Starting an Angel Fund - DOC

							                                         APHS Parent Council Meeting
                                              January 28, 2008
                                                  Minutes

Start 7pm (following Mr. Heffernan’s question & answer period)

Attendees: Regan Heffernan, Lucia Smith, Anne Hughes, Gale Pierdon, Debby Gwyllt Smith, Bob Hepburn,
Andrea Dolan, Emilli Wright, Leigh Gray, Anita Knibutat, Cathy Dwyer, Erica Bostwick, Sandra McLauchlan,
Sharon Hay-Pole, Elaine Blaylock, Dmitri Prokopiev, Flavia Ceschin, Doris Fox, Nicholle Russell, and Laurene
Via

Apologies Received: Anna Houpt-Taylor

Request for AOB Items: None

Approval of Minutes from Last Meeting:
Approved by Cathy Dwyer; seconded by Erica Bostwick

Communications: Lucia Smith
   o Guest speaker, Adrian Keith of the Community Consultation Committee will speak this Wed. at the
     Police Community Room about graffiti concerns, speeding and traffic calming.
   o An informational meeting concerning drug use will be held Tues. Feb. 5 at 6pm at Iroquois Ridge HS
     (more information is on the school web site).
   o Jackie Oxley is looking for input from the school community regarding the upcoming 2008-2009 school-
     year calendar. Anyone interested in attending a meeting on this, Feb. 1 from 10am till noon at the J.W.
     Singleton Centre, 2050 Guelph Line, Burlington should contact Lucia at aphschair@hdsb.ca .
   o Anne Houpt-Taylor was unable to attend the meeting. She forwarded the following information:

1) Environmental Council has received a grant of $1500 from Halton Learning Foundation. They plan to
purchase approx. 30 motion detectors to reduce electricity use and install them in photocopy rooms, storage
rooms, etc. Environmental council will also purchase trees to replace those on the grounds that have died and
the rest of the funds will be used for additional greening of the grounds.

2) The weather station is up and running and announcements are made daily each morning.

3) Pasta night is scheduled for April 3 with sittings at 5pm and 7pm.

4) Culture fest is scheduled for Feb 28. Tickets will be $5-$6 and they are still looking for more students for the
talent show. The plan is to raise money for a local charity such as Anderson House.

5) Friday is PD day. Staff will continue discussions on course consistency and assessment and evaluation
updates.

Student Council Report: Emilli Wright
   o APHS has received two grants recently regarding Tobacco and Nutrition.
   o Students would like to start a cooking club and ultimately write a cook book with submissions of recipes
       indigenous to all 87 birth nations represented in our school. Emilli is asking for parent volunteers to
       share their cooking talents. More information will be posted on the Wellness Chatt Board.
   o With regards to the Tobacco grant, student council is going to try a “try to stop or not start” program.
   o Regan provided information regarding initiatives from the Wellness Council.
   o Aramark (school hot lunch caterer) is going to provide a salad bar for students to purchase by weight.
   o Under Regan’s advisement, they are also going to begin experimenting with raising the prices of fries
       and pop while lowering the prices of milk and veggies in an attempt to encourage the students to make
       healthy purchases.
   o With the exception of pies, all foods sold in the cafeteria are trans-fat free.
Staff Reports:

