Sudbury Catholic District School Board

Category: Staff Achievement

St. Andrew Wins Provincial Award

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On November 15, 2012, EQAO presented 27 elementary and secondary school communities in the province of Ontario with the Dr. Bette M. Stephenson Recognition of Achievement. According to the EQAO press release, “They are representative of the many school communities across the province that have made effective use of EQAO data and evidence from other sources to enhance and support student achievement. These schools are at various stages in their journey of learning and continuous improvement. All are notable for their demonstration of leadership, proactive initiatives and sincere effort to help every child succeed. These are schools that have adopted an action plan based on their unique circumstances and are working toward improved student outcomes.”
The Dr. Bette M. Stephenson Recognition of Achievement award is a recognition program established by the EQAO board of Directors in 2009 to pay tribute to Dr. Stephenson’s lifelong commitment and outstanding contributions to both education and public service.

The Sudbury Catholic District School Board is pleased to announce that St. Andrew Catholic Elementary School is one of the recipients of this award for 2012. “As one of the schools profiled in EQAO’s 2011-2012 Provincial School Reports, we wish to honour this school’s community for its efforts, over many years, at improving student achievement and for its use of EQAO results to improve student learning.”

Barry MacDonald, Chair of the Sudbury Catholic District School Board is thrilled with honour bestowed on the school. “On behalf of the board, I congratulate the staff at St. Andrew for their ongoing dedication to their students, and the entire school community. Winning this award is evidence of their hard work and commitment to ensuring the success of all of their students.”

A team from the school, including both the current and former principal – Melody Henry and Carmela Pitman, as well as two teachers – Mark Gautheir and Marilyn Onucky-Vervega, attended the awards recognition event in Toronto.

“Score!” – Sudbury Catholic Receives Significant Funding to Support Music Programming

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The grade 8 students at St. Benedict donned their coats and waited by the door for the vehicle from St. John’s Music in Toronto to arrived jammed packed with goods. Getting ready to unload their order, their teacher, Leanne Urso, couldn’t stop herself from grinning – “Its like Christmas!” exclaimed Urso.  Both Urso and St. Anne’s vice principal, Joanne Comisso applied for some funding back in June to support the board’s music programming.  Successful in their grant application, both staff members received word that the Sudbury Catholic Board would be receiving $20,000 worth of musical instruments and other music paraphernalia from MusiCounts.  MusiCounts is a music education charity associated with the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, working towards keeping music alive in schools across Canada.  This specific grant, called the Band Aid grant, speaks to their mission of ensuring that children in Canada have access to comprehensive music programs through their schools, regardless of socio-economic circumstances. On Friday, September 30, MusiCounts held a press conference to announce this year’s recipients of these grants nationwide, with the help of Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies, as well as Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield.  A total of $600,000 was distributed to over 80 school communities across the country.  Sudbury Catholic was the only recipient in Northeastern Ontario successful in their grant application. 

Both Urso and Comisso conduct the elementary Sudbury Catholic concert band, which is comprised of grade 7 and 8 students from St. Anne, St. Raphael, Pius XII and St. Benedict. This band, which practices separately in their individual schools, come together on several occasions throughout the school year to perform as one.  With the arrival of new instruments and music programming material, both Urso and Comisso were overjoyed with the success of their application.  “We are both so passionate about music,” Comisso stated.  “This arrival of instruments and materials is a huge, huge addition to our programming, and we are so fortunate.”

Barry MacDonald, Chair of the Board for Sudbury Catholic echoed Comisso’s comments.  “ What an outstanding accomplishment for our Board.  This substantial delivery of musical instruments etc., is a direct result of the hard work and dedication of our staff,” MacDonald stated.  “The passion that drives our staff to offer our students more, directly impacts these students, and allows our staff to deliver above standard programming.” 
Upcoming concert dates will be announced in the near future with the band performing in and around the city, with their brand new instruments.

