At the Public Board Meeting on June 22, 2010, John Lewis, Superintendent of Schools, presented Achieving our Vision: 2009/10 Review.  It reflects upon the priorities that were set for the 2009/10 school year.  While the challenges of developing a balanced Operating Budget for 2010/11 sometimes appeared to dominate the landscape during the school year, progress was made through the significant dedication, commitment, and perseverance of staff, the community, and the Board of Education.

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Achieving our Vision: 2009/10 Review Notes

Public Board Meeting June 22, 2010

Instructional Practice … 2009/10 priorities

The Superintendent’s report on achievement reported a six-year completion rate of 84%, up 3% from the prior year. The Achievement Contract identified 29 schools having significant teacher involvement in Assessment for Learning and Instruction Methods initiatives. A school-wide writing strategy is being employed in 25 schools.

Attendance at in-service during out of school hours was very strong, with increased teacher participation rates compared to the prior year.

Program Diversity … 2009/10 Priorities

Balmoral School received accreditation as an IB World School for the Middle years Program, following Carson’s designation as an IB World School for the Diploma Program in early 2009. Windsor Secondary successfully implemented its first year of the French Immersion program. The Green Team linked instructional program initiatives with the sustainability practices of the Facilities Department in hosting the First Annual Green Fair.

Sharing & Celebrating Success… 2009/10 Priorities

The 2010 Olympic Team helped coordinate the activities within our School District and Seycove was recognized as BC’s Gold medal spirit school. Our media tracking indicated that 75% of the news stories were either positive, or neutral. We expanded our StrongStart program from 4 to 7 centres. We continue to work in collaboration with our First Nations community to build upon student success – the completion rate of 51% for First Nations students was the highest level achieved in the past decade.

Communications … 2009/10 Priorities

The Visual identify for the School District was effectively implemented and the district website was completely refreshed. SchoolConnects messages at the district level were introduced and effectively used to communicate across the School district. Joint Advocacy initiatives focused on financial implications of the elimination of AFG funding, the introduction of the SmartTool, and to arrange a meeting with the Minister of Education, which took place in June.

Community Connections … 2009/10 Priorities

Great success was achieved to move forward with the Artificial Turf Field, Track and Soccer bubble at Windsor Secondary. This $3.5 million project involves all levels of government along with contributions from the private sector and soccer association. We continued to build strong, supportive relationships with the early learning community and have begun to work on middle years programs.
Partnership agreements have been a cornerstone of the Education Services Centre and Artists for Kids Gallery on Lonsdale. Collaboration agreements with the City, Polygon, the Smith Foundation and HYAD have all contributed to this very positive development.

Integrated Communities … 2009/10 Priorities

We experienced a return of students from private and independent schools at greater numbers than projected, helping to reduce our total enrolment decline. Families of Schools initiatives included combined Professional Development days and PAC meetings and special events.

There was a 20% reduction in the number of District Committees, with a 70 to 75% reduction in time out of schools for committee work. In support of succession planning for our administrators we conducted two sessions each of Leadership for Learning, Vice Principal in-service and V.P. Dialogue.

Information & Communication Technology … 2009/10 Priorities

Bandwidth and switch upgrades were completed in 11 schools and 5 of 7 Secondary Schools implemented ‘guest wireless. Two Learning at Night Sessions were held this past year with more than 200 participants attending these popular sessions.

Facilities … 2009/10 Priorities

The Carson Graham replacement project made great progress with the reconfiguration of both Balmoral and Carson Graham. Transportation and welcoming of students within Balmoral has been positive and the schools and PACs have been working in close collaboration.

Ridgeway Elementary Heritage restoration made tremendous progress through the demolition stages and is proceeding with the reconstruction.

Ceremonial Ground breaking will have occurred on both the Environmental Learning Centre and the Education Services Centre.

The Board completed and received Ministry approval for the conditional sale of parcels of property at both Argyle and Braemar.

Conclusion

While the challenges of developing a balanced Operating Budget for 2010/11 sometimes appeared to dominate the landscape during this school year, tremendous progress has been made during this school year. Through the significant dedication, commitment and perseverance of our staff, our community and Board, much has been accomplished towards Achieving our Vision.


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