Niagara Children’s Centre School VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION HANDBOOK August 2016 Welcome to Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority Thank you for choosing to volunteer with Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority. We look forward to working together to make this a very worthwhile volunteering experience. The purpose of this handbook is to introduce you to Niagara Children’s Centre School, and to provide you with important information that will help you to have an enjoyable, productive, and safe volunteer experience. If you have any questions about this orientation material, please ensure that you speak with the employee running the program for which you will be volunteering. Once you start, you will receive a more detailed orientation to the specific program. If you have any questions regarding your volunteer experience, please ensure that you speak with the Principal or Treasurer/Human Resource Manager. 2 Niagara Children’s Centre School Introduction About Niagara Children’s Centre School The Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority is one of six Section 68 School Authorities in Ontario. Using a multidisciplinary approach, whereby learning is combined with each students’ therapeutic needs, the school provides developmentally appropriate age appropriate educational opportunities grounded from the Ontario curriculum. Through consultation with families, community partners and Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority personnel we provide a quality student profile that focuses on each individual student. Programs offered at the Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority are designed on the needs of the school students, meaning programs vary year to year as it is dependent upon the students profile referred to the school. Therefore, each of the school’s six classrooms are comprised of students who present with the similar needs and cognitive ability. The services provided to each student are facilitated in order to create a successful transition of each student into their local community school. Each classroom consists of one special education teacher, two educational assistants, one occupational therapist, one speech language pathologist and a communication disorders assistant. The focus of each classroom team is to provide individualized academic programming and therapy to support each student in the acquisition of academic readiness skills. Each classroom team provides ongoing assessment(s) of the student’s learning strengths and needs. Therapists role(s) in the Niagara Children’s Centre School setting are as follows: 1) Occupational Therapists – are involved with the development of activities of daily living skills including dressing, feeding and toileting, sensory processing and regulation, fine motor and written communication skills. 2) Speech Language Therapists – are involved in the development of language and communication skills including the use of alternative and augmentative strategies on devices. 3) Physical Therapists – are involved with the development of gross motor skills and the maintenance of physical function. Administrative Structure Niagara Children's Centre School Authority is a publicly funded organization, the School is funded by the Ministry of Education in Ontario. Our main purpose is to provide academic programs and services to enable children and youth with physical and/or communicative challenges to maximize their school readiness so they can attend a local community school. The Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority serves the entire Region of Niagara. A Board of Trustees consisting of 6 appointed members from the Niagara Region governs the affairs of the Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority. The Management Staff of the Niagara Children’s Centre School consists of a Chief Education Officer/Secretary of the Board, Human Resource/Treasurer of the Board, one liaison teacher, ten teachers, thirteen educational assistants, three personal support workers and one administrative assistant. 3 Vision (currently under review) Niagara Children’s Centre’s vision is: "Children with Special Needs at their Best" Niagara Children’s Centre School’s Vision is: “Weaving Education and Therapy Together for Student Success.” Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority Website Access and Information Services Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority has a web site www.niagarachildrenscentre.com that describes its services. It is important to check the web site during inclement weather as bus operation and school closure will be posted on the school’s home page. Job Postings Current vacancies are posted on the School website. If you are interested in employment opportunities, you may wish to speak with Principal or Treasurer/Human Resource Manager, and you are welcome to apply for postings for which you qualify. 4 Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority Policies All Niagara Children’s Centre policies are available to view in the main office. You will responsible for reading and signing off various polices when required to do so. Below is a brief outline of some of the important policies for you to review: Code of Conduct A school should be a place that promotes responsibility, respect, civility, and academic excellence in a safe learning and teaching environment. A positive school climate exists when all members of the school community feel safe, included, and accepted, and actively promote positive behaviours and interactions. Building and sustaining a positive school climate is a complex challenge requiring evidence-informed solutions. A whole-school approach, which involves all members of the school community, is also important in supporting efforts to ensure that schools are safe, inclusive, and accepting. All students, parents, teachers and other school staff have the right to be safe, and to feel safe, in their school community. With this right comes the responsibility to contribute to a positive school climate. The promotion of strategies and initiatives such as Student Success and character development, along with the employment of prevention and intervention strategies to address inappropriate behaviour, fosters a positive school climate that supports student achievement and the well-being of all students (Reference PPM 128 and Niagara Children’s Centre School’s Policy/Procedure Book). Code of Conduct – Dress Code (under review) It is an expectation of the Niagara Children’s Centre School that all staff members dress appropriately when coming to work. School employees are able to dress casually. Examples of what appropriate dress wear is; walking shorts, Capri pants, dress pants, blouse, t-shirt that doesn’t have any racial profanity or offensive logos on it, solid colour leggings (with a shirt that covers the buttocks), tank top that covers shoulders (front and no shoulder blades showing). Jeans (blue, black, including dresses/Capri’s etc…) should only be worn on Fridays. Please be aware of low cut shirts/blouses etc… We are a professional entity and should be seen as being professionally at all times. Footwear guidelines are; shoes/scandals/boots must cover your toes and at least must have a back strap. As we work with children stiletto shoes are probably not a good idea to wear to work. Code of Conduct – General Expectations Below is a list of expectations we follow in the school - No food or drink in the classroom (water in a sealed container is acceptable) - Student and staff safety is paramount, never leave a child/children unattended - Teamwork is an essential piece of the puzzle – gossip, excluding others, belonging to a clique, and exhibiting a negative demeanour destroys teamwork - If conflict/issue arises between staff members, one should address the conflict/issue with the other staff member prior to speaking with the CEO/Principal - Capital punishment doesn’t exist at our school (we never restraint or physically force a child to comply) - Cell phones are only used on breaks. We do not use cell phones at anytime in the school hallway. 5 Parking All school staff are provided with a parking pass that is required to be displayed on your windshield. You can pick up your parking pass from the Administrative Assistant in the school office. All school staff are expected to park in the back parking lot (located beside Shaver Hospital). To enter the Centre/School you are encouraged to use the front entrance. You are able to access the locked sliding door entrance during the hours of 8:45 to 3:45 as the Administrative Assistant will be able to unlock the door for you. Confidentiality Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority will abide by all current legislation including the Education Act, The Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) as well as the Personal Health Information Protection Act . Essentially, all three Acts indicate the same thing; “unless explicit consent has been given to disclose personal information, personal information isn’t disclosed.” All new employees are required to sign a confidentiality agreement when they begin working at Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority. Conflict of Interest It is the policy of Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority that each staff member is responsible for identifying and reporting any possible or actual conflict of interest to the CEO/Principal for evaluation regardless of whether or not the employee derives benefit. A conflict of interest exists if a school staff member engages in an activity which conflicts or appears to conflict with vision and values of the Niagara Children’s Centre School Authority.