Saturday, November 23, 2013

School Board Meeting: November 26th 2013

Board of Education Public Meeting
 
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
 
7 :00 – 10:00 pm
 
Agenda:
 
Agenda Package:
 
MOUNTAIN VIEW ROOM
 
North Vancouver School District
Education Services Centre
2121 Lonsdale Avenue
North Vancouver BC
 
Pedestrian Access: Main entrance at 2121 Lonsdale Avenue (west side), proceed by elevator to 5th Floor
Vehicle Access: Parkade entrance off West 21st Street and Lonsdale Avenue, Parking Level 1 and proceed by elevator to 5th Floor

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

NVPAC General Meeting - 7:00 pm, Wednesday 27th November, 2013

Please join us for NVPAC's November General Membership meeting on Wednesday, November 27, 2013, at 7:00 pm in the Mountain View Room (5th Floor) of the Education Services Centre, 2121 Lonsdale Avenue. 
 
NVPAC supported several individuals who attended the BCCPAC Conference in Kelowna last weekend.  We will hear reports on the workshops they attended.
 
The majority of the evening will feature an examination of several key findings of the NVPAC Survey using the Appreciative Inquiry method.  Participants will break in to small groups to discuss a key finding and to develop actions which NVPAC and school PACs can take to address the finding.  Finally, each group's ideas and suggestions will be reported to the whole group.  
 
An agenda is attached, together with draft minutes (to be approved) of the October 23, 2013 General Membership meeting.
 
Parking is available in the underground garage, entrance off 21st Street.  If arriving on foot, please use the west entrance door to the lobby. 
 
 

Friday, November 15, 2013

Education and Programs Standing Committee - Tuesday, November 19th, 7:00 pm

EDUCATION AND PROGRAMS STANDING COMMITTEE (PUBLIC)
 
The  November 19, 2013 Education and Programs Standing Committee Meeting will feature Brooksbank Elementary School’s story of aligning vision and actions towards creating a vibrant Learning Organization.
 
Trustee Lisa Bayne, Alternate Chair of the Education and Programs Standing Committee, invites parents, the School District’s partner groups, students, staff and interested public to attend this informative sessions.  The meeting will take place on:
 
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
 
7 :00 – 8:30 pm
 
MOUNTAIN VIEW ROOM
 
North Vancouver School District
Education Services Centre
2121 Lonsdale Avenue
North Vancouver BC
 
 
 
v  Pedestrian Access: Main entrance at 2121 Lonsdale Avenue (west side), proceed by elevator to 5th Floor
v  Vehicle Access: Parkade entrance off West 21st Street and Lonsdale Avenue, Parking Level 1 and proceed by elevator to 5th Floor

Monday, November 11, 2013

Windsor Secondary PAC Presents: Unlock your Future - The Key to Scholarships

Windsor Secondary PAC is hosting an evening with Windsor grad Brittany Palmer who will be presenting her seminar "Unlock your Future - The Key to Scholarships".  This is a step-by-step program for navigating the scholarship process.  Students in Grades 10 - 12 and their parents are invited to this event.

Date:  Monday, November 18, 2013
Time:  7:00pm
Place:  Windsor Secondary Multi-Purpose Room
Admission:  $5 per family, payable to the Windsor main office or at the door
Register:  Call Windsor Secondary at (604) 903-3700

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Oct 2013 General Meeting Draft Meeting Minutes

NVPAC General Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
7:00 pm Mountainview Room, ESC, 2121 Lonsdale Avenue

Chair:  Jane Lagden Holborne (Sutherland)
NVPAC Attendance: Jane Lagden Holborne, Karen Nordquist, Debra Dennehy, David Whitehead, Joanna Woronchak, Debrah Johnstone, Alex Best, Mike Sexsmith, Amanda Nichol
Regrets:
Attendance: 27
(DPAC Reps & PAC Chairs): 20
Guests:  Superintendent John Lewis, Trustee Franci Stratton, Trustee Cyndi Gerlach
Schools Represented:  Argyle, Boundary, Braemar, Canyon Heights, Cove Cliff, Handsworth, Larson, Lynn Valley, Montroyal, Mountainside, Queensbury, Ross Road, Seycove, Seymour Heights, Sutherland, Upper Lynn

1.   Welcome & Introductions:  Jane Lagden Holborne called the meeting to order at 7:08pm

2.   Approval of Minutes: Birte Hunter - Seycove , Seconded by Phoebe MacMillan - Seymour heights, moved that the minutes of the May 2013 Annual General Meeting minutes be accepted as written.  All in favour; carried.

3.   Ratification of NVPAC Executive Members for 2013/14: Caroline Ramsey, Seconded by Birte Hunter, moved to approve the 2013/14 North Van PAC executive roles and responsibilities as presented below and on blog.northvanpac.org. All in favour, carried.

