Charlotte Small School/Parent Council

Charlotte Small School Council Meeting

May 8th 2025

Attendance: Brittany Sands, Trisha Clough, Miranda Cameron, Allison Casey, Shelby Shortneck, Dawn Sinclair, Taylor Liivam, Jackie Heide

Call to order time: 6:31

Previous Meeting - March 2025 meeting
The meeting minutes are always available for viewing in a binder at the office. They are also posted on our school website. 

 

Trustee Report-  See Below: - Penni also reported that the Condor Community center is having a grand opening of the ball diamonds on May 10th. All are welcome to join.

 

Principal Report - Cheryl is away on a leave of absence but Jackie, the vice principal reports that everything has been running very smoothly in her absence. Thank you to the parents for the fundraising and supporting the school. Staff are very grateful for our involved parent programs such as hot lunch, parent council and other volunteering done by parents and community members. 

Old Business: 

1. Outdoor classroom Update- Up on the bidding site for about ¾ weeks. Last week we held a site tour for any of the companies that were interested in bidding and potentially could come out and ask questions. There was an addendum then added to the bidding site that allowed all the questions and answers to be displayed. Once the bidding comes to an end we will get to go through the bids and just because you came in at the lowest does not mean you will get the project. May 15-30 will hopefully be a start date and be done for June 30, 2025. 

New Business:  

 

1.  Outdoor classroom Update- The division now requires a fence to be placed around the entire Outdoor classroom.  The fence will be locked during the winter months. The division reasoning is that the fence will protect the classroom from vandalism and also from injury if snow is on the ground. They are not going to provide money for snow removal services either and think the fence will solve that issue. The division has also now asked for an additional $40000 of funds to be placed in a division account for any maintenance costs for the life of the structure. These funds are above the build cost and  WRSD suggested the funding could come from the School Generated funds (SGF) acct or from our Parent Council.  SGF are funds generated from field trip overpayment, concessions run by the school and any excess generated within the school and not from the yearly budget. In an earlier meeting with chairperson Shelby, Cheryl proposed that SGF would cover $20000 and requested that PC cover the remaining $20000 in $4000 increments over the next 5+ years until the total $40000 was raised. Upon discussion with Parent Council members we decided it was not in the best interest of our council to provide any money towards the $40000. We feel it is not a fair use of our funds when all of our dollars are parent funds and directly from fundraising efforts from our parents and staff. They are intended to support extracurricular activities such as swimming lessons, ski trips, year end field trips and classroom extra and programs. We feel its not a fair use of dollars for the money to just sit in a division account and not be able to be utilized. We took a vote with all members present and it was unanimous in the decision. Parent council will not give any funds to WRSD for the maintenance account of the outdoor classroom. The Parent council is also against the fence around the Outdoor classroom. We discussed that other sites in our division do not have a fence requirement. Sylvan lakes outdoor classrooms also do not have fences.  We discussed that it does not feel like a community project if the fence is there to keep the community out. We have decided to write a letter on behalf of  Parent Council advocating for the removal of the fencing around the outdoor classroom. We also discussed the use of SGF for the Division maintenance fund. Concerns were discussed on depleting the total amount of funds (which Cheryl reported in an earlier meeting to be at $36000) we want to make sure the school does not run into an issue where the funds would be limited. Jackie informed the present Council members that there would still be leftover funds. She also stated that she believes the funds are coming from a pool of money set aside for capital projects from the amalgamation of the corridor schools and using $20000 will not completely deplete the SGF account. She will look into the amounts and relay the information to our council. Parents also suggested that the money given to division should go into a trust account and any interest earned should come back to Charlotte Small.
2. ASCA -  still informative and attending the agm was very helpful and worth the time. Out of 1500 school councils only 120 councils were in attendance. Motions made and agenda topics covered will be available at the office. More parents polls and input before the next asca agm. A great way for parents to advocate on behalf of their school.  
3. Inclusive playground - No volunteers to look for grants as of yet. May need to do this internally. We will keep this item on future agendas and come September we will hopefully find some willing parents to help. 
4. Bussing update - Parents met with the division to discuss bussing concerns. Question have been answered and changes are being made. Attached to the trustee report are the questions/answers. A statement will be made by the Parent Council summing up our response and work done on behalf of parents regarding bussing issues in the coming weeks. Thanks to Taylor and Kayleigh for handling the bussing committee.
5. Umbrella Meeting - went well, shared successful fundraisers in other school, budget priorities and jordan's principle funding, bussing concerns were addressed and positive feedback on getting drivers first aid training. Foundational statements revised and input taken from school councils. 
6. Condor Ball diamond grand opening - a member of PC to be involved. Unfortunately all are busy that weekend but we thank the Condor Community Center for their wonderful community contribution to our school grounds.
7. Possible dopamine presentation - Dopamine presentation on the science beyond dopamine and where our brains seek it. How to help with creating a better dopamine cycle. We are open to having Shelley Anderson present this program possibly in oct. We could pair it with a FRN kids night. The ASCA grant would be used for this. Discuss in Sept. 
8. Alien Inline was discussed. Parents would like to look into the cost again and possibly bring it back for students. October is a good time to try this. Gather quotes for Sept meeting and discuss options. Ideas for art and drama presentations could be looked at also.

 

Upcoming Meeting Dates-  AGM is Sept.