St. Albert’s Personal Support Worker Program Receives Official Accreditation

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A full class of twenty-four students was on hand for the announcement on Wednesday, January 10, that the St. Albert Adult Learning Centre Personal Support Worker (PSW) program has officially received accreditation in their program. The PSW program began accepting students in September 2010 and is currently hosting its fourth PSW class. Approximately 100 students will have graduated from this accredited program by June 2012 with over 90% of students finding work in their field. What makes the PSW program at St. Albert unique, is that students can obtain their PSW certificate as well as credits towards their high school diploma. Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board commented to the group about this wonderful accomplishment. “The staff of St. Albert has worked so hard to make this opportunity available for its students,” McCullough stated. “Receiving official accreditation for the program is evidence of this hard work. The students who have, and are taking part in this program, continue to show success in their new careers. On behalf of St. Albert, I would like to thank all community partners, long term care facilities and community care agencies who have helped the St. Albert PSW program grow through accepting students for their experiential placements. Together we are making the greater City of Sudbury a healtheir place to live.”

St. Charles College-Mock Trial Champions!

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They practiced for hours, afterschool and on weekends, but the students in teacher Jaime Sauve’s Grade 12 Academic Law class really didn’t expect to be the Hennessey Cup Mock Trial champions. “These kids put in a lot of really, really hard work and effort,” Sauve said, “and we went into to the competition bringing our absolute best, but we didn’t anticipate such a great final result!”

The St. Charles College Mock Trial team practiced for several months on their assigned case which involved an impaired driving incident. The students had to be prepared to argue both for the prosecution and defence, and only found out at the trial which side they would actually be arguing for. In the end, the team had to argue for the defence both for their initial presentation, as well as in the final round againstt the team from Lockerby. Each team had a lawyer assigned to them to assist them with their preparation for the competition and the team from S.C.C. worked with James Ross from the law firm of Conroy Trebb Scott Hurtubise LLP as well as with local lawyer Len Walker. Both lawyers were very committed to helping the team prepare for the competition and the students are very grateful to them for all of their help.

In April, the students will travel to Toronto to compete at the Provincial Mock trial competition and recognize that they have a lot more work to do to prepare. “Now we are representing Sudbury and that is a huge deal to us,” Sauve said. “The students are committed to continuing their focus and are excited about the upcoming competition.”
Mock trial competitor and student Kayla Dumont was thrilled with the result at the courthouse and feels that this whole experience will help her for he future career path. “This mock trial and all of the preparation involved really gave me insight as to what a real career in law will be like,” Dumont said. “It has now inspired me to explore my options for a possible career in this field.”

Fellow competitor Sara Rovinelli also enjoyed this whole experience. “This competition has taught me how really think on my feet and how to adapt quickly to situations and respond under pressure – all qualities that will help me later on in life.”

The students wanted to make sure to thank their teacher Jamie Sauve for her dedication to the team, lawyers James Ross and Len Walker for their commitment to helping the students throughout this whole process, as well Madame Justice Patricia C. Hennessy for providing them with this positive learning opportunity.

As well as winning the overall competition, students Sara Rovinelli won the Best Advocate Defense award and Noel Walker won the Best Witness award.

St. Benedict Teacher Honoured with Rotary Club of Sudbury Community Leadership Vocational Award