North Van PAC roles 2013/14
Chair: Jane Lagden-Holborne 
Vice-Chair: Karen Nordquist
Treasurer: Joanne Woronchak
Secretary: David Whitehead
Registrar: Debra Dennehy
Program Facilitator: Mike Sexsmith
Member at Large - Amanda Nichol
Member at Large - Deborah Johnstone
Member at Large - Alexandra Best
Member at Large - Outdoor School: Susanne Till
BCPAC Liason: Debra Dennehy

4.   Registrar/BCCPAC Matters – Debra Dennehy:
Reported 15 schools have provided NVPAC with up to date contact information with 17 still to come. Please send in your current information including DPAC reps, chair, vice and contact info and whether you are registered with BCCPAC.
9 PACs are currently registered with BCCPAC. Please pay your fees by Dec and NVPAC will reimburse. BCCPAC Fall leadership conference is Nov. 15-17 in Kelowna. Two parents have asked for NVPAC support to attend so far. More are welcome. Please contact our BCCPAC Liaison Debra Dennehy for more information registrar@northvanpac.org

5.   Financial Matters:  Joanna Woronchak and Mike Sexsmith:
Mike Sexsmith presented the 2012/13 financials and apparently owes someone $7.50. With a successful increase in our safety grant utilization, speaker grant utilization and more North Van PAC events we were able to spend our budget last year and reduce our surplus!
Joanna Woronchak presented our proposed 2013/14 Budget. Changes for the year include a budget to replace the NVPAC accounting system, $1000 allocated for attendees to the BCCPAC conferences, continued support for the Family of Schools and Parent Speaker grants, BCCPAC membership reimbursement and the need for a new policy regarding ongoing support for the Safety Grant.

2012/13 Final Balance
Motion to Accept the 2012/13 financial statements as presented: Amanda Nichol, Seconded by Deb Dennehy , all in favour, carried.

2013/14 North Van PAC Budget 
Motion to accept the 2013/14 North Van PAC budget as presented: Alexandra Best, Seconded by Karen Nordquist, all in favour, carried.


6.   NVPAC Spring 2013 Survey Report – David Whitehead:  
David Whitehead presented the results of the Spring 2013 North Van PAC parent survey. The final report will be available shortly.
Presentation

7.   Guest Speakers:  Superintendent John Lewis and Trustee Franci Stratton: Presented on District Priorities for 2013.

8.   Meeting adjourned at 9.18 pm.
Next Meeting:     November 27, 2013
7:00 pm
Education Services Centre,

2121 Lonsdale Avenue

Thursday, October 10, 2013

General Membership Meeting - Wednesday October 23, 2013

Please join us for NVPAC's first General Membership meeting on Wednesday, October 23, 2013, at 7:00 pm in the Mountain View Room (5th Floor) of the Education Services Centre, 2121 Lonsdale Avenue.  Note the meeting night has changed to the third Wednesday of the month. 
 
Past Chair David Whitehead will present a report on the NVPAC's Spring 2013 Survey.
 
Guest speakers at the meeting will be Superintendent John Lewis, and Trustee and Board Chair Franci Stratton.  Mr Lewis will speak about the progress to date on the District's 3-year Plan, and Ms Stratton will speak about the Board of Education's goals for the year.
 
An agenda is attached, together with draft minutes (to be approved) of the May 23, 2013 General Membership meeting.
 
Parking is available in the underground garage, entrance off 21st Street.  If arriving on foot, please use the west entrance door to the lobby. 
 
We look forward to seeing you on the 23rd
 

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Parents as Career Coaches


North Vancouver School District and the North Vancouver Parent Advisory Council are pleased to again sponsor the Parents as Career Coaches workshop, presented by Marion Haythorne of Capilano University.

Parents as Career Coaches is a two-session, five hour, interactive workshop designed to help parents of secondary school students become more effective career development allies for their children.  They are introduced to the concepts of coaching and given practical tools and research skills to help them as they coach their youth.

 
Dates:              Mondays, October 21 and 28, 2013

Time:               6:30 – 9:00 pm

Location:          Sutherland Secondary Theatre
                                  1860 Sutherland Avenue


Space is limited; please follow this link to RSVP:  http://www.eventbrite.ca/event/5601440058
 
Participants are advised to bring writing materials to the workshop.

 

 

Education and Programs Standing Committee Meeting Tuesday, October 8


Education and Programs Standing Committee Meeting
is taking place tonight (Tuesday, October 8) 4 pm
at the Education Services Centre (2121 Lonsdale)
in the Mountainview Room on the 5th Floor.

For an up to date listing off upcoming public meetings for the School Board please visit:
http://www.nvsd44.bc.ca/Board/Meetings/Pages/default.aspx

The agenda for this meeting:
http://www.nvsd44.bc.ca/Board/Meetings/2013_14/Documents/EandPAgenda20131008.pdf

Friday, September 20, 2013


Queensbury PAC Invites you to a Parent Education talk…

“When to Worry About Worry”
Anxiety in Kids

Presented by: Dr. Kimberley Da Silva,
Psychologist, North Shore Stress and Anxiety Clinic

Wednesday, October 16th  7:00pm
Queensbury Gym
(Doors open at 6:30)
Cost $2 at the door

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Parent Survey results publication delay.

A number of people have asked about the results of our parent survey. 

My apologies but publication of the results, originally promised for June, have not yet been published. It is taking longer than expected to prepare the results but we will be publishing them soon and thank you for your patience.

Dave


Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Technology EdCamp Summary

On June 4th, NorthVanPAC in conjunction with the School District, hosted a Technology EdCamp for parents to help us gain a better understanding of how technology is used in schools by teachers to help students learn.

What we saw were numerous interesting uses of technology. From the use of blogging and writing tools to help communicate with students. The use of various creative tools, such as movie making and recording tools  to enable students to produce stories and documentaries on their learning. And finally to direct teaching aids that helped the students investigate different topics, such as math and science.

There were a wide variety of tools presented and each teacher had many different examples of different tools that they found helpful in their particular classrooms.

What was most interesting to me were the uses of creative tools, things like the use of MineCraft to present a discussion of architecture, or the use of animation tools by students to present different subjects. The ability to provide students with many different ways of interacting with their learning was very interesting and it is encouraging to see teachers incorporating this sort of creativity and flexibility into their classrooms.