 

Trustee Report

Corridor Bussing Concerns

The Board heard from parent representatives regarding their bussing concerns including, communication, Routes, Transfer Busses and Safety.  The Board will be compiling answers and reasoning for their school councils to share with their community.  

Attached is the Corridor bussing questions and answers from division. 

First Student Transportation Issues

First Student joined the board and discussed some of the transportation issues, and how they are addressing staffing, bus safety, compliance and communication.   

Trustee Activities

Trustees shared the highlights from their parent council, and committee meetings.  WRSD will be hosting their next Zone 4 ASBA meeting in April.

Superintendent’s Report 

Umbrella School Council Meetings, CASS Presentation, Titans of Trade Event, Numeracy - Foundational Math and Pedagogy Professional Learning, Elementary Curriculum Cohort Days, SIVA Workshop Summary, Indigenous Education, Capital Projects.

Adjournment Time:  8:16

 

School Council Meeting Minutes March 10th, 2025

 

Attendance: Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Shelby Shortneck, Miranda Cameron, Kayleigh Rempel, Jodeen Swan, Taylor Liivam, Adrielle Chenard, Nancy Lublinkhof, Penny Lougheed, Trisha Clough, Dawn Sinclair

 

Call to order time: 6:31 pm

 

Previous Meeting - Jan 25th meeting minutes
The meeting minutes are always available for viewing in a binder at the office. They are also posted on our school website. 

 

Trustee Report-  2025-2026 WRSD Staff Calendar

 

The Board approved the 2025-2026 School Calendar as presented.  The calendar provides for a staggered start for students, beginning after the long weekend.  Also, September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will not be a school day for students and staff.  Input from school staff, the Indigenous Education Team and Elders guided us in this decision. The calendar also has scheduled professional development days that are different  from north to south, which allows divisional resource people more opportunities to work with schools and for teachers to be able to observe other teachers in action.

 

New Superintendent of Schools

 

The Board passed a motion to notify the Minister of Education of our appointment of Jodie Mattia as the new Superintendent of Schools for Wild Rose School Division.  Read the full news release for more details.

Trustee Activities

Trustees shared the highlights from their parent council, Alberta School Board Association, and Public School Board Association meetings.  The Trustees discussed the first day of Breton High School students at the Warburg School, where the students and staff were made welcome and it was a great start at their new temporary location

Superintendent’s Report 

Drayton Valley Community Collegiate School, Grade 7-12 Curriculum Rollout, Capital Projects, WRSD’s Wellness Shift featured in Leaders & Learners, Indigenous Education

 

Principal Report - Grade 3 and 6 are currently doing their swimming lessons. The younger grades will be in the spring. The pool was very tight for booking this year. We have had very few office referrals this year which is amazing compared to other schools in the province/division. Our referrals have also been minor in comparison to others. Our staff absences have been lower this year than this time last year. 84 students this year have missed 10% of their learning. There are various reasons for the student absences being reported and not just one main cause. Cheryl is wondering how we can get the parents more engaged in making their children’s education a priority. Connection with the parents is going to be a big help. Send a letter home asking for input from the teacher/administration. Jackie asked if we could post something onto the facebook page asking for ideas from parents. Maybe get some insight from the bus drivers as well on who they can see struggling to get on the bus and might give the teachers an idea of which parents they should touch base with.

 

Chair Report- School engagement session from WRSD has been cancelled. ASCA conference is online only and Brittany is registering for it. The recordings will be available for our whole council. 

 

Old Business: 

1. ¾ Ski trip - No ¾ ski trip. Part of it is Canyon’s availability. Jackie has already talked to Canyon about next year pairing us with a highschool. Snow conditions have not been optimal. Jackie was a key staff member and has limitations so could not make it work. Touch base in September to find out what a ski trip should look like come the winter. One of the reasons we use Canyon is they use fake snow to help. They will talk to a few of the staff and see if they can come up with another idea for the students. Class size definitely plays a part in when we decide on what trips are planned.
   Parent council had covered the costs last year for the ski trips but this year parents paid full for skiing and the parent council is covering year end field trips. 
2. Inclusive Playground - committee needs formed. This is our next step in the planning process. There are a few grants that will match a current grant given. Kayleigh and Shelby will work on this.  

 

New Business:  

 

1. Options Feedback - This year was our pilot year for Grade 5/6 option classes. Maybe offer grade 4 as well next year. 
2.  Outdoor classroom Update- Up on the bidding site for about ¾ weeks. Last week we held a site tour for any of the companies that were interested in bidding and potentially could come out and ask questions. There was an addendum then added to the bidding site that allowed all the questions and answers to be displayed. Once the bidding comes to an end we will get to go through the bids and just because you came in at the lowest does not mean you will get the project. May 15-30 will hopefully be a start date and be done for June 30, 2025. 
3.  Staff PD- Red Deer Polytech has come out, Siva Training, Staff sharing amongst each other, AI training coming up in the next little bit. Any thoughts for next year's training? Emotional Regulation and Mindfulness, Dealing with court orders, 
4. Annual Ed Plan-strategy meetings. Our teachers seem to really enjoy it and we do have high engagement. 
5. Book Fair- There are other companies that do offer book fairs other than scholastic. 

