School Bus Transportation in the Espanola, Manitoulin and Sudbury Districts is running today, however, expect delays. Please check the Student Consortium website regularly for updates at www.businfo.ca
Category: Parents/Parent Involvement
St. Anne’s Parent Going Above and Beyond to Support School Community
At all of the schools at the Sudbury Catholic District School Board, one can find many parents who go that extra mile to ensure that the students and staff have all that they need for great, fun, safe school days. One such parent that fits this bill is Todd Connors. Connors is a parent of a grade 8 student at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School in Hanmer and is the Regional Operations Manager of Perkins Restaurants. Todd is continuously supporting St. Anne not only with different supplies, but also by finding time to fit volunteering at the school in his busy schedule. As Regional Operations Manger of Perkins, he often donates many different food supplies to the school including pancake mix, muffin mix, crackers, soups, juice etc and in large enough quantities to feed the entire school! As well, he has donated season tickets to the Sudbury Wolves games for the school to enhance their student recognition programs such as “I caught you doing something good”. Laura Stirrett, Vice Principal of the school feels that Connors is an excellent example of positive parent involvement as well as a great example of how community can work together with schools building strong partnerships. “Mr. Connors is an important part of our school.” said Stirrett. “With his generous donations, he has helped eased some of the fund-raising burdens on students especially during these difficult financial times. We are very grateful for all that Mr. Connors has done and does for our school!” Cheryl Macrury, the JK/SK teacher at the school had her students write a letter to Mr. Connors on behalf of the school to express their gratitude for all that he has done for them. St. Anne’s would like to thank Mr. Connors and Perkins Restaurant for really making a difference in their school community.
The letter includes these lines from the JK/SK students:
Dear Mr. Connors,
Thank you for the pancake mix and syrup
for our pancake breakfast. They were EXCELLENT!!
They tasted YUMMY!!! You always give us awesome
treats for our special celebrations. We wan to thank
you for everything you do for our class and for our school.
We love it and we love YOU!
Love,
JK-SK
St. Christopher Holds Successful Family Literacy Night & Book Fair
On Thursday, February 25th/10 St. Christopher School held its annual Family Literacy Night and Book Fair. Thanks to the efforts of staff and students, the evening was a resounding success. In particular, St. Christopher’s would like to acknowledge the efforts of Mr. Dumont’s Grade 6 class who read and dramatized various stories with great flair. Also, a special thank you to Mrs. Zilio for co-ordinating and organizing the Book Fair and to the many parents who gave of their time to volunteer and assist.
“Gangs and Youth. A Community Action Plan.”
The Sudbury Catholic District School Board is proud to be a partner in the “Gangs and Youth. A Community Action Plan” initiative in conjunction with our fellow school boards and community agencies in Sudbury.
Representatives from the Board staff and Trustees participated in a “Gangs and Youth” Media Conference held at the Greater Sudbury Police Service to promote awareness around gang activity. The Board took this opportunity to reinforce the fact the Sudbury Catholic District School Board works hard to engage our students in our educational programs and extra-curricular activities. We believe that our school communities offer the best opportunities for our youth, thus enabling them to become positive members of society. Our Board supports and maintains positive school climates that enhance safety and focus on prevention and early intervention with opportunities for reconciliation, forgiveness and restoration of the community.
St. David Catholic Elementary School Celebrates Family Literacy Day with Community
Students at St. David Catholic Elementary School celebrated Family LIteracy Day on January 27 with visits from many different special guests. Local celebrities and community partners joined the different classes and read together to celebrate the joy of reading. Some of the guests included Tony Ryma from CTV News, Constables Grant Dokis and Ryan MacKay, three Sudbury Wolves players, as well as board staff including Joan Yawney the Religious Education, Family Life and Faith Formation Consultant and Maurizio Visentin, Guidance Program Leader at St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School. The students also enjoyed visits from their own family members and different staff family relatives. The St. David’s community was thrilled with their special guests and look forward to future visits!
SCDSB Elementary Schools Host Successful J.K. Open Houses
Staff at St. James Catholic Elementary School had music playing outside as the parents and potential new students approached the school. They were greeted at the door by the Principal Cara Soehner, Vice Principal Dan Stargratt and Superintendent Jean McHarg. St. James teachers had different stations set up for the children throughout the school as the parents sat down to begin filling out the registration forms. It was evident that quite a lot of hard work went into the planning of the J.K. open house evening and the parents who visited were quite excited to see the school in action. As well as visiting the J.K. classrooms and meeting their teachers, the children had their picture taken with the St. James’ mascot and even got the chance to hang out with the St. Ben’s mascot after receiving a school T-shirt from the fish pond. The new students were very busy visiting each station and it was evident by the laughter and squeals of delight that they were having a ball. Carter, one of the new J.K. registrants said it best when asked if he was having fun at the event. “Of course.” said Tyler, ” ’cause I’m fun!!!” Parents and potential students visited each of the SCDSB elementary schools on January 18, 2010. Many of the schools had different activities planned and worked very hard in preparation for the evening. As well, several of the board office academic services staff were also on hand at each school to help out where needed. Congratulations to all of our elementary schools and staff for a very successful J.K. open house night!
Pius XII Catholic Elementary School’s Early Learners Celebrate Family Literacy Day
Students from Pius XII Elementary Catholic School’s J.K. and S.K. classes, as well as children from the Maple Tree Preschool and the Minnow Lake Best Start Hub were invited to celebrate Family Literacy Day in the school’s library on January 19, 2010. Aboriginal Artist and Storyteller William Morin engaged the children in animated stories and had them participate using actions and costumes. Parents were also invited to be a part of the celebration. After the story, the students went back to the classroom and made their own masks inspired by the day.
SCDSB on Board with Provincial Government’s Full Day Learning Plan for September 2010
Sudbury MPP Rick Bartolucci held a press conference on January 12, 2010 to announce the provincial government’s funding of full day early learning in Ontario’s elementary schools beginning in September, 2010. “Creating an integrated day of learning and play will give children more opportunities for success,” said Bartolucci. “It’s a key part of the government’s plan to build a stronger school system and a well-educated workforce.” Bartolucci explained how it is a transformational moment in education as it gives four- and five-year-olds a stronger start in school and therefore a stronger start in life. Catherine McCullough, Director of Education also spoke at the press conference and announced the locations for the Sudbury Catholic Early Learning Schools which are St. Raphael Catholic Elementary, St. Anne Catholic Elementary and Pius XII Catholic Elementary. As well, McCullough reiterated the board’s previous announcement from December 2009, where the Sudbury Catholic Board, with full support from its trustees, will be funding full day Junior Kindergarten in all of its remaining elementary schools. “ Sudbury Catholic has led the province in its plan for full day J.K. implementation in the fall of 2010.” says McCullough. “Making this decision was simply the right thing to do for the children’s future, and that’s always our main consideration at the Sudbury Catholic District School Board.” The Director has said that the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and the board has already received many calls from parents who are also excited by the new full-day JK program and want to enrol their children. All of the Sudbury Catholic elementary schools are holding open houses on Monday, January 18th, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The open houses will give parents the opportunity to get a jump start on registration for their child.
St. Andrew School Community Proudly Supports Student Success
The parents from St. Andrew Catholic Elementary School generously dedicated their evening hours once every two months to work at Bingo One and earned extra funds to support student success for their children. Some of the wonderful things they have done are to support an amazing up to date library, stock the classroom libraries, grassed the soccer field, supplied trees for the field, purchased a summer shade structure and funded many extra curricular field trips to support the arts and athletics in the school. A warm thank you goes out to the parents on behalf of the St. Andrew Catholic School community!