details on the upcoming St. Agnes Day at the school; the planned replacement of the school’s windows and the upcoming skating days for grades 1, 2 and 3. He will discuss details of the school’s budget at the February CSAC meeting.

Details of the upcoming, February 1^st, Internet Safety presentations, for students (during the day) and parents (at night), were discussed. The presentation s are made possible by a grant from the Ministry of Education.

The school has a new Caretaker. Mr. Shea and Ms. Aprile and any other parent able will conduct a walkthrough with the new Caretaker to reinforce the high standard of repair and cleanliness achieved by the prior Caretaker and identify any areas of concern.

Comments from students regarding the CSAC Pizza Lunch Days were reviewed and the fact the volunteers are always needed on these Days.

CSAC will hold a Spring Book Fair, with a date to be determined in co-ordination with the school and the supplier (Scholastic).

There was a discussion on the expenses covered by CSAC’s budget and agreement that further discussion was in order.

John will handle the Capital Fund Letter project (to raise tax-deductible donations for the purchase of legacy items for the school to enhance learning) with Maria’s assistance. The Letter will be circulated upon receipt of the teacher’s wish list.