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Libby Marinilli, a teacher librarian from St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School was honoured on Monday, October 25 by the Rotary Club of Sudbury with a Communnity Leadership and Vocational Award. Libby exemplifies professionalism in the area of education as well as self-development and reflects her expectations of her students which is having them reach their full potential. Over the years Libby has continued to stay current in her profession by taking numerous additional Ministry of Education courses in Guidance, Mathematics, English, Special Education Specialist, Computer Specialist, Principal Qualifications & most recently Library Science just to name a few.
Her dedication to her students & profession included expanding their horizons in this global village by forming an Educational Travel Club. Over the past 20 years, thanks to Libby’s efforts, students have been exposed to the global classroom with trips to Egypt, Russia, Japan & Western Europe. Here, in our own country, she has organized Youth Exchange with students from Saskatchewan, Newfoundland & Labrador. Libby has given of her personal time over the years by providing athletic training of sports teams after school, organizing the annual winter carnival & working with student council as well as the Literacy Across the Curriculum Committee as the staff representative. In attempting to incorporate relevant experiences as a way of enhancing student learning, Libby’s Gifted Grade 10 English class had their full-sized newspaper published by the Sudbury Star. Her passion for literature & the understanding of the importance of literacy in our world has brought her to her latest position as teacher-librarian. In this position, she has introduced e-books (electronic) to the library & students. She has organized authors from the Writer’s Union to speak to students about the writing process which in turn could motivate them to become future authors.

By organizing Chapters book fairs, she not only brings the community into the school, but as a result, this action has lead to the formation of a school Book Club. Libby has also been involved in ESP- Empowering Student Participation in various anti-bullying activities & campaigns.
In addition, Libby has found time to contribute to her community by volunteering as an executive member for the Joe MacDonald Football League for the past 16 years. The league encourages young boys & girls from ages 8-15 to learn skills, develop self-confidence & move on to high school prepared with the skills of the game.

Sudbury Catholic Teacher Named Elementary Teacher of the Year

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“It is still surreal to me…I keep expecting a phone call saying there has been some sort of mistake and they have picked someone else.” Early Learning French Immersion Teacher Alice Desormeaux still cannot believe that she has been selected to be the recipient of the 2010 OTIP Teaching Award in the category of Elementary Teacher. The Ontario Teachers’ Federation (OTF), in partnership with the Ontario Teachers Insurance Plan (OTIP), honours educators each year whose commitment, creativity and energy result in a superior experience for students. This initiative began in 1991 and over the years the honourees have covered a wide range of disciplines, teaching methods, age groups and geographical locations. Up to four awards are given annually to outstanding teachers in the categories of elementary, secondary, francophone and beginning teachers.

Desormeaux, who is just starting her twenty-first year of teaching with the Sudbury Catholic District School Board has been at St. Anne’s Catholic Elementary School since the beginning of her career. The bulk of her teaching has been in the Primary division and this year she is teaching in the school's Early Learning French Immersion classroom. “To be recognized by my peers, as well as provincially, it is a true honour,” Desormeaux stated. “With this honour, also comes a huge responsibility in that I know I have to always make sure that I am living up to this expectation.” According to her colleagues, she is more than up for that task. As several of her co-workers nominated her for this award, they also had to submit testimonials as to why they thought she was deserving. Jody Odaiskey, also a teacher at St. Anne's knew that Alice was the perfect fit for this award. “Alice has a gift that makes her approachable in every way,” Odaiskey said. “She has impacted more lives than I think she is aware of as she always treats all students with the utmost respect and always finds their shining qualities.”

Lucie Cullen, Principal of Marymount Academy had the opportunity to work with Desormeaux as her principal at St. Anne's several years ago and also feels that she is deserving of this award. “I have known Alice for over 20 years, as a colleague, friend, and fellow parishioner. Her positive attitude, her love of children, her passion for student success, her dedication to literacy and numeracy initiatives and her insatiable hunger for personal and professional growth are reflected in the outstanding quality of her work as a teacher.” Cullen said.

Over twenty different submissions from co-workers and parents were sent on Desormeaux's behalf and it is clearly evident that she is truly deserving of this award. On St. Anne's website, it speaks to the school providing a safe haven for children, instilling a sense of pride and respect for themselves, others, and for their environment, where students are continuously encouraged to strive to achieve their own personal potential in every aspect of their spiritual, academic, social and physical growth. Alice Desormeaux does just that each and every day with all students and staff that come into her life.

Catherine McCullough, Director of Education expressed her joy regarding Desormeaux’s win. “On behalf of the Sudbury Catholic District School Board, I would like to congratulate Alice on this tremendous accomplishment and it is with great pride that we call her a Sudbury Catholic teacher, and consider her an integral member of the Sudbury Catholic family.”

Desormeaux travelled to Toronto for the awards ceremony on Thursday, September 30 at which time they bestowed her with the award as well as presented a documentary that was filmed by TV Ontario reflecting a day with Desormeaux in the classroom. The Toronto Star has also done an interview with Desormeaux along with the other recipients that will be a part of their weekend edition story on the awards.

Two SCDSB Teachers Named Apple Distinguished Educators

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Leann Laframboise and Marlene Lee from the Sudbury Catholic District School Board were honoured to be two of twenty-six teachers in Canada to be chosen by Apple Canada this year to be named an Apple Distinguished Educator. They join their colleague, Jennifer Connelly, who became an ADE last year. They are three of 86 teachers in Canada to hold this title. They join the approximately 1400 ADEs across the world who share and have access to the knowledge, tips and expertise the members post on the Apple Distinguished Educator community site. Teachers are required to submit a video of how they use technology in the classroom as part of the application process. All three attended the Apple Institute held in Ottawa from July 2nd to July 5th, 2010. Here they were given the chance to attend sessions on the use of technology in the classroom, listen to motivational speakers and to meet other ADEs across Canada. All three teachers are even more excited about integrating technology into their classrooms next year.

Relay of Life 2010 – Rainbow of Hope

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On June 18th 2010, students, staff and members of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Garson gathered for the 2nd annual Relay for Life. This year’s theme was, “Rainbow of Hope!” Each class was invited to show their “colour of the rainbow” by choosing a type of cancer and wearing its associated colour on the day of the walk. Students cheered on surviving family members, who proudly displayed on balloons, how many years they have been cancer free! Through donations and the purchase of luminaries in honour of those who have lost their lives, we were able to fund-raise $3200.00 to aid in cancer research! A huge thank you goes out to the Canadian Cancer Society, the Sudbury Health Unit, the CWL from St. John the Evangelist Parish, many volunteers as well as the students and staff from St. John school. Together, are making a difference!

St. James Catholic School Selected Provincially as a School on the Move

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St. James Catholic School joined an elite group of schools across Ontario recently that have been recognized by the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat as a School on the Move. The School on the Move initiative highlights schools that are making substantial progress in raising student achievement and have sustained this progress over several years. St. James was nominated by the Ministry of Education and after a visit to the school by Ministry officials, was one of only 33 schools selected provincially. With over 4900 schools in the province including Catholic, Public, English and French Boards, Cara Soehner, Principal of the school was thrilled that St. James was selected to be part of such a prestigious group. Only four Northern schools were named as Schools on the Move, and Soehner attributes this to the strength and support of the staff who set strong foundation skills for learning.
Selection for Schools on the Move includes the following criteria:

EQAO scores in reading, writing and mathematics have improved in both Grades 3 and 6 over a three year period
Staff being able to articulate what they did and how they implemented changes
Staff being able to provide evidence of growth in student achievement
Strategies the school identified are supported by research evidence
Collaborative culture, with teachers working together, constantly learning, challenging and supporting each other
Doors being open and parents being partners.

As well as being a School on the Move, an additional accolade for the school includes their receiving the Dr. Bette M. Stephenson award this past year which is an award given to a school that demonstrates leadership, proactive initiatives, positive attitude and sincere efforts to help every child succeed. As well, the school must also be making effective use of the EQAO data and show evidence from other sources to enhance and support student achievement. Again Soehner ascribes the school’s success to the continuous work of the staff. “Our staff works tirelessly to engage and support each and every student at St. James,” Soehner said. “Every single day we collectively focus on the belief that everything we do is for the success of all of our students and that every single child matters.”

St. James is the second school in two years from the Sudbury Catholic District School Board to be nominated and selected as a School on the Move as St. Christopher Catholic Elementary was a School on the Move in the 2008-2009 school year.

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