Executive School Advisory Council - 2024 to 2025

Co-Chairs - Kaleem Haider & Estelle Phillips

Secretary - Tiwana Cater

Treasurer - Vanessa Chase

What is School Council

School councils are an excellent way for parents to get involved in their child`s education. Our school has an elected school council that is an important forum for involving all members of the school community in issues that affect the education of students. The school council is made up of an elected committee of parents, staff and student representatives, appointed community members, the principal, and a general membership which includes all parents of children attending the school. The school council advises the principal on a variety of issues and activities relating to student achievement and well-being, curriculum goals and priorities, school budget priorities, school safety, renovation plans, after school activities, and criteria for selection of new principals. Read more about school councils.

School Council By-Laws'

School Councils are legislated bodies, governed by Regulation 612 of the Ontario Education Act. School Council and all of those who attend School Council meetings and activities shall adhere to these regulations, as well as the policies and the procedures of the Toronto District School Board, including but not limited to P031 – Human Rights Policy, P037 – Equity Policy, P034 – Workplace Harassment, Prevention for Non-Human Rights Code Harassment Policy, P051 – Caring and Safe Schools Policy and PR585 – Board Code of Conduct.

Name of School Council

The name of this organization shall be School Council and referred to as the School Council.Please note: the term, “parents/caregivers”, includes the parents, caregivers, guardians and families of students, as shown on the school registration.

Purpose

Regulation 612/00 of the Ontario Education Act states that “the purpose of School Councils is, through the active participation of parents, to improve student achievement and enhance the accountability of the education system to parents.”

A School Council's primary means of achieving its purpose is by making recommendations on any matter to the Principal of the school and to the Board that established the School Council.

Membership

An effective School Council relies on the contributions of the broader school community. The School Council will work to elect/acclaim members who are representative of this school's community. To this end, eligible candidates will be encouraged to seek office regardless of their race, colour, creed, culture, ethnicity, linguistic origin, disability, level of ability, socio-economic class, age, ancestry, nationality, place of origin, religion, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, body image, citizenship, immigration status, family status, marital status or as First Nations, Metis or Inuit.

School Council composition will include parents/caregivers (as defined in Ontario Regulation 612/00), the Principal, one teacher, one non-teaching staff, one community representative and a student representative at the secondary level, to be appointed by the Student Council or elected according to School Council By-Laws if no Student Council is active.

Election of Parent/Caregiver Members

Elections will be inclusive, transparent and accountable, ensuring that all members of the school community are included, welcomed and feel valued.

Elections of parent/caregiver members shall be held during the first 30 days of the school year on a date that is set by the School Council Chair/Co-Chairs in consultation with the Principal.

The Principal, on behalf of the School Council, shall give written notice of the date, the time and the location of the election, to every parent/caregiver of a student enrolled in the school, at least 14 days before the date of the election. 

Any parent/caregiver of a student in the school, who is seeking election, must be nominated or self‐nominated in writing.A person is not qualified to be a parent/caregiver member if they are employed at the school. If employed by the Board but not at the school, they must take reasonable steps to inform those qualified to vote in the election of their Board employment status.

The election of a parent/caregiver member shall be by secret ballot and neither proxy nor absentee voting is permitted. 

A person is eligible to vote in an election of parent/caregiver members of a School Council if they are the parent/caregiver of a student enrolled at the school.

Elections for teaching and non-teaching staff representatives on the School Council will be held during the first 30 days of each school year. The teaching representative shall be elected by those individuals at the school qualified to be the teacher representative in any method they determine. The non-teaching staff shall be elected by those individuals at the school qualified to be the non-teaching staff representative in any method they determine.Community members shall be appointed by the members of the School Council. When applicable, the student representative shall be elected by the student council, if one exists, or appointed by the Principal. 

If positions are not filled during an election, the School Council may fill them via appointments throughout the school year. (see Vacancies)

Nominations

If the number of declared candidates is less than or equal to the number of positions, no vote is required and the candidates will be acclaimed, notified and communicated to the school/community. If the number of declared candidates is higher than the number of positions, then a vote will be held on the date set by the Chair/Co-Chairs, in consultation with the Principal.  Elections for the School Council shall be supervised by the Principal (or designate) and at least one parent/caregiver, not seeking election.

Nominations will not be accepted from the floor on the evening of the elections. 

The school (Principal or designate) will receive and file all nomination forms. 

Written information (picture not required) about each candidate, supplied by the candidate, shall be made available to the school community at least one week prior to the election. 

Candidates may not engage in campaigning on or off school property or use any School Council social media or other tools to promote their candidacy. 

Term of Office

School Council members, elected or appointed, hold office from the latter of,
 
(a) the date that they were elected or appointed; and
(b) the date of the first meeting of the School Council after the elections held in the school year,

until the date of the first meeting of the School Council after the elections held in the next school year.

Vacancies

A vacancy in the membership of the School Council shall be filled by election or appointment.  A vacancy in the membership of the School Council does not prevent the School Council from exercising its authority,
 

• if an election is held to fill a vacancy in the membership of a School Council, the School Council’s elections' process will apply; 
• if an appointment is held to fill a vacancy, the School Council may request that interested parents/caregivers submit their name for consideration. The School Council shall then vote to appoint candidates to fill the vacancy/vacancies.

Executive vacancies will be opened to nominations from the voting members.

Executive Officers

All members of the Executive must be elected from the voting members of the School Council.