Upcoming Meeting Dates- Thursday May 8 start @ 6:30 pm

Adjournment Time:   8:07 pm

School Council Meeting Minutes Jan 16th, 2025

 

Attendance: Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Shelby Shortneck, Allison Casey, Brittany Sands, Miranda Cameron, Kayleigh Rempel, Jodeen Swan, Dawn Sinclair, Penny Lougheed 

 

Call to order time: 6:29 pm

 

Previous Meeting - Oct. 17th meeting minutes
The meeting minutes are always available for viewing in a binder at the office. They are also posted on our school website. 

 

Trustee Report-  Charlotte Small School was affected by the government's decision to cut the Jordan’s Principle funding by having to lay off 3 EA’s. 2 of these EA’s were funded from Jordan's principle funding but the 3rd was due to a Jordan’s Principle EA from another school whose seniority in the union out ranked her. Thankfully that EA has seemed to fit in at our school just fine. Parents should continue to advocate for JP funding. The division and trustees are advocating as well. 

 

Principal Report - Cheryl would like to extend a heartfelt Thank you to the parent council for the treats in December. It was very much appreciated. They are still doing group meetings between a few of the teachers every Tuesday to discuss their teaching methods for what seems to be working/not working for each of them. This is done with both ends of the school coming together and has really helped to show that some of the practices done in the lower end can still benefit the higher end and vice versa.  This is really helping to build camaraderie among our staff. We are hoping to continue doing this practice going forward. . 

 

Chair Report- Nothing new to discuss.

 

Old Business: No old business to discuss.

 

New Business:  

 

1. All inclusive Playground- Are we ready to create a committee? Jackie has been looking into funding/grants and it is a lot of work so if there are parents that would like to help look into those that would be great.  Kayleigh will put another post on the parents facebook page asking for interested parties to contact her to help create a committee. We are also going to ask Bobby-sue to put it into the next school newsletter.
2. Outdoor Classroom- We are at the point in our planning where it has gone out for bids for companies to complete this project. These bids should be back in by the end of February-March. We are hoping for the project to be completed by September 2025. 
3. Ski trip questions- For the Grade 3-4 ski trip- Jackie was under the impression that Canyon Ski hill does not have the greatest conditions for the hills right now from when her children had attended during the break. Allison however did attend this past Thursday and said that the hills conditions were not too bad. Really the hills conditions would all depend on the weather conditions on the day that we planned to go. We would also like to attend Canyon when there is not another school in attendance as it creates some issues when it comes to the training of our students by instructors and the supervision that parents end up doing. Jackie is also going to be out in February for surgery so that also poses an issue for teacher supervision numbers. Right now we are waiting for Canyon to come back to us with some dates for the beginning of March that would not have any other schools attending to  interfere with lesson plans for the hill. Jackie will follow up with the plan for this  in the school newsletter after she hears back from Canyon which will hopefully be tomorrow. We will need two buses for the Canyon Trip because of student attendance numbers. We will prefer to use the school bus vs coach bussing for travel to Canyon but  will still plan to use the coach buses for the Nakiska trip. The Nakiska trip has already had their field trip forms go home. 
4. Classroom split/no split feedback- Cheryl would like to hear some feedback based on the new style of teaching that has been implemented into some of the classrooms this year. Because of the strange numbers we have for certain grades it was decided to try this new model for this year. She is wondering if parents like this new model better than having split classes? We are most likely going to be running into the same kind of number issues next year allotting the 1.5 teachers to a grade making us need to utilize either this model or the split grades. Next year's numbers are projected to be close to: Grade 2- 28 Grade 3- 34 Grade 4-34 Grade 5- 31. When posed to the teachers at the beginning of this year when that had yet to know classroom assignments all of the teachers did mention they would  rather the bigger classes with shared teaching vs a split grade. One of the positives from this current model is that Children are getting more one-on-one lesson time with the teachers.  As always if you don't feel comfortable sharing something at the meeting but would like to share your thoughts and feelings please send an email and we can have a conversation. We will come back to future meetings as well when we do know more about next year. The consensus from the group of parents at the meeting seemed to be that they did prefer the current model to the split classes. 
5. Condor Community Hall- Really appreciates the cooperation with the school in sharing ongoing events at the center within our school as well as the collaboration on using the facilities.   
6. Meeting dates- Kayleigh has requested that we do a meeting split on Monday/Thursday or Tuesday/Wednesdays next year to hopefully hit more parents to be able to come. Most parents have children in an activity and usually those happen on a mon/wed or tues/thurs split so it would be nice to have offsetting dates to allow them to come to every other meeting.It was suggested that we could potentially do a poll on the school facebook page at the beginning of the year to find out from the parents which days would work the best for them and to try to book our meetings for those days. Kayleigh will handle making the post on the page before the AGM next school year. This topic will be discussed again at the AGM. 
7. Book issue- There was a book that went out before Christmas time that had a section in it that was not appropriate for children. Miranda is wondering how that issue came to be and what is being done about it now. The problem arose when a child checked a book out of the library and when they got it home they came across some inappropriate context. Thankfully the parent did the proper thing and brought it to the administration's attention. We realize this could have ended very badly if the parent had decided to not bring it to our attention and instead posted on facebook or some other outlet. By bringing this issue to us we were able to control the situation and ensure this book will not be sent out again. We are very thankful to this parent for choosing this route of communication with us.  This issue was able to come about because our school relies on a system that shows books that are age appropriate for our children that we can put into our library. We rely on this system because there is absolutely no way that any of our teachers or parents could check every single page of every book that comes into our library. Any books that are brought into the library from outside sources are run through this system before hitting our shelves. There was probably a mistake made when the book was uploaded onto the site.. Unfortunately it is something that was kind of out of our control and we have since removed that book.The librarian did reach out to the company to inform them of this book being inappropriate for children as well. We will put a note in the newsletter asking that  if a parent does come across content that they believe is  inappropriate to please bring it to our attention so we can deal with it promptly because we don’t know what  all our books have in them. 