    Library Activities: Bob Hepburn
    o Mr. Hepburn, school librarian, shared with us ways that the school library supports research through his
        presentation titled: “What We Can Do For You (and your Students).”
    o He focused on the following topics:
        o How to use the collection effectively
        o How to use the data bases effectively
        o How to surf the net effectively
        o How to organize and write effectively
        o How not to plagiarize
        o How to format a paper - 2 styles are taught. MLA (Modern Languages Association) used for topics
             in the humanities and APA (American Psychiatric Association) for reports in the hard sciences.
    o He explained that even though our Halton Secondary libraries are reasonably well funded, keeping the
        collection current is an expensive proposition. He added that spending the budget is NOT difficult.
        Luckily, we’ve had several new acquisitions recently following Chapters Night and a school board sale
        where most of the major non-fiction suppliers attended. As a result, he was able to make some
        significant purchases.
    o Mr. Hepburn has spent about 80% of the 2007-2008 budget and a further 10% is already spoken for.
    o He would like to see more money from Chapter’s Night diverted to library funding.
    o We should be getting more materials in soon as they are currently in the board office getting catalogued
        and adapted for security screening.
    o He explained two ways in which students can access school information through the internet at home.
        Students can access either through the school’s network (using passwords, user names, and URL; or
        through the board’s web site. Either method will allow students to do quality research at home.
    o Mr. Hepburn showed us how the school library’s web site interface appears on a home computer.
    o Students can also reserve materials using their student ID cards through the school web site.
    o He encourages students to use the school’s data base rather than the internet.
    o All recommended hosts are good. He referred to EBSCO which checks all sorts of different data bases
        for information.
    o He encourages his students to make their own accounts; then they can do their research throughout
        their entire high school experience.
    o Using examples, he showed how students can build folders, save searches for a year and add alerts in
        which the data base is automatically locating information based on subject input. Students can have
        access to full text as well as chronicles of higher learning from countless, credible sources.
    o He emphasized that it only takes about 15 minutes to set up an account.
    o Ms. Dolan added that a Google search differs considerably with regards to quality of information
        provided.
    o This type of research can be done by anyone in the student’s household as well. It’s available to all
        Halton schools, teachers, and students.
    o An account can be set up through the Board web site as well.
    o A parent asked if the school/student account differs from that of the public library. Mr. Hepburn
        explained that the searches are similar, except that the library may have purchased access to different
        data bases than the school board has. Information available depends on the type of account in service.
    o Mr. Heffernan is asking department heads to suggest areas of need in the library. He also explained
        that Mr. Hepburn prepares carts of materials and supplies for in-class research.

“Business Specialist High Skills Major”: Andrea Dolan
   o Ms. Dolan explained that it is a Ministry initiative and a student success initiative which bundles courses
       in the business industry by coupling mandatory course with co-op experiences.
   o The Business High Skills Major will be one of only a few programs like it piloted in the province next fall.
   o She is currently interviewing grade 10 Halton students. Next week, she will interview APHS students.
   o She added that this is just one of several similar programs and our students can interview to attend
       other programs in other schools as well.
   o She anticipates different bundling combinations will result depending on various students’ directions.
   o Identifying which courses to bundle will depend also on destinations.
   o Two co-ops will need to be completed during the program which runs during grades 11 and 12.
   o The program will have some leeway so that students can fit in other subjects.
   o If enough students are accepted, the school will create a section of high skill courses so the entire
       group can attend series of classes together.
   o   Upon graduation, a “Red Seal” will be placed on those students’ diplomas and/or transcripts as an
       Industry Recognized Program.
   o   The co-op is mandatory and an important component of the program (enumeration for the work will not
       necessarily be expected).
   o   English and Math units will have a business component.
   o   This program will result in a “high skills major in business.”
   o   The curriculum is actively being developed and the interview process is ongoing. As soon as the
       successful interviewees are notified, more interviews will take place.
   o   Application to the program occurs during gr. 10. Participation will start in the first term of gr. 11.
   o   Once a student is accepted into the program, he remains in it unless he does not complete it. There is
       no periodic reassessment to qualify to remain in the program.
   o   Students cannot qualify for a high skills major after graduation.
   o   Can only participate in grades 11 and 12 or in the student’s last two years of high school, if planning to
       return for an extra year of high school.
   o   Program will be offered for all destinations of students: university, college, workplace, and
       apprenticeship.
   o   During the first semester (Sept. to Jan.), students will take 2 business classes, math, and English.
   o   A parent questioned where the students who are not APHS students attend school during the second
       semester. Ms. Dolan explained that some of the required courses may be spread out during the year.
       The schedule will depend on the number of students who are in the program. They may need to
       commute between their home schools and Abbey Park.
   o   The logistics of organizing this program will be the greatest challenge.
   o    A question was raised. Which type of student benefits the most from this program? Ms. Dolan
       responded that different students benefit in different ways. Some leave with an apprenticeship
       underway. Workplace based students get a focus for their senior years at the high school level.
       College bound students may experience partnerships with colleges like Sheridan. University students
       may have challenging opportunities through the competitions and the co-ops.
   o   She is being very cautious about steering students into the program.
   o   She is trying to determine what each student’s four year plan is as the program is individual-based.
   o   A question was raised. How will the timing of the co-op experience fit into a university bound student’s
       schedule? Ms. Dolan responded that economics and law will count as business courses. Students
       may have to complete their co-ops during the summer.
   o   Mr. Heffernan thanked Ms. Dolan for convincing the province to allow the economics and law classes to
       count as business courses.
   o   He added that we will need community support to provide co-op experiences during the summer.
   o   The Ministry feels the “red seal” diploma is valuable and attractive to the college level and tech trades.
   o   This program creates an environment in which future employers and future employees are brought
       together in the high school setting.
   o   DECA is a North American organization that runs a competition in the business realm.
   o   Students work on long term projects and then use the background to compete.
   o   This experience is recognized at both the University and College levels.