The EdCamp Ended with an App Smackdown. Using an Airplay server to enable multiple ipads to connect to and show content on a large screen several different teachers were able to in quick succession queue up and demonstrate different ipad apps on the big screen for all to see. It was interesting to see the huge variety of apps they recommended but also to demonstrate how these tools can be used to discuss different ideas in the classroom.

Overall the feedback on the event, at which 32 parents attended, was that it was a very useful event and  we are hoping to be able to collaborate on more of these events next year.



After the meeting, Paul Clarke from Brooksbank Elementary shared their list of recommended Apps with us.


 1st Priority Apps:
Pages
Keynote
iMovie
Comic Life
Starfall ABCs
Dictionary
PDF Expert
Explain Everything
Calculator
Toontastic
Timer
Garageband

2nd Priority Apps:
Long Div
Long Mult
100s Board
Tens Frame
Bugs & Buttons
Subitising
Friends of 10
Measurement HD
Story Wheel
Glow Coloring
Scribble Math
Times Tables

3rd Priority Apps:
Brushes
Mathboard
Pocketphonic
National Geographic World Atlas
Number Line
Silly Sentences
Rocket Math
Geometry 4 Kids
ABC Shape Puzzle
Little Patterns
Seasons!
Frames
Chess
Dino Diggers
2D/3D Sorting
My Story-Book Maker 4 Kids
iThoughts HD
Parkmath HD
Brushes
Mathboard
Art Rage

Free Apps:
Skype
Chirp
Twitter
Evernote
ABC Lite
Visual Poet
Doodle Buddy
Math Bug Lite
Puppet Pals
4 In A Row
Sorting 1
Sorting 2
Eyewitness (Guardian)
Edmodo

Change to BCCPAC Membership payments.


BCCPAC Memberships

North Van PAC encourages all PACs to complete their BCCPAC membership applications and will continue to reimburse PACs for the fees paid.


Due to some challenges with processing BCCPAC membership applications North Van PAC we have decided to change how we reimburse PACs for their BCCPAC membership fees starting next year. In the past we have paid BCCPAC directly for all applications they receive but some applications were missed this past year and those PACs were unable to vote at the AGM as a result.

For this reason North Van PAC is asking all PACs to pay their BCCPAC membership fees directly to BCCPAC and we will reimburse PACs for the expense on presentation of the receipt for their membership dues to our treasurer.

North Van PAC Meeting Dates 2013/14 (note changes)

North Van PAC Meeting Dates 2013/14:

At the May 2013 General Meeting it was decided that North Van PAC General Meetings will be held the 4th Wednesday of each month next year.

Meeting Location: 5th Floor, 2121 Lonsdale Ave.

Meeting Dates are as follows:
Oct 23, 2013
Nov 27, 2013
Jan 22, 2014
Feb 26, 2014
April 23, 2014
May 28, 2014


Annual General Meeting and New Executive

The 2013 North Van PAC Annual General Meeting was held Thursday May 23rd, 2013

May 23rd Public Meeting Minutes
2013 North Van PAC AGM Minutes

At the meeting a new PAC executive membership was elected while it was agreed that the specific positions could be left to be organized within the new group of members and that organization ratified at the 1st public meeting in Oct 2014.

A follow up meeting of the executive members arrived at a recommended organizational structure that to be ratified in October.

The new North Van PAC executive for 2013/14 will be:

Chair: Jane Lagden Holborne
Vice-Chair: Karen Nordquist
Secretary: David Whitehead
Treasurer: Joanna Woronchak
Registrar & BCCPAC Liaison: Debra Dennehy
Member-at-large (Program Facilitator): Mike Sexsmith
Member-at-large (Program Facilitator): Deborah Johnstone
Member-at-large (Website coordinator): Alexandra Best
Member-at-large (Outdoor School Liaison): Susanne Till
Member-at-large: Amanda Nichol


Congratulations and thank you to the new executive for your commitment to North Van PAC.


Monday, May 20, 2013

May 23rd AGM Agenda and other updates

A few reminders and a couple of information items:

  • May 23rd- 7pm - NVPAC  Annual General Meeting 
  • May 21st -May 31st - NorthVanPAC Parent Survey
  • May 23rd - RSVP deadline for Technology EdCamp
  • May 23rd - RSVP deadline for PAC 101
  • BCAA School Safety Program
North Van PAC Annual General Meeting - May 23rd. 

Meeting
Event: North Van PAC Annual General Meeting
Time: May 23rd, 7 pm
Location: Mountainview room - 5th floor - 2121 Lonsdale Ave

April general meeting minutes: https://docs.google.com/a/northvanpac.org/document/d/1LF2Rqxw_Nnd-kbQjPStHJY6mT4Z825U79AthxDDkUpY/edit

2012 Annual General Meeting minutes: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B73w-jxd1FVXWG5STEE5ZTc3dEE/edit?usp=sharing

Annual General Meeting Agenda
7:00 Approve 2012 Minutes
7:10 Chairs Report
7:20 Treasurers Report
7:30 Elections

General Meeting Agenda
7:40 Approval of April Minutes
7:50 Pac 101
8:00 EdCamp
8:10 BCCPAC Report
8:20 Parent Survey
8:30 School Calendar Changes
8:40 PAC Reports
9:00 Adjourn

Elections

We will be electing for all executive positions and would like representatives from all our PACs to attend to ensure we have quorum for the meeting. Nominations from the floor will be accepted at the meeting.