 

Upcoming Meeting Dates- March 13, May 8 both start @ 6:30 pm

 

Adjournment Time:   7:22 pm

Located at Charlotte Small Elementary School

School Council Meeting Minutes October 17, 2024

 

Attendance: Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Shelby Shortneck,Allison Casey, Brittany Sands, Taylor Liivam, Kayleigh Rempel, Miranda Cameron, Dawn Sinclair, Adrielle Chenard, Nancy Lublinkhof, Jodeen Swan.

 

Call to order time: 6:33 pm

 

Previous Meeting Minutes

 

Trustee Report- Unfortunately Penni was not able to make the meeting but she did send an email with her report. Jackie read the report as follows:

Breton School Modernization

The Breton School Modernization, which is currently in the design phase, was approved under Alberta Education’sSchool Construction Accelerator Program, for construction funding.  We expect that construction on the modernization will begin during the 2024-2025 school year.  Once completed, this modernized school will be home to both our Breton Elementary students and our Breton High School students, so a new name to encompass both needs to be chosen.  A committee was formed to recommend new names to the Board, and they chose Breton Keystone School as the new name for the modernized K-12 school.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Racial Justice

The Board heard a proposal from the Associate Superintendent, Business and Finance and the Director of Indigenous Education on an equity, diversity, inclusivity and racial justice program in the division.  The Board approved the use of reserve dollars to help fund a program delivered by Dr. Shariff over a three year period.  This program will align with Policy 22 - Hate Speech, Symbols & Discrimination, which provides the framework for action. Currently, working with Dr. Shariff would be based on a three year timeline.  The Board discussed the proposed timeline, who would take leadership of this initiative, and the way the project will be rolled out to all staff.
(Cheryl has not yet been informed of this but the Board meeting was just on Tuesday of this week so that is probably why she has not yet.)

Accountability Reports

The Board heard highlights of the Wellness Accountability Report from the Director of Wellness. Trustees had the opportunity to ask questions regarding staff wellness, government grants, Family Wellness Worker caseloads, connection coach funding, AHS supports and funding to name a few.  The trustees will continue to advocate for appropriate funding to allow schools to meet their mental health goals and maintain their successful programs.  

The Deputy Superintendent presented the Personnel Accountability Report, and shared key highlights including;  the number of new teacher contracts issued, teacher retirement, teacher recruitment, staff transfers, support staff numbers, collective agreements and awards.
Superintendent’s Report 

 

Principal Report:
Provincial Assurance Measure survey

 

We only had 7 parents complete the government survey last school year. Only our grade 4 classes were asked to complete this survey.
An area in which we take great pride and attention is creating a safe and caring learning environment!

We will continue to encourage parents to complete assurance surveys so we can support and lead parent involvement. 
The school has noticed the at-risk numbers vastly changed when the EA numbers were cut. 

2023-2024 Annual Education Results Report Summary

Goal Summary: Trying to organize our classrooms to have small class instruction times to reach the multi-grade levels of all our students within one class room.

 

Provincial Assessments

 

Our grade 6 students last year only completed the Social Studies PAT due to the curriculum change. The results from these are not yet in but should be within the next week or so. Please keep in mind that the Provincial Testing measures are a quick snapshot of student learning and achievement-one test on one day so the results need to be interpreted with that in mind.

 

In September the teachers completed the following assessments on our students:

Letter Name-Sound (LeNS)

Students in Grades 1 and 2 complete the assessment in September, January and May.
Kindergarten will complete the assessment in January.
This assessment could also be used with students in higher grades that are identified as experiencing challenges when reading. 

The LeNS is designed to ensure that a child has the foundational phonics skills that are needed to develop into an independent reader. 

Castles and Coltheart (CC3) (Grades 2-3)

Grades 2 and 3 students complete this assessment in September, January and May. 

Grade 1  students will complete this assessment in January and May. 

The CC3 assessment tests the key processes in single word reading, which are phonological decoding and whole word recognition. 

The assessment is designed to help identify the nature of a child’s reading difficulties and can provide direction for next steps in reading.

Alberta Education Numeracy Screener (Grades 1-3)

Grades 1-3 complete this assessment  in September, January and May. 

Kindergarten students will complete the assessment in January. 

This screener assesses a broad range of number skills in students from early verbal counting to arithmetic fluency. Rather than focusing on curriculum specific skills, the numeracy screener is targeting general number sense development and can be used to address early gaps in number knowledge.