School Nurse: Nicholle Russell

Treasurer’s Report: Elaine Blaylock
   o $649.67 from Chapter’s Night
   o $191.50 from the book sale
   o $360.65 from Shop and Support

Fundraising Reports

Gala Report: Flavia Ceshin
                                          nd
o The Gala was very successful for the 2 year in a row. The profit totaled $17,683.42 with sponsorships
   included. That was in spite of attendance only being 2/3 what it was last year. The Live Auction netted
   $4125;      Silent Auction: $8842;    Joker's Wild Games: $1620;       Centerpieces $290
   Altogether, the auctions & games brought in $14,877.
o She attributed Its success to 4 reasons:
         Support of staff members: Regan who supported us in asking teachers and students to offer items
           for the auctions; Wendy Turner who assisted with ticket selling and photocopying; and Anna Houpt-
           Taylor who emailed teachers and staff about the gala. Thank you to all of them. As well, she
              thanked the Arts Department, Technology Department and Boys' Senior Hockey teams for their
              donation of items/services for the auction. Parents responded to these items very well.
          She also thanked the great Auction Committee: Erica Bostwick, Cathy Dwyer, Kim Ewing, Monica
              Friesen, Anne Hughes, Anita Knibutat, Sandra McLaughlan, Janet Schwichtenberg, and Lucia
              Smith who all were very committed to soliciting items for the auctions and set up the auction items
              beautifully. Thanks also went to Norene Massey for being the advisor. Special thanks to Anita for
              the terrific job at organizing all the donated items and to Lyanne O'Leary and Anne Hughes for
              organizing a beautiful dinner/dance yet again.
          The gala's great success was also due to the overwhelming response from the community of
              students, teachers, parents and businesses who donated items for door prizes, auctions and
              games. We had 107 donors who donated 130 items that totaled $16,000 in value. The money
              raised was 93% of the estimated value of the donated items. A big thank you to all our donors.
          Finally, but not least, our success is greatly due to the attendees of the gala. We had 2/3 the
              attendees of last year's gala, but it was clear from the start of the evening that those who attended
              the gala came to give to APHS. They bid on items to give us 91-93% of the retail value of donated
              items. They came to spend for APHS and they spent a total of $14,877. They came to give to our
              high school and they did give very generously that evening. We all owe them a big thank you.
o   She thanked everyone for giving generously.
o   Anne then thanked Flavia for taking this project on, doing a wonderful job with grace and charm.
o   Then Anne led a discussion regarding holding a Gala next year.
o   We do have a sponsor willing to support us with $3000. But she is concerned that we didn’t sell as many
    tickets as was anticipated. We were $1500 short on sales. Profit $20 per ticket this year.
o   Also, it was noted that this year’s Chapter Night was not as well received as in the past. Wondering if these
    events are timed wrong during the year or if a Saturday evening event would be better attended.
o   Anne asked those who attended the Gala for suggestions or comments. It’s agreed that exam week is a
    good time to hold this function but we still have a hard time getting parents to commit. If we change the
    date, we will probably compete with other organizations. An event like this is more expensive to run on a
    Saturday than on a Friday. Fall is busy; March is a write off. Spring is too late to get a money commitment
    from the community. January is the best month to accommodate both gr. 9 and gr. 12 families.
o   Mr. Heffernan added that we do not have “streets” making commitments to attend as a group.
o   He suggested that we might like to look at groups within the school to make commitments en mass (ie—
    team parents).
o   This year the profits will be used to upgrade technology.
o   We may also need to look at targeted giving (ie—the Angel Fund).
o   Anne would like to see us build a school culture taking pride in the school by starting an alumni list (with the
    intent of inviting them to the Gala), and to use our email list more productively.
o   Mr. Heffernan added that 8 new families were looking at the school and our neighbourhood. He attributed
    this to our standing in the Fraser Report.
o   Flavia added that a big challenge is reaching parents and getting information out to them. She is not sure
    how was can better reach out to the community. The public health department noted that they also have
    difficulty communicating to the community. Ms. Dolan suggested door-to-door flyers or specific invitations.
o   We could also look to motivate school groups. Other suggestions included sending automatic phone
    messages and direct email invitations. (Mailing should begin in August.)
o   Anne then asked for a volunteer to take on marketing the Gala adding that she believes this event is
    important to the school.
o   We have done early ticket sales (early bird incentives) in the past.
o   Students could make posters.
o   Eighty families contributed almost $18,000 to the school.
o   We will discuss this event more next month.
o   The donated items went over their estimated bids.
o   Nine students worked that evening and Lucia thanked them as well.