Positions available include:
• Chair - Primary liaison with District, chairs executive and general meetings
• Vice-Chair - Assists Chair
• Treasurer - Manages DPAC Finances
• Secretary - Records meeting minutes
• Registrar - Maintains PAC member lists
• Program Coordinator - Organizes meetings and events
• BCCPAC Liaison - Communicates with BCCPAC
• Communications - Manages website and email lists
• Members-at-Large (multiple) - Represent NorthVanPAC on various committees



May 21st-May31st North Van PAC Parent Survey

We expect our survey to gather parent feedback on North Vancouver Schools will be sent out to all parents via email using school connects on May 21st. The survey will be open till the end of May (10 days) and we are hoping to get good representation from all schools. Although being sent out via school connects this is a North Van PAC initiative. Please encourage parents in your schools to complete the survey as it is their opportunity to help us to provide feedback to the District.


If you or parents at your school have questions about the survey please send them to info@northvanpac.org



NVPAC EdCamp - PACs please RSVP with your attendees by May 23rd
EdCamp for Parents
June 4th, 6-7:30pm
Location: Education Service Centre, 5th Floor. 2121 Lonsdale Ave

We only have 60 spaces for the event and are inviting each PAC to send 2 representatives from their school to this initial session. If each PAC could please send your list of representatives and their contact info to us at rsvp@northvanpac.org by May 23rd. Please include the name of your school, 2 representatives and 1 alternate. If space is available we will invite alternates to attend.

Teachers will discuss and demonstrate what they do with technology to support education in the classroom. There will be 6 stations showing technology use at different elementary and secondary grade levels.

Potential items include such things as:
• Blogging in the classroom
• Collaboration using Google Docs
• Teaching programming
• Creative Apps (labelling, mind mapping, whiteboarding)

There is limited enrolment for this event but if successful we will try to do more next year.


PAC 101 Discussion - PACs please RSVP by May 23rd
June 6th, 7pm-9pm
Education Service Centre - 2121 Lonsdale Ave

As discussed at the last general meeting we would like to invite all PAC chairs and treasurers to a PAC 101 session to share best practices.

The format for the meeting will be discussion tables of 6 to discuss a variety of common challenges PACs face: roles&responsibilities, recruitment, running meetings, preparing over the summer, budgeting etc.

BCCPAC also have great info on this topic http://bccpac.bc.ca/pac-101

If you would like to attend this event please rsvp to treasurer@northvanpac.org with the names and contact info of your attendees.



BCAA Road Safety for Schools

My name is Mark Donnelly and I'm the President and COO of BCAA's Road Safety Foundation. I'm very excited to be writing you today to let you know that we're expanding our School Safety Patrol program for elementary schools in B.C.

I'm pleased to say, starting this year, we're offering the program to schools for free.

Children are at the greatest risk for pedestrian-related injuries or fatalities, especially in and near school zones. We, at BCAA and its Road Safety Foundation (RSF), want to help make our roads safer for children.

Endorsed nationally by the Canadian Automobile Association, the School Safety Patrol Program offers safety patrol equipment, training materials and resources to help schools get the program up and running — free of charge.

Please help us keep children safe on our roads by talking to your school principal about bringing the School Safety Patrol Program to your child’s school for this upcoming September. Schools can register now.

For information about the School Safety Patrol Program, visit our website at bcaaroadsafety.com, email us at roadsafety@bcaa.com, or call toll free 1-877-247-5551. 

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

PACs and Teacher Collaboration times.

A number of PACs have asked about arrangements to accommodate students whose families are unable to arrange supervision during the 7 elementary teacher collaboration times being introduced to the school calendar next year.

These late starts and early arrivals create difficulties for many families who need to make alternative arrangements for student supervision when the school is closed during those hours and the teachers are occupied working to coordinate teaching activities within the school.

The District has recommended to Principals that they work with the PACs to seek ways to accommodate the students and we recommend PACs seek ways to work with your Principals to help.

Our first recommendation is for PACs to assess actual the need in their schools. We suggest PACs survey your school community to determine how many parents and students expect to have difficulty with the collaboration times. This will help gauge the need and help to open up an appropriate discussion around how to support these children.




Sunday, May 5, 2013

Changes to North Van PAC meetings next school year

North Van PAC general meetings will move to the 3rd Monday of the month as of Oct 2013

A couple of weeks ago we asked about changing the North Van PAC meetings to another night next year in order to accommodate commercial bookings at the ESC.

Based on the feedback we received we all have quite a mix of schedules.

We have PACs with Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday night meetings. The 1st and 2nd Monday are taken as are the 1st and 2nd Wednesday. Overall it appears that the either the 3rd or 4th Monday of the month would be the least problematic and fit best into most PACs schedules.

For this reason I am recommending that we change our NorthVanPAC meetings to the 3rd Monday of the month starting in October 2013 with the 4th as a backup if the 3rd Monday is a holiday. We will work with the school district to confirm the change.

Hopefully this doesn't create too big a problem for those PACs we haven't from.

Thanks to everyone for providing your feedback.

North Van PAC Annual General Meeting - May 23rd.

The North Van PAC Annual General Meeting is May 23rd. 

Meeting

Event: North Van PAC Annual General Meeting
Time: May 23rd, 7 pm
Location: Mountainview room - 5th floor - 2121 Lonsdale Ave

Agenda

7:00 Chairs Report
7:10 Treasurers Report
7:20 Elections
7:40 Pac 101
7:50 EdCamp
8:00 BCCPAC Report
8:10 Parent Survey
8:20 PAC Reports
9:00 Adjourn

Elections

We will be electing for all executive positions and would like representatives from all our PACs to attend to ensure we have quorum for the meeting.