School Council will elect:

• a Chair, or
• two (2) Co-Chairs

who must be a parent/caregiver and cannot be a TDSB employee.

The School Council may also elect other Officer positions (i.e., Secretary (Recorder), Treasurer), as deemed necessary.

Remuneration (payment)

No person shall receive any remuneration for serving as a member or Officer of the School Council.  Members shall be reimbursed for pre-approved expenses that they incur as members or Officers of the School Council, as per Board procedures.

Consultations

The School Council shall consult with parents/caregivers of students enrolled in the school about matters under consideration by the School Council.

Meetings

The first meeting of the School Council will take place within the first 35 days of the start of the school year after the election, on a date set by the Principal, in consultation with the Chair/Co-Chair(s). 

A School Council shall meet at least 4 times in the school year. 

The dates for School Council meetings will be set at the first meeting, in consultation with the Principal. The Principal, on behalf of the School Council, will give written notice of the dates, the times and the location(s) of the meetings to every parent/caregiver of a student enrolled at the school.

An official meeting of the School Council cannot be held unless a majority (51%) of the current members of the School Council are present at the meeting, including the Principal or their designate. The majority of those present must be parents/caregivers.

A member of a School Council who participates in a meeting by phone or virtually shall be deemed to be present at the meeting.

Voting

Each member of the School Council is entitled to one vote in votes taken by the School Council. Each committee/sub-committee member is entitled to one vote in votes taken at the committee/sub-committee level. All School Council votes/decisions will be recorded in the School Council minutes. The Principal is not entitled to vote in votes taken by the School Council nor by a committee/sub-committee of the School Council. Voting cannot occur outside of official School Council or committee/sub-committee meetings.

Minutes and Financial Records

School Council shall keep accurate minutes of all meetings and accurate financial records/transactions for four (4) years on the school premises.

Minutes and financial records shall be available at the school for examination by any person, without charge.

Quorum

An official meeting of the School Council cannot be held unless a majority (51%) of the current members of the School Council are present (in-person or virtually) at the meeting and a majority (51%) of the members who are present are parents/caregivers of students who attend our school.

Finances

All expenditures of the School Council require prior approval of the School Council and will be reported in a financial statement to be made available at each School Council meeting. Funds will not be used to support staff appreciation events or gifts.The School Council will not borrow funds nor enter into any financial commitment for which funds are not already in hand.The School Council budget includes the funds provided to School Councils by the Board and the Ministry of Education, as held in the school’s non-board accounts.

School Council will consult with the Principal to access and to confirm funds and usage of funds held in the school's non-board accounts (General Ledger 41500) assigned to the School Council provided by TDSB ($1.25 per student to a minimum of $300 and to a maximum of $1000) and the Ministry of Education ($500, Parent Engagement funds).

The School Council must approve and must document, in meeting minutes, the intended purpose of a fundraising activity before commencing.All expenditures from the School Council account must be approved by School Council prior to disbursing the funds.  All School Council collections and all disbursements should be captured in their financial statements.The financial statements should be shared with School Council members and the Principal and should be presented at each School Council meeting.

Finances

School Councils may not enter into long-term agreements, loan arrangements or other contractual agreements under the name of the school or the School Council.

Fundraising

All proposed School Council fundraising activities will take into consideration the ability of our parents/caregivers to contribute and/or to raise funds. As per P037 – Equity Policy, events will reflect the ideas, traditions, cultures and strengths of the parents/caregivers represented in the school. Monetary and non-monetary contributions will be valued equitably.

The School Council may fundraise and must adhere to the P021 - Fundraising Policy and PR508 - Fundraising Procedures. School Councils shall not engage in fundraising activities unless the activities are to raise funds for a purpose approved by the Principal or authorized by any applicable policies established by the TDSB. The School Council is required to:

• consult with the Principal;
• include a list of planned fundraising activities and expenditures for the year;
• create an annual financial plan using the TDSB’s forms, School Generated Funds Financial Plan (SGFFP) and School Needs Assessment Form;
• submit as a separate School Council report or as part of the school’s SGFFP, each October. The plan may be adjusted throughout the year and must be resubmitted.

Fundraising activities may include but are not limited to, funfair events, product sales, requests for donations from parents/caregivers, grant applications, donations (in-kind or monetary) and sponsorships. 
 
Fundraising proceeds must not be used for expenses required for completion of the curriculum nor for capital infrastructure improvements funded through renewal grants from the Ministry of Education.

School Council must use the Board-approved vendors when available to ensure compliance with health and safety. Where approved vendors are not available, School Councils shall work with the Principal to find an appropriate substitute. The School Council can access the up-to-date list of approved fundraising and fun fair vendors at: https:www.tdsb.on.ca/Community/How-to-Get-Involved/Fundraising/Fundraising-Guide.

All School Council disbursements must comply with the Boards' P017 - Purchasing Policy and must be approved by the school Principal and the School Council in advance of incurring the expense.

Annual Report

School Council will annually submit a written report of its activities to the Principal and include any fundraising activities.The Principal will, on behalf of the School Council, give a copy of the report to every parent/caregiver of a student who is enrolled in the school, either by giving the report to the student for delivery to their parent/caregiver and/or posting the report in the school in a place that is visible to parents/caregivers and/or online.

Date

The  School Council By-Laws were created on January 17, 2023 :

Principal First Name: Maryam

Principal Last Name: Hasan

Principal Email Address: Maryam.hasan@tdsb.on.ca

Principal Phone Number: 416-395-2310