 

Reviewing these assessments we are concerned that some students, still in grade 3, are struggling and that is why we  need to continue to focus on individualized instruction to meet the needs of all our students. This year a weekly strategy meeting has been incorporated into the timetable so teachers can collaborate and learn from each other about how to best address the diverse learning needs of our students.  These are multi-grade meetings to help give our staff tips and tricks on what works for some students and what doesn't! Staff will be using professional learning days to work in grade level and division level teams to ensure students transitioning from one grade to the next have a solid foundation thereby ensuring continued student engagement and success.  

 

Charlotte Small Elementary School
Grade Level Achievement Results
Students at/above Grade Level %	2021/ 2022	2023/ 2024	Students at/above Grade Level %	2021/ 2022	2023/ 2024	Students at/above Grade Level %	2021/ 2022	2023/ 2024
Grade 1 Math	88.6%/86.2%	92.9%/ 73.5%	Grade 3 Math	73.8%/80.0%	90.0%/82.8%	Grade 5 Math	75.0%/68.2%	78.0%/70.0%
Grade 1 Reading	70.5%/62.1%	64.3%/73.5%	Grade 3 Reading	66.7%/72.0%	87.5%/75.9%	Grade 5 Reading	53.1%/72.7%	58.5%/20.0%
Grade 1 Writing	70.5%/69.0%	82.1%/82.4%	Grade 3 Writing	69.0%/68.0%	77.5%/75.9%	Grade 5 Writing	40.6%/72.7%	51.2%/40.0%
Grade 2 Math	87.0%/79.2%	80.0%/80.6%	Grade 4 Math	79.2%/79.5%	59.3%/73.6%	Grade 6 Math	70.0%/78.8%	62.5%/70.7%
Grade 2 Reading	69.6%/58.3%	73.3%/80.6%	Grade 4 Reading	79.2%/61.5%	33.3%/62.3%	Grade 6 Reading	62.5%/57.6%	50.0%/65.9%
Grade 2 Writing	60.9%/54.2%	73.3%/80.6%	Grade 4 Writing	66.7%/53.8%	55.6%/64.2%	Grade 6 Writing	57.5%/66.7%	58.3%/58.5%
ECS Math	67.7%/60.6%	82.1%/82.8%	ECS Reading	58.1%/60.6%	82.1%/ 69.0%	ECS Writing	61.3%/48.5%	82.1%/69.0%

Projected Budget for our 2024-2025 school year

 

Staffing (Money in=Money Out) 

Teacher Full Time Equivalent=13.141 +0.5 (hot spot funding)

Support Staff FTE=7.548 EA, Admin Assistants, Learning Commons (+Jordan’s Principle EA’s) 

Substitute Allocation:  $46 0000 (Teachers, EA’s, LCF and Admin Assistants)

 

Our school budget is given to us from division based on the amount of students enrolled.

We have 29 ECS Students and 204 Students in grades 1-6 for an incoming of $ 36,000

Our Projected Expenses are $35,885 with the following as our breakdown;

 

$ 85.00	CTS Supplies	$ 200.00	Maintenance & Repair
$ 500.00	Library Books	$ 100.00	Awards
$ 500.00	P.D. Travel	$ 100.00	Dues And Fees
$ 500.00	Testing	$ 100.00	Postage
$ 400.00	Comm., Print, Advertisement	$ 1,500.00	Computer Software
$ 400.00	Reference Materials/Books $	$ 1,000.00	Media Materials
$ 4,500.00	Copier Rental / Lease Contract	$ 1,000.00	Prof & Tech Services
$ 25,000.00		General Supplies (Instructional Materials, paper,art,science,books,classroom supplies, phys ed equipment,playground equipment, office supplies, etc

 

Requests for parent council funding for “extras” that Charlotte Students participate in as optional activities that are not funded by government allocation:  Swimming

 

Last year’s swimming total cost= $14 000   This year’s estimate (+4%)=$14 560

Last year parents were asked to pay $20/student with the increased estimate we are suggesting we charge parents=$25/student which would be  $5725  for grades 1-6 and  $495  for ECS if all students paid. Out of the school generated funds the school would pay $5/student for ECS and $10/student for grades 1-6 which would be $2455. 

$14560-$5725-$495-$2455=$5885

 

We are asking that parent council could give swim subsidization of up to $7000 to cover unanticipated costs due to increased bus costs and students not being able to pay 

 

SPED bussing 2023 2024-extra costs of 1836.39 for swimming and year end field trips

Teacher Report-  Jackie gave the report as follows. Mr Whitecotton would like to let you know our Boys Basketball team is undefeated! Aleata Mason will join our meetings going forth as a teacher representative. We had one EA go on Mat Leave and then one left to her community she currently lives in. We have hired two EA’s to fill those positions. One is from a play based program so has a different background to offer. All the teachers are still talking about how their start of the year was great and how they are very thankful to the Parent Council for all the support they have given thus far.

 

Chair Report-   Shelby stated that the next Umbrella meeting will be held on November 12, 2024 at West Central High School at 5pm if anyone would like to go. Please let Shelby know and she will add your names to the list.

 

Old Business: No old business to discuss.

 

New Business:  

1. Budget---Add to Parent Council Agenda-Request for Swimming Subsidization 

The bus company First Choice was asked if they would be able to accommodate our Two SPED children that would need to go swimming together at the same time as the other children in their class which would be about 40 other passengers (staff/students) but they said that unfortunately at this time it is not something they could do. 

 

1. Bullying-  A parent had asked what our policy is in regards to bullying. The official policy is in our parent handbook but what we really need is for parents to bring it forth to us staff in a timely manner.The school has cameras all around for safety purposes and Cheryl can look at them to potentially find the incident in question. Unfortunately we cannot always find them as there are areas without cameras (bathrooms, etc.) We do check in with the children daily as well if we are aware some sort of altercations have been going on.. Sometimes people assume nothing has happened to the children involved in certain situations but then again nothing is broadcasted to all the parents when something does happen.The older kids also have access to email their teachers as well if it is not something they want to talk about in person.
   
   
2. Playground- It was discussed at the last meeting about potentially getting rid of the wood chips in the playground for a more accessible option. Jackie got the quote for this and it would be about $130,000+ to do so!
   Three accessible equipment pieces were also discussed and the quote for those came in at  $96,723 for the pieces as well as the rubber matting that would be required.
   We can look into getting some funding from businesses as well as some potential grants.Taylor will look into some grants from the library side as she does have access to some resources that others might not. We can also put a facebook post on the Parents Page asking if any parents would like to help form a committee to look into the funding. Jackie would be more than happy to be a part of the committee as well.
   
   
   

Upcoming Meeting Dates- November 14, January 16, March 13, May 8
All to start @ 6:30 pm

Adjournment Time:   7:35pm

Annual General Meeting School Council September 14, 2024 Location:  6:30

Format of meetings

1.  Introductions: Cheryl has introduced Shelby as the Chairperson. Did a roundtable of the attendees to find out who everyone is! Very fortunate to have everyone attend.
2. Annual General Meeting School Council (On School Matters) 
3. Condor School Parent Advisory Committee Meeting (the Fundraising Society)

Charlotte Small School Council Annual General Meeting

 

Goals: School Council is a group whose purpose is to advise the principal and the school board on matters relating to the school.  It functions to work together with the school to enhance student learning. The School Council is based on premises of  mutual understanding, relationships, trust and clear communication. 

 

Guiding Principles:

1. Concise, timely meetings with clear agenda
2. Agenda items submitted to the School Council chair or principal at least 24 hours prior to meeting time.
3. Chairperson ensures every person wishing to speak is given the opportunity; one person speaking at a time. 
4. Motions must be formally recorded with who made a motion, seconder and record of vote results
5. Notes can be anecdotal summary of discussion unless motion is made
6. Operating Procedures -

Call to order - 6:36 pm

 

Attendance - Shelby Shortneck, Brittany Sands, Kayleigh Rempel, Allison Casey, Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Taylor Spittka-Liivam, Miranda Cameron, Penni Lougheed, Adrielle Chenard, Jodeen Swan, Trisha Clough, Vanessa Bosovich

 

Previous Meeting Minutes- School Council AGM 2023

 

Trustee Report -  Trustee report Penni will send a copy.  First choice does not have plans to do bus evacuation drills as of yet but are supposed to do twice a year. Penni will be looking into this. Penni has asked that any transportation concerns are emailed because it holds more weight to be dealt with, CC all trustees and not just Penni on those. 

 

Principal Report - Principal report

 

Chair Report - Umbrella meeting Nov. 12th Sign up to follow. Annual School council return will be filed with WRSD by Shelby Shortneck. It is done now on a google form which streamlines the process. 

 

Teachers Report - Jackie gave the report. Our grade 6 went to Camp Evergreen and loved it. Thanks to the parent council for giving them the opportunity to attend. Most teachers have already booked our swimming so thanks again to that. The mobile device policy the government released hasn't really affected the school as we already had a great policy in effect already. Social media is now blocked from schools wifi systems thanks to the government. Does affect the school administration a little but they can still post school info. 

 

New Business - 

1. Elect Executive board
2. Current Executive
1. Chairperson- Shelby Shortneck
2. Vice-chairperson - Allison Casey
3. Treasurer-Brittany Sands
4. Secretary-Kayleigh Rempel
5. Communications Officer -Leah Casey
6. Events/ Volunteer Officer -Allison Casey

2024 New Executive

 

1. Chairperson- Allison motions Shelby for to continue, Taylor Seconds, All in favor
2. Vice-chairperson - Kayleigh motions for Allison to continue as vice chair. Brittany seconds, All in favor.
3. Treasurer- We do not need this position.
4. Secretary- Taylor motions Kayleigh to continue, Shelby seconds, All in favor.
5. Communications Officer - NO longer need this position.
6. Events/ Volunteer Officer - Allison will continue this but do not need it as an official position. 

 

1. Outdoor classroom update - The school division will not be putting lights into it but the county may choose to do so. We do have a couple options on where the classroom will be but the school doesn't have complete choice on where it does go. We are looking at $130000 above what we initially thought. Looking into other bids from other companies than BDI( current playground builder). The bid site will be up hopefully in the next couple weeks and should be up for 2-3 months. Hopefully the new bids can come in cheaper. Teachers have discussed having an additional concrete pad after the benches. The path will not necessarily be shoveled for the winter due to extra work for the caretaker. Looking at 32/44 feet is the current thing but can be 130,000. 
2. Accessible playground ( letter to division about not wood chips but instead rubber matting ) Quotes for playground equipment for wheelchair accessible and not lifting students. Cement sidewalk for around the whole building or to the south playground. Wheelchair buttons for the east door. Jackie has looked into grants but we won't hear back for a couple months if we do qualify. We can put it out for bids as well for the playground. Parents think that is great. WE can also have sponsorship letters go out to different companies towards it as well. We will come back in October and potentially start a committee to spearhead this project. 
3. Extra Curricular activities parent question - 
4. Cross Country Run - Bussing cost of $545.12. Parents are already paying $15/student for the run. Does not cover bussing. We are currently open to grades 4-6 but potentially younger just to fill the bus. We will take one bus. We can ask the student council for help but the school also has a school generated funds account that we can also use. We currently have $15-20000. Cheryl will actually show the amount at our next meeting. Cheryl always brings her choices to the parent council on what she does spend it on. The division has asked that we do spend the money soon. Shelby motions that Cheryl uses the school generated funds on cross-country bussing for our 2024 runner. Brittany Seconds. All in favor. 
5. Options coverage - This year we would like to offer it for free but will eventually charge for them, no more than $10.00 a student tho. Cheryl has estimated that it will cost $1200 this year. Shelby motions that we use the school generated funds up until $1200 for the supplies this year. Kayleigh seconds, All in favor. This is only presented to grades 5-6 this year but we would eventually like to offer it to 4-6 as we like to cross-group the grades together. 
6. School photos- We were signed up for a promo and it seems it is $1.00 per page different from the highschools costs. We did have a different company last year and it was horrible to deal with. Smart photography has been easier to deal with.  Shelby will look into the different costs for packages and we will discuss them in later meetings. Shelby will put it in the newsletter and post before the next meeting that if you have concerns and cannot make the meeting please forward them and we can address them for you.
7. Community Events- We are raising funds for the hall to get a new roof again to stop leakage. The ball diamonds have been repaired. The shale will be done in the diamond shortly. There will be another work bee to finish off the diamonds in the next little bit. They are still working on the skating shack. The one door needs to be replaced. There is water to the building but the well does need to get tested. We are hoping to get it so we can potentially run a concession out of it. 
8. Bussing concerns- Some students have VERY inconsistent drop off times. This can be a problem for some parents. The app does not really show communication for potential shutdowns. We have no central dispatch available to the drivers. We can potentially have a town hall meeting between parents, drivers, trustees. Some people feel we are getting shut down and they are not listening to our issues. A Lot of the issues need to be sent to the bussing company as well.  Proper channels of communication with bussing issues. Company first, Transportation and Safety(Kristen), Trustees, Education Minister. You can write one email and cc everyone. We can potentially have to pay up to $500 per child.  Charter buses are on the school to decide which company to use. Some parents rely on those pay cheques to pay students meals and stuff so it actually does affect our students directly. Cheryl has shared with Darla (head bus driver) on how to put in some bids. A lot of this comes down to costs. We will share on the facebook page if someone wants to spearhead the town hall meeting. Next board meeting is October 15 in Drayton Valley. 
9. Community use form for extra curricular options within the community. 

 

Meeting Dates for the 24/25 year - 

October- 17 @ 6:30

November- 14 @ 6:30 two weeks prior to Penny Carnival

January- 16 @ 6:30 

March- 13 @ 6:30

May- 8 @ 6:30

Adjournment - 8:45 pm

School Council Meeting March 14 2024  6:30

 

Called to order time:  6:33 pm

 

Attendance: Kayleigh Rempel, Shelby Shortneck, Miranda Cameron, Jackie Heide, Cheryl Kalev, Penni Lougheed, Brenda Lewis, Jodeen Swan

 

Approval of last meeting minutes. 

 

Trustee Report- Attached to the meeting minutes. March 15th trustee report

 

Chair update- None at this time.

 

Principal Report- March 15th report

 

Teacher Report- Looking into deciding what to do for field trips. Pre-k- Grade 2 looking at going to the St. Alberts Children Festival.

 

Old Business: none

 

New Business:  

 

1.  Parent Survey- Grade 4 Parents. We were considered a large school this year with our two classrooms. Looking at making our own school wide survey for Pre-k -Grade 6 parents so we can have a broader idea on what parents are looking for. Looking at doing some option classes for our Grades 4-6 and asking on ideas/ parents or community members that could potentially teach some of those.  Going to add a question about communication with the parents and how they would like to receive information. Also ask how parents would like to get involved with the school.
2. Digital Citizenship-April- We did have some issues with some students posting online about others so we decided to create a school wide mission for the safety of students at grade appropriate learning for technology.
3. Mental Health Week-May- Kind of like last year with the cloud watching and such.
4. Track meet date change- Thursday, May 23
5. Gary Hiney- Seeing eye dog/persons with disabilities- Explaining to children about how to support people with disabilities. Open to parents as well. 
6. Crystal Clark-Open to having parents involved in her sessions. 

 

Adjourned at 7:03 pm

 

For the month of January (only) the Parent & School council meetings will be held separately. 

Parent Council Jan 18/24 @ 6:30pm

School Council Jan 29/24 right before the whole school assembly @ 11:30am. 

 

 

School Council meeting minutes will always be posted here, on our Charlotte Small Elementary School website. To view the Parent Council meeting minutes please come to the office and you are welcome to view paper copies there. 

For the month of January (only) the Parent & School council meetings will be held separately. 

