St. James Catholic High School Meeting Minutes 6:30 Pm, November 24, 2014

St. James Catholic High School Meeting Minutes 6:30 pm, November 24, 2014

Present: Sally Akroyd Bombino, Tim Yawney, Frances Palermo, Vivianna Keir, Greg Hannam, Cindy Hughes

Regrets: Rita Sethi, Nancy Leidl, Camilla Ceroli, Titian Malleau, Nancy Brooker

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Nominations for Secretary - Cindy Hughes nominated by Sally Akroyd Bombino, seconded by Vivianna Keir. Carried. No Treasurer was elected.

Student Council Report - deferred.

Review and acceptance of minutes from May 27, 2014 and October 20, 2014 meetings - Changes to May minutes - Tim confirmed that school administration would call the police if there was a safety issue with pedestrians and traffic. Clarification: there are 25 Chromebooks for use by students in the library and a further 20 available for teachers to sign out for use in individual classrooms. Add: Cindy Hughes present at October meeting.

Acceptance of minutes motioned by Sally, 2nd by Greg, carried.

Principal’s Report  It was suggested we could meet at a restaurant instead of the school for parents council meetings. A final decision was not made.  Tickets for the semi-formal Christmas dance were less expensive this year - student council chose to forego dinner and opted for hors d'oeuvres instead. This was very successful, and 309 students attended the event, held at the Italian Canadian Club. The ticket price was more easily affordable, which resulted in a higher number of students participating. There were a few issue throughout the evening that were dealt with by the school staff who supervised the event. The students danced the entire 3 hours. The DJ was asked to shut down early (10 minutes) due to inappropriate music. Cindy suggested Mo Music in Cambridge has experience with Catholic school dances and may be an option for future.  Viviana brought up a situation about property taxes - a computer error has bumped Catholic school supporters from the system, changing taxpayers designation from Catholic to Public. Is the school board dealing with this? Unclear. Tim will look into this.  Special event days where students may wear non-uniform clothing - Civies Day, Halloween Days – students were asked to be modest and respectful. This was successful.  Remembrance Day - 3 cadets and 242 students attended the St. James service.  Pro-Life Speaker Rebecca Keslek - students overall were unhappy with the presentation as the presenter’s demeanor was inflammatory. Mr. Yawney outlined the ensuing events that included local media coverage when one student handed out coat hangers and pamphlets.  Mitch Dorch came and spoke for Anti-Bullying week. As this was a snow day, with low student attendance, St. John’s Grade 8 students were invited to attend the presentation.  Upcoming: Grade 8 parent info night (November 27th), mid-term newsletter, Ontario Greenbelt Forum; 250 Grade 6 students from our family of schools are invited.  International Trips: 18 students to Peru, 21 to Nicaragua at the end of February.  January 17 - Pasta dinner to fundraise for orphanages - ticket prices to come. Bishop Mac/Lourdes students are also participating in these trips.  Mass is held 1st Thursday of every month at 8 am in the (School?) chapel. The entire student council came to the November mass.  A Ministry grant paid for the new library floor, paint, and electrical work. School funds paid for the remainder of the renovation (ie. chairs, shelves, etc.)

Parent Handbook - Extensive work went into this and Mr. Yawney presented it to St. James staff - Awaiting approval from staff. - Feedback received- has too much information been provided? Is there duplication as some of this information is available elsewhere? Discussion – council members indicated the information was necessary and designed in the format of a handbook for parents that can be readily available to answer questions as they arise throughout the school year. - Mr Yawney advised that a meaningful date will be provided for staff to give their specific, final feedback

St. James Website Content - website content updates have been assigned to a staff member

Staff Breakfast in December  planned for December 11/14

CPIC Update - Viviana Dr. Karyn Gordon will be speaking on January 15th at Our Lady of Lourdes on Motivating Kids/Teens. Information is going home in all school newsletters.

Next Meetings: January 19, 6:30 February 23, 6:30 April 16 or 23 at 6:30 for Family of Schools Meeting

Meeting was prematurely adjourned due to Fire Alarm.