QSP:Jane Adamyk
   o Jane reported a profit of $505 with almost $300 on-line.
   o Someone else will need to take over QSP next year as Jane’s children are graduating. The job is
      relatively easy and the service is awesome.
   o QSP web site is open Sept. to June and we post reminders in the Beakon.
  Shop and Support: Sandra McLauchlan
     o The Shop and Support program is still going on. Momentum seems to be picking up now that
        Christmas is over. It’s a great way to raise funds.
     o Sandra explained that if only 100 families in our school, each spent $100 weekly with the Shop and
        Support program, the school would make $12,000.
     o We need more participation which would require a change in the way people do things.

  Another used book sale is planned for April 17, on Parent Night.

  Chair/Vice Chair’s Report: Anne and Lucia
     o The annual Principal Placement Submission is due March 7. We need to prepare a good report to keep
         Regan. Volunteers are needed to help prepare the document.
     o Parent Education Nights are scheduled Feb. 21 on Teen Anger Management and March 20 on Eating
         Disorders. Sessions start at 7pm in the library. More information is on the APHS web site.
     o Anne regrets that Marlene has stepped down from the Chair position. Anne and Lucia will serve as
         interim co-chairs and invited anyone to consider this position in the fall.
     o Doris Fox will be staying as vice chair and Laurene Via was introduced as secretary.
     o Mr. Hepburn asked if we have asked the feeder schools for help from their parent councils.
     o Mr. Heffernan added that money from the Gala will help offset the cost of our computer tech programs.
         The school board is hoping to replace all computers within four years. Our school would have fewer
         computers if we didn’t have the infusion of cash from council fundraisers.
     o The Halton Learning Foundation donated $1500 to us to replace 2 trees and the Evergreen Foundation
         donated equipment to plant them

Vice Principal’s Report: Helen Pocierko
      o Ms. Pociurko reported on the Safe Schools Act, legislation to become effective, Friday, Feb.1. She
         related all new information dealing with suspensions and expulsions as outlined in Bill #212 (which
         replaces Sections 306 and 311 of the Education Act).
      o She then briefly explained some of the changes that these policies cover (to see a copy of the
         documents she shared with us, see the School Council file in the Main Office).
      o Section #306 dealt with suspensions. Some wording was changed to include issues of bullying and
         mitigating factors. Included now is a requirement that the school boards provide programs where
         suspended students can go during their suspensions.
      o Section #310 focused on activities leading to suspension. HOPES is a program run jointly with the
         Separate Board.
      o The HOPES program is for students who are suspended for more than 6 days and/or expelled. If a
         student is suspended between 6-10 days, then the student will work mainly on missed academics.
      o If a student is suspended for more than 10 days, the student’s program will consist of an academic and
         non-academic component.
      o It is required that school boards now have programs for suspended and expelled students.
      o A question from the floor: What happens if a pupil who is expelled registers at a new board? She
         replied that the new board may accept the student or assign the student to its own program for expelled
         pupils.
      o Another question: What constitutes a program for a student who has been expelled?
               The program will include academic lesson plans as well as a program to address underlying
                  causes of a student’s behavior.
               Independent credits could also be done dependent on time as well as credit recovery.
               A social worker may be called in to help direct the student to new programs.
               A teacher will be available daily to retain the habit of going to school daily.
               A contract can be drawn up with strict discipline programs.
      o The Ministry is giving significant money to these programs.
      o Each case is looked at individually.
      o Students returning from an expulsion from all schools of the board must successfully complete a
         program for expelled students or satisfy the objectives required for successful completion of the
         program.
      o Principals can recommend expulsions to the board.
      o The goal is to assist each student to the best of his/her ability so that the student can eventually
         graduate from high school. Students must now remain in school until the age of 18.
    o   With response to a question from the floor for a definition of bullying, Ms. Pocuirko replied that she will
        have a better answer next month, once the legislation is enacted.
    o   Another parent asked how many suspensions APHS has a year. Mr. Heffernan explained that
        generally we don’t have too many. Most of ours arise from drinking and fighting with the suspension
        time periods not being very long. He’s had only one serious expulsion at APHS so far and 3 when he
        was a QEP. Generally, for the system, there is one per school per year.
    o   Robbery and theft with violence occasionally come up, while use of weapons is rare.

The meeting adjourned at 9:40 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Laurene Via, School Council Secretary