Parent Council Jan 18/24 @ 6:30pm

School Council Jan 29/24 right before the whole school assembly @ 11:30am.  

 

School Council meeting minutes will always be posted here, on our Charlotte Small Elementary School website. To view the Parent Council meeting minutes please come to the office and you are welcome to view paper copies there. 

November 14 School Council

Goals: School Council is a group whose purpose is to advise the principal and the school board on matters relating to the school. It functions to work together with the school to enhance student learning. The School Council is based on premises of mutual understanding, relationships, trust and clear communication.  

Call to order time: 6:32 pm

Attendance: Dawn Sinclair, Nancy Lublinkhof, Allison Casey, Shelby Shortneck, Janneke Steegink, Kayleigh Rempel, Brittany Sands, Miranda Cameron, Taylor Liivam, Penny Lougheed, Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Jodeen Swan, Bernadette Britton

Approval of last meeting Minutes: Brittany motions to approve Kayleigh seconds all in favor

Trustee Report- Umbrella meetings for both the north and south. In October she did a tour of the school. The kids seem happy. Had a chance to meet with the minister of education and spent 2 hrs with him. Board meeting in Drayton Valley. Best practice was asked of the school councils. ASCA presented. They did give some ideas for the $500. EA allocation was shown how they do that. Transportation was discussed. For the hot lunch program we should have one person that has a food handling permit. Our fourth new school should be open by christmas. Breton has been approved for modernization. ASCA has a website that offers lots of different programs. 

Chair Update- 

Principal Report-Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Lewis are both out on medical leave of absence.  Ms. Hannah and Miss Jarvie are the replacement teachers.   Mrs. Jones is on maternity leave.  Ms. Shawna and Ms. Shortneck have been hired on as educational assistants.  

Teacher’s Report-Great volleyball tournament that we won!! Great Halloween festivities. 

Old/New Business-tabled until next meeting

Next meeting: January 29th after assembly

Adjournment time: 6:55 pm.

School Council October 18, 2023 Location: 6:30
Goals: School Council is a group whose purpose is to advise the principal and the school board
on matters relating to the school. It functions to work together with the school to enhance
student learning. The School Council is based on premises of mutual understanding,
relationships, trust and clear communication.
Call to order- 6:38 pm
Attendance - Dawn Sinclair, Brenda Lewis, Samantha Smith, Miranda Cameron, Kayleigh
Rempel, Brittany Sands, Shelby Shortneck, Allison Casey, Nancy Lublinkhof, Cheryl Kalev,
Jackie Heide, Janneke Steegink
1. Approval of Last meeting minutes from September 14 Meeting
2. Trustee’s Report- will be attached to the minutes Trustee Report
3. Chair Update- WRSD umbrella meeting is November 13, 2023 with registration for by
October 30. Supper at 5:30. Our school received $500 from the government last year.
We are allowed to use it for parent involvement and engagement . We also have another
$500 for this school year. If anyone has any ideas please let us know. Not allowed to be
used for food or prizes. December 2023 for the 1st $500. Discussed using it for some
sort of mental health. Looking to book something for November/December.
4. Principals' Report-Annual Results Report Summary See link Principal report
5. Teacher’s Report - September is always a rough month trying to get all our testing done
for the government. Halloween is one of the things we are really looking forward to.
6. Old Business
a. Photo company initial feedback- Memory books may not be an option this year.
We are trying to get a hold of them but we have not been able to yet. The cost
this year was higher too. The background was not changeable either. If we do
decide to switch we will need to know in the spring. The photographer was
fantastic himself though. It was suggested we do a spring survey to decide if we
stay with the new one or switch back.

7. New Business:
a. Apparel Order- It was suggested to maybe have an ordering station set up at
Penny Carnival. Decide on what exactly we would like. Shelby will discuss it with
Michelle.
b. Alberta School Council Engagement Grant ideas - Idea to engage parent body.
Funds of $500 are provided by gov but must be used within guidelines or given
back. Reporting need to be done for the funds and given to wrsd.

October - Combination meeting Oct. 19th 630
November - Combination meeting Nov 14th 630
January - School council 29th following assembly. (Parent council meeting will be Jan 19th)

March - Combination meeting - march 21st
May - Combination meeting May 9th

Adjournment: 7:28 pm

Annual General Meeting School Council September 14, 2023 6:30

Format of meetings

1.  Introductions:
2. Annual General Meeting School Council (On School Matters) 
3. Condor School Parent Advisory Committee Meeting (the Fundraising Society)

Charlotte Small School Council Annual General Meeting

Goals: School Council is a group whose purpose is to advise the principal and the school board on matters relating to the school.  It functions to work together with the school to enhance student learning. The School Council is based on premises of  mutual understanding, relationships, trust and clear communication. 

Guiding Principles:

1. Concise, timely meetings with clear agenda
2. Agenda items submitted to the School Council chair or principal at least 24 hours prior to meeting time.
3. Chairperson ensures every person wishing to speak is given the opportunity; one person speaking at a time. 
4. Motions must be formally recorded with who made a motion, seconder and record of vote results
5. Notes can be anecdotal summary of discussion unless motion is made
6. Operating Procedures -

Call to order at 6:30

Attendance - Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Burnie Britton,Brenda Lewis Brittany Sands, Shelby Shortneck, