Board of Education meeting highlights (May 9, 2012)

Contributed

Highlights of the Central Okanagan Board of Education meeting, May 9, 2012.

Recognition:

37th Annual Kelowna Civic and Community Awards

The Board of Education recognized the following who were award recipients at the 37th Annual City of Kelowna Civic & Community Awards celebration:

• Hayley Manlove, OKM Secondary School – Teen Honour in the Arts
• Terry Lee, KSS – Young Male of the Year (in attendance)
• Mitchell Goodwin, KSS – Augie Ciancone Memorial Award
• Keefer Joyce, KSS – Male Athlete of the Year
• KSS AAAA Girls Volleyball Team – Bryan Couling Memorial, Athletic Team of the Year
• Tony Sodaro, KSS – Bob Giordano Memorial Award

Superintendent’s Report:

The Superintendent reported on the following:

• School District No. 23 is in the process of updating the District’s Long-Term Facility Plan and is hosting 5 community meetings to provide an opportunity for public input. One public consultation meeting was conducted for the Lake Country Zone at George Elliot Secondary School on Tuesday, May 8. The remaining public consultation meetings are scheduled as follows:
• May 10, 6:30 pm – Okanagan Mission Zone at Okanagan Mission Secondary – Gym
• May 14, 6:30 pm – Rutland Zone at Rutland Senior Secondary – Gym
• May 15, 6:30 pm – Central Zone at Kelowna Secondary – Multipurpose Room
• May 22, 6:30 pm – Westside Zone at Mount Boucherie Secondary – Multipurpose Room

• Bill 36 – The School Amendment Act – This new enabling legislation from the Ministry of Education provides, amongst other things, maximum flexibility to Districts to establish their own school calendars in the years to come. As of the 2013/14 school year there will no longer be a ‘standard school calendar’ published by the Ministry.

• Impact of Withdrawl of Extra-Curricular Activities – Schools are reporting that the majority of teachers are withdrawing from activities that normally take place outside of instructional time. This is including a variety of meetings, tutorial sessions, clubs and sports activities. The grade 12 graduation ceremonies along with the dinner/dance (prom) events are still proceeding, however, it is anticipated that there will be far less teacher involvement than in previous years.

• On June 9, 2012 School District No. 23 will be hosting the 2012 Retirement Dinner at the Coast Capri Hotel. There currently are 54 employees who have indicated their intent to retire.

Action Items:

• Amended Policy 625 “Sites, Facility and Equipment Enhancements”
• The Board of Education approved the amendments to Policy 625 “Sites, Facility and Equipment Enhancements”.
• Capital Projects Bylaw No. 115433 – Approved Bus Projects
• The Board of Education gave first, second and third readings, passed and adopted School District No. 23 Capital Project Bylaw No. 115433 – Approved Bus Projects, in the amount of $228,261.58.
• BCSTA Conference – November 14-16, 2012 – Rescheduling of the November 14, 2012 Board Meetings
• The Board of Education approved the rescheduling of the November 14, 2012 Public and In-camera Board Meetings to Tuesday, November 13, 2012, to accommodate trustee involvement in the provincial education conference happening at the same time.

Information Items

• Achievement Contract 2012-2013
• The Board of Education reviewed the provincial guidelines associated with the development of next year’s Achievement Contract, along with the associated timelines.
• District Student Council 2012
• The composition of the District Student Council was reviewed by trustees, along with the valuable contribution that has been made by this partner group over many years.