December 2002 - Sudbury Catholic District School Board

SCDSB Holds Second Destination Conservation Inservice

Posted on December 20, 2002August 23, 2018 by admin

The second in a series of Destination Conservation “inservices” took place at the Sudbury Catholic District School Board’s Education Centre recently involving both morning and afternoon training sessions. Destination Conservation is a three-year program designed for school boards to improve their energy use, water consumption and waste management practices.

A co-operative team of students, teachers, principals, custodians and parents work together with Destination Conservation partners to help schools conserve resources and protect the environment. In addition, DC implements and monitors conservation activities within schools which help reduce waste and save money. Mark Gervais, Energy Co-ordinator with the Sudbury Catholic Board stated that, “these in service workshops involving the contact teachers at each school were a follow-up to the previous session where students were asked to conduct a technical audit of their schools to examine how their school uses energy, consumes water and generates waste.” The audit also allowed students to measure the efficiency of their school and compare the results to the previous year. Gervais continued on to say that, “the focus of the workshop was to concentrate on the results of year one and at the same time underscore behavioural changes that would continue to assist in energy, water and waste reductions in the schools in year two.” In addition to the information gleaned from the workshop, Contact Teachers also received a rebate cheque for savings achieved in year one of the Destination Conservation Program.

The Sudbury Catholic District School Board continues to partnership with this international conservation program that has its roots in the classroom and provides a win-win solution for environmental organizations, utility companies and the entire community. For more information on Destination Conservation, contact Mark Gervais, Board Energy Co-ordinator, ph. 673-5620 (Ext. 424) or Pauline Therrien, Board Curriculum Contact, (Ext. 405)

Sudbury Catholic District School Board Makes Decision on School Closures

Posted on December 18, 2002August 23, 2018 by admin

After weeks of meetings, public debates and extensive input from parents, school councils, and special interest groups, Trustees of the Sudbury Catholic District School Board made the final decision regarding the five elementary schools under review last night. While the motion on the floor called for the consolidation of St. Anthony and St. Michael schools at St. Francis school, effective September 2003, Trustees voted to consolidate St. Anthony school with St. Francis in September 2003, keeping St. Michael’s school open. With respect to the Western Family of schools, Trustees decided in favour of the Board’s recommendation to consolidate Our Lady of Fatima school in Naughton at St. James School in Lively, effective September 2004.

Ray Vincent, Chair of the Sudbury Catholic Board stated that, “The decision to close a school is never an easy one nor is it a decision that Trustees take lightly. Over the past several weeks we have met with senior Board administration to review the information presented to us in the public meetings held at the schools and to re-examine the Board’s informational package. Our mandate as Trustees has always been to provide the best quality of Catholic education possible for our students. After taking into account the number of excess pupil capacity spaces in our schools as they relate to higher operational and maintenance costs, it became apparent that we would have to consolidate some schools. At the end of the day, from a financial and logistical point of view it made the most sense to consolidate St. Anthony school with St. Francis School next fall and

Our Lady of Fatima will be consolidated into the newly renovated St. James school in September of 2004.”

Zandra Zubac, Director of Education with the Sudbury Catholic Board stated that, “The

Trustees made a difficult decision yesterday to provide better educational opportunities for all our students in the Catholic educational system. Senior Administration is committed to working with school staff, students and Catholic School Councils over the next several months to ensure a smooth transition of the consolidation process.”

SCDSB Shows Improvement in Grade 3 and 6 EQAO Test Results

Posted on December 17, 2002August 23, 2018 by admin

Results from the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) indicate Grade 3 & 6 students from the Sudbury Catholic District School Board scored well in recent testing. The test, conducted in May 2002, consisted of a reading, writing and math component. The test is given annually and is intended to indicate whether or not students meet the basic standards set by the province. Sudbury Catholic District School Board Grade 3 students who wrote the provincial assessment surpassed the provincial average in reading and made great gains in writing and mathematics. Grade 6 students met the provincial average in writing, increased their scores in reading and maintained their scores in mathematics. “We will continue to provide instructional strategies to improve student achievement in the area of mathematics,” stated Rossella Bagatto, Superintendent of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board. Our elementary principals have met with the curriculum team to develop individual school plans to ensure even greater success in the May 2003, EQAO assessment,” maintains Bagatto.

Ray Vincent, the new Chair of the Sudbury Catholic Board is also very pleased with the efforts of the students. “The recent EQAO results indicate outstanding improvement and a growth of 21% by grade 3 in mathematics over the past two years. These significant gains are the result of consistent efforts of our students, the commitment of our teachers and principals and the support of our parents,” stated Vincent.

View EQAO test results.

Sudbury Catholic District School Board Elects New Chair and Vice Chair

Posted on December 4, 2002August 23, 2018 by admin

The Sudbury Catholic District School Board is pleased to announce the election of its new chair and vice-chair for 2002-03.

Ray Vincent will assume the position of Chairperson and is looking forward to the new challenges this position will bring. “As we move forward this year, developing new initiatives and ideas, let us not forget to appreciate what we have accomplished in the short life span of the Board,” stated Vincent. “The foundation of our Catholic Education is only as strong as its main weight bearing point. I submit to you that our Catholic partners and larger community are looking to us, this Board to be this pillar of strength. Vincent continued on to state that, “What we do as a Board must say that we are committed to Catholic education. Our actions must say to our teachers that if indeed our schools are “Schools To Believe In,” and Catholic Education is a value added education, it is because of what happens in the classroom.. It is also important to note that what we do as a Board must be seen by parents and students that their best interest is our first priority.”

Jody Cameron, former Chairperson of the Board will take on the position of Vice-Chair and is also looking forward to his new role.”My first year as Chair involved a very quick learning curve,” stated Cameron. As a Board we were faced with a number of challenging issues which we overcame quite admirably, the creation of a new Catholic Secondary school in Valley East, increased enrolment at Marymount Academy, bringing in a balanced budget and the appointment of a new Director of Education, to mention only a few.” Cameron went on to state that his previous experience as Board Chair would be a definite asset in his new position.