Positions available include:
  • Chair - Primary liaison with District, chairs executive and general meetings
  • Vice-Chair - Assists Chair
  • Treasurer - Manages DPAC Finances
  • Secretary - Records meeting minutes
  • Registrar - Maintains PAC member lists
  • Program Coordinator - Organizes meetings and events
  • BCCPAC Liaison - Communicates with BCCPAC
  • Communications - Manages website and email lists
  • Members-at-Large (multiple) - Represent NorthVanPAC on various committees

North Van PAC is your District PAC. We represent parents at the School District level and we need volunteers to come out to the AGM and join the executive to help maintain the strong parent voice in our school district.
  • Our volunteers get involved in how education is delivered in North Vancouver by providing the parent perspective to the school board on school programs and curriculum, the school calendar, student assessment, new projects (for example, renovating/rebuilding schools), and other funding/spending issues.
  • We help school PACs share issues and best practices.
  • We help parents support their children's education by arranging speakers and workshops. For example Steve Dotto spoke to more than 700 of you in March about social media and parenting. 
We need executive and members-at-large. There is a lot of opportunity to get involved. We have small roles, such as representing parents on various committees and larger roles on our executive for those who want more involvement. We need volunteers to represent parents on committees related to :
  • School program and capital funding, 
  • Education policies
  • Anti-bullying, special needs and other support programs 
  • Potential and current school programs
  • Changes to curriculum and graduation requirements
  • Parent communication and parent education
  • and many other parts of education. 

If you are interested in having a voice at the School District level we'd be glad to talk with you, to discuss the commitment we need, to see what interests you delete have have and invite you to see what we do.

Join us at our Annual General Meeting: May 23rd, 7 pm. Mountainview room - 5th floor - 2121 Lonsdale Ave

If you'd like to see more of what we have done talk to your school PAC about us or visit blog.northvanpac.org

If you'd like to talk with us and find out more about what we do and how you can get involved please send an email to chair@northvanpac.org

Friday, April 26, 2013

April NVPAC Meeting Summary


Meeting Minutes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LF2Rqxw_Nnd-kbQjPStHJY6mT4Z825U79AthxDDkUpY/edit?usp=sharing

Foods That Fit Workshop - May 8TH:

Vivienne Megas, NVPAC Program Facilitator, reported that the Foods That Fit workshop will be held on Wednesday May 8th in the Mountainview Room on the 5th Floor. Helen Yeung, of Vancouver Coastal Health is the facilitator. There will be food sampling provided by local school lunch vendors from5:30 – 6:30 pm. Speakers, including experts on food safety and recycling will follow. The evening will conclude with an opportunity for participants to share successes and challenges. About 50 registrations have been received to date, but there is room for more. Please RSVP to viviennemegas@northvanpac.org. This workshop will be of particular interest to school lunch coordinators, but interested parents are welcome to attend as well.

Ed Camp For Parents – Technology in the Classroom:

David Whitehead reported that a group of teachers is ready to present an Ed Camp for parents to show the various types of technology they use in the classroom.

The camp will be held June 4th from 6-7:30 and will be open to 2 representatives from each school.

The camp will feature six stations with teachers demonstrating what they are doing in their classrooms through the lens of technology supported programs.

If this Ed Camp is successful it is likely more will be offered next year.

June PAC 101 Event Options:

Members of NVPAC Executive have noted that there is a great variation between PACs as to how much information is passed on from outgoing to incoming PAC Executive. NVPAC would like to offer a “PAC 101” session in early June to help incoming PAC Chairs and other PAC Executive to learn what they need to know, and what they should do during the summer to prepare for taking up their duties in September. Suggestions for the format and content of the event include:

-Transfer experience
-Brainstorm ideas for various PAC Executive roles
-Advise regarding establishing a good working relationship with the principal, and the politics which may be encountered
-BCCPAC has numerous on-line resources, including the BCCPAC Leadership Manual, as well as separate PAC 101 and Treasurer 101 sections

-It was noted that not all PAC Executive changeovers take place over the summer. It was suggested that there be a session in June with a follow-up in October or November as refresher.

We are currently seeking volunteers to organize and lead the sessions. If you are interested contact chair@northvanpac.org. 

North Van PAC Recruitment for next year:

David Whitehead reported that a couple of volunteers have come forward following his recent email. NVPAC has presented some great Parent Ed events this year, but we will need help in order for this to continue. Minimum time commitment is one Executive meeting and one General Membership meeting (each about 2 hours long) each month, as well as District committee meetings. We need several Members at Large so that NVPAC can be represented at District committee meetings. These meetings are held either in the afternoon or evening several times each year. Meetings are usually about 90 minutes to two hours long. NVPAC requests that representatives attending the District Standing Committee meetings provide a written report for the blog.

Initiatives for next year which might interest potential candidates include:

-District budget initiatives
-BC Ed Plan is being rolled out including changes to curriculum and assessment

NVPAC requests that DPAC Reps and PAC Chairs look for parents who have an interest in District-wide matters such as Grade 7 parents or retiring PAC Executive that would like a new role through which to contribute to the school system. Interested parents should contact David Whitehead at chair@northvanpac.org.

BCCPAC AGM Resolutions and Proxy Voting:

The BCCPAC Spring Conference and Annual General meeting will be held May 3 – 5 in Richmond. Cleveland PAC has submitted a resolution re additional funding for literacy centres. It is important for all PACs to submit their votes regarding BCCPAC resolutions as many votes will get the attention of the government and the ministry.

In order to be able to submit a proxy vote, a PAC must be a paid-up BCCPAC member as of December 15, 2012. Qualified member PACs will by now have received the 2013 Nominations and Resolutions Booklet. All PACs wishing to vote at the AGM must complete and submit the proxy form whether or not they are sending their own representative. We encourages all PACs to send a representative to the AGM, but if you are not able to Debra Dennehy is willing to carry a proxy for any PAC. The proxy form is located near the back of the resolutions booklet; follow the instructions there to submit the proxy form to BCCPAC; send a copy of the proxy to Debra at debradennehy@telus.net. Check the BCCPAC website for further details and to register.

Date for May General Meeting and AGM:

It was noted that the date originally scheduled for our May General Meeting and AGM, May 16th, is the day before a professional day for some schools, as well as immediately prior to the Victoria Day long weekend. It was agreed that the meeting will be put forward one week to Thursday, May 23rd, 2013.

Next Meeting: Annual General Meeting
7:00 pm, 23rd May, 2013
Venue: Mountainview Rm, Education Services Centre, 2121 Lonsdale Avenue

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Finance and Facilities Standing Committee - 9 April 2013


Mark Thompson, Capital Projects Manager provided an update on the Queen Mary and Argyle projects.  At Queen Mary, there were some complications due to problems with concrete, but these have now been resolved.  The structural and seismic restoration work is compete, and new construction has begun.  The heritage windows have been restored and are being re-installed.  The new gym will be larger than a standard elementary gym, but this will likely increase its attractiveness in terms of its rental potential.

With regard to the Argyle Seismic Upgrade, the Seismic Project Identification Report has been submitted to the Ministry.  The estimated cost of the seismic upgrade alone is $30.9 million, while the estimated cost of a full replacement is $44.8 million.  The Ministry has strongly indicated that there will be no funding forthcoming other than for the seismic upgrade.  The options are now to decide whether to submit a Minstry-funded Project Identification Report, or a NVSD-funded Project Identification Report.

Secretary-Treasurer Georgia Allison reviewed the Ministry of Education Preliminary Grant announcement.  Operating grants will be maintained at current levels for the 2013/14 school year.  Ms Allison reviewed the District's 3-year forecast.  It is expected that the surplus remaining at the end of the current school year will be $3.56 million. The surplus remaining at the end of the 2013/14  and 2014/15 school years will be $1.94 million and $.06 million, respectively.  The forecast shows that by the end of the 2015/16 school year, the surplus will be in a negative position of $2.03 million.  Although a concern, this "negative surplus" is far less that the more than $5 million previously expected.

Ms Allison presented a document which listed the programs and services outside of the core K - 12 mandate which currently receive subsidization from NVSD.  These include Summer School, Continuing Education, Band and Strings, North Vancouver Outdoor School and Strong Start.  The District will be examining each of these programs and services to identify areas where efficiencies and savings can be made.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Please consider volunteering with North Van PAC


Our upcoming NVPAC meeting, Thursday April 18, 7pm at ESC (2121 Lonsdale), would be a good meeting to attend for parents interested in contributing to North Van PAC next year to get an idea of who we are and what we do. 

Only two of the current executive are able to return next year and I will be stepping down as Chair. Without new volunteers, next years NVPAC will consist of a Past-Chair (myself) and a Treasurer (Jane) and this is not enough for the organization to to fulfill our role: to support PACs, to provide parent perspective to District committees, to inform parents of District activities and opportunities or to support parent education. 

Our need for additional team members is urgent. We need a new chairperson, vice-chair, secretary, program co-ordinator and committee representatives.

NVPAC are your School District representatives and we are here to support PACs but we cannot do this without your help to identify and help recruit parent volunteers. 

Parents that are interested in the funding of education, education policies, available school programs, graduation requirements, parent education and other factors that determine how education is delivered to all children across the District would find NorthVanPAC a good place to get involved. There is a lot of opportunity to get involved and any help would be appreciated. 

We need people to put on events, to represent parents at School District committees, to report on district activity and to communicate with parents. We have an ongoing need for parent representatives to the various committees across the school board, representatives that help ensure the parent perspective is understood when School District decisions are being made. 
 
We are asking any parents interested in having a voice at the District level to join us. If you are interested we would be glad to talk with you, talk about the commitment we need, what interests you have and invite you to see what we do.

Please contact me at chair@northvanpac.org if your are interested or talk to any other member of our team. We're always happy to discuss what NVPAC does and how parents can help.

David Whitehead
North Van PAC Chair 2012/13

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

April 18th General Meeting Agenda

The following is the proposed agenda for the April 18th North Van PAC general meeting. We hope to see as many PACs as possible there to discuss options for an ed camp, a PAC 101 session and an opportunity to share with each other recent successes.

North Van PAC General Meeting
April 18th, 7pm to 9pm
Bill Reid Rm (ground floor) - Education Services Centre - 2121 Lonsdale ave

Agenda
----------
7:00 NVPAC business
7:05 Foods that Fit workshop (May 8th)
7:10 Ed Camp for Parents - Technology in the classroom
7:25 June "PAC 101" event options
7:40 North Van PAC recruitment
7:55 BCCPAC AGM resolutions & proxy voting
8:10  Parent survey update
8:15 PAC roundtable "recent successes"
9:00 Adjourn

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Foods that Fit Workshop - May 8th, 5:30pm

Event Update: Due to high parent interest the event has been moved to the ESC, 5th floor Mountainview rm. 



The Vancouver Coastal Health and the North Vancouver Parent Advisory Council will be hosting the Foods That Fit workshop on May 8, 2013. The interactive workshop will be facilitated by Helen Yeung, Community Dietitian with Vancouver Coastal Health on the North Shore. The speakers will discuss guidelines for food and beverages sales in BC schools; food safety and waste reduction; and fundraising with healthy foods in school lunch programs. All current and future school lunch coordinators and parents who are interested in learning more about healthy eating habits and choices are encouraged to attend. Seating is limited. Please register for this event at viviennemegas@northvanpac.org to reserve your spot.


The Foods That Fit Workshop

Date: May 8, 2013, Wednesday, 5:30-9 PM (Food sampling: 5:30-6:30 PM, Presentation: 6:30-8:30 PM)

Location: The Education Service Centre, the Mountainview Room, 2121 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver BC

Sunday, March 3, 2013

NVPAC Feb 21st Meeting Summary

The North Van PAC Feb 21st meeting began with an update on IT systems from Monty Bell and then continued with a number of speakers describing their particular parent education options.

IT Update

North Vancouver School District is rolling out a new web communications system from a company called Scholantis.  They expect all schools will have moved over to this system by the fall which will enable the school administration and teachers to manage their own web pages and enable parents to have much better information on their children's school activities. At the meeting we heard about the benefits of the new system and we are encouraged to hear that teachers will soon have a better way to communicate with parents as this will help more parents to engage with their children's education.

We had hoped that this new system would also be able to host PAC websites as every PAC currently builds and manages their own system. Unfortunately we heard at the meeting that for privacy reason's PAC are not going to be able to host their websites on the NVSD system. Schools will be able to link to any PAC maintained websites but the district will not be providing a PAC website management system. 

Email management is in a similar situation. For privacy reasons the school district will not be providing their parent email lists to PACs or collecting email lists on behalf of PACs (through consent forms for example.) PACs will still be able to send email to parents using School Connects via the District will need to send the email to the District staff to have them send it to the appropriate lists.  

We recommend that PACs plan to build and maintain their own websites in September and that PACs ensure they have systems in place to gather and maintain parent email address lists. 

Parent Education Options

We had invited a number of groups to present their parent education options to us at the meeting to raise awareness of different parent education options. We'd like to get feedback from PACs that attended on the event, format etc. Please contact the presenters if you'd like more information on their particular programs.

Teresa Triggiano - Stand by Me - Bullying and respect
Stand By Me is a program that focuses on empathy building, social responsibility, restorative justice and self-awareness. The program helps students identify bullying behaviours, understand how those behaviours make students feel and take responsibility for the choices they make. Students are given an opportunity to speak about how they feel at school and to offer apologies to classmates. No one is asked to say anything they do not feel comfortable saying.

Tina-Marie Meyer - Joy of Learning Network - Motivation; stress; and leadership
1. Motivation, Goal Setting, and Communication for middle and high school students
2. Stress and Organization for optimal performance
3. Personal Leadership in the 21st Century: Who am I? and How do I fit in?

Brittany Palmer - Unlock Your Future Scholarships - How to find scholarship
Presented her in-depth scholarship seminar to illustrate funding opportunities and provide a step-by-step program to access them. Brittany outlined her scholarship seminar package and how the Unlock your Future program can benefit the students by providing them with the tools and the encouragement they need to confidently find and pursue scholarship opportunities.

Helen Yeung - VCH Foods That Fit workshop - Food health for school lunch coordinators
VCH has developed this workshop to help PACs learn about healthy food options for schools including food safety, how health and nutrition is taught in schools and the opportunity to sample from the school menus at different local vendors. North Van PAC will be presenting this workshop on May 8th from 5:30-8:30pm at the Education Services Centre, all PACs are invited.

Kim Shetler - North Shore Multicultural Society - Settlement Workers in Schools
Kim presented the North Shore Multicultural Society's Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS) Program for helping integrate newcomer family experiences when arriving in Canada. This program is offered by the NVSD and services are provided by the North Shore Multicultural Society. Services are provided to the schools and newcomer students and families of the School District to assist the orientation and integration of newcomer families. Services include working 1-1 with the students and families, helping with communication between the schools and students/families, and also helping the students/families connect with the school communities.

Many newcomers come to Canada looking for a better opportunity for their children and want to be engaged in the parent community but need help to understand how to contribute through PACs etc. The North Shore Multicultural Society would like to work with PACs to facilitate these families to be able to volunteer and participate with their school’s communities. The Society would like to assist any PACs that would like help to invite newcomer families to become involved in their children’s schools PAC. If your PAC is interested in reaching out to your school’s newcomer families and would like to engage our services, please contact kims@nsms.ca.

Jo-Anne Landolt - Kids in the Know - School safety
Jo-Anne presented the "Kids in the Know" education program. The program is a interactive safety education program available to schools to help them teach children how to stay safe and reduce their risk of real-world and online victimization. KidsintheKnow.ca

Ashley McIntosh - iGirl - On empowerment for 9–12 year old girls
iGirl is a straight-to-the-point, lighthearted, empowerment workshop that prepares 9–12 year old girls to make smart decisions in even the toughest situations. Knowledge is power and the iGirl workshop, created by Saleema Noon B.A. M.A., gives girls the power to make smart decisions and to successfully navigate the changes galloping into their young lives.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

PAC information Update: Events and Awards

Social Media and You is sold out!
Social Media and You: An Evening with Steve Dotto is now sold out. All 700 tickets have been spoken for. We thank parents for their interest in this important topic and hope to see you there on March 13th.

Culinary Arts Information Evening, March 7th
Parents of Secondary students may be interested in an information evening on the Culinary Arts program on Thursday, March 7th, held at Carson Graham Secondary for parents and students entering grades 11 & 12 next year.  From 7-8:00pm in the evening. The evening offers the opportunity to meet this year's students, hear about the program, meet Chef Ysabel and have a tour of the world class working kitchen.

"Foods that Fit" Workshop, May 8th
NorthVanPAC in conjunction with Vancouver Coastal Health is putting on a workshop on "Foods that Fit" for schools, including samples from local supplies. The event will run May 8th from 5:30-8:30 at the Education Service Centre, 2121 Lonsdale ave. This event would be of particular interest to parents involved in various school lunch programs and options.

Traffic Safety Discussions
Both Dorothy Lynas and Boundary Elementary Schools are interested in discussing traffic safety issues and ideas amongst PACs. If your PAC is interested in getting involved in this please send me an email.

Sea to Sky Heritage Fair 2013
The North Vancouver Museum and Archives is currently preparing for the Sea to Sky Heritage Fair 2013. The popular annual event allows students to showcase their understanding of Canadian history in a festive environment. Last year, had over 50 students showcase their projects before over 500 spectators. Some of the participants were featured in the Vancouver Sun and on CBC Radio; others were sent on free history junkets to Abbotsford and Ottawa. The Museum is currently recruiting for the fair and are asking PACs to encourage students and schools to participate in this endeavour. If you would like more information please contact: Peter Valing at ValingP@dnv.org

City of North Vancouver Youth Awards and Scholarships 
The deadline to apply for City of North Vancouver Youth Achievement Awards, Youth Centennial Scholarships and Children and Youth Initiatives Grants is Wednesday, March 13, 2013 at 5:00 p.m. Program details and all application forms are available online at www.cnv.org/youth.

District of North Vancouver Youth Recognition Awards and Scholarships
The deadline to apply for the District of North Vancouver Youth Recognition Awards is March 15th. More information about the awards and the online nomination form is found here: http://www.dnv.org/article.asp?a=965 

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

NVSD School Calendar Survey

NorthVanPac encourages parents that have not yet responded to the school calendar survey to do so before March 3rd.

http://fluidsurveys.com/surveys/vee-n/school-calendar-survey-2013/

The survey offers parents an opportunity to comment on the different calendar options currently under consideration but also introduces a few items that may need clarification and we have tried to clarify some of the the details related to the survey questions below. Of most interest may be the questions about Teacher Collaboration Times as parents were aware that students would be dismissed rather than supervised during these times.

We hope this information helps parents to make an informed choice on their preferences with regard to the calendar options.

Winter Break

Question 3 refers to a "Winter Break" this refers to the break typically held at the end of the year spanning the 2 weeks of the Christmas and New Years holidays

Spring Break

Question 4 refers to the option of having a 2 week Spring Break, this break is typically around the end of March. In the past the break has been extended to two weeks when the Easter Break coincides but if this option is selected the default schedule would be to have a two week break in addition to the Easter holidays unless they coincide?

3 or 4 day Weekends

Question 5 asks respondents if they support having 3 and 4 day weekends. Agreeing to this option does not mean that all weekends will be extended. Support for this option indicates support for the potential of extension of statutory holidays (Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day, Family day ) to form longer weekends for families. If this option is supported, the time for these days would need to be added to the calendar in other places such as extending the school day length, extending the year in July/August, or a combination of these two options.

Teacher Collaboration Times

Several questions ask about the use of teacher collaboration time to provide elementary teachers with an opportunity to work with each other to implement school wide plans. If supported, parents would be responsible for 45-60 minutes of childcare during teacher collaboration times as school would not be considered in session and students would not be supervised during those times. There are no specific plans at this time but the District recognizes the difficulties that this may create for some parents and so the District is considering limited childcare options for those families that absolutely need it.

The proposed calendars

The survey asks parents to review two potential calendars for next year. Schedule A includes 2 week breaks for both winter break and spring break but does not include teacher collaboration times for elementary students. Schedule B adds the proposed dates for the monthly elementary collaboration time in light blue. This may be hard to see on some screens but the 2nd option presented show one possible schedule for the introduction of elementary staff (P/VP, teachers, support staff) collaboration times and if adopted indicates the days on which parents would need to provide additional supervision time.

July and August schooling.

The survey asks about the option of adding July and August schooling to the calendar. These options are there to gauge interest in these options for future consideration. If they were to be adopted they would be accommodated by extending the school day, extending the year or a combination of the two.

Monday, February 18, 2013

“Social Media and You” - March 13@7pm

North Vancouver School District and North Vancouver Parent Advisory Council (NVPAC) present...

“Social Media and You”: An Evening with Steve Dotto

WHEN:
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
7:00-8:30pm
Doors open at 6:15pm

WHERE: 
Centennial Theatre
2300 Lonsdale Avenue

WHO: 
Parents, staff, students of NVSD community

RSVP: 
Please RSVP to gailrussell@nvsd44.bc.ca to reserve your space due to limited seating!


This is a free, interactive opportunity to hear from one of the leaders in technology

Steve possesses a unique,  refreshing and thought provoking view of the world of technology and how it impacts our lives. He has a talent for looking at technology and understanding how it affects us, not just how it works and what it will do for us; Steve explains with great insight and humour the effect technology has on our work and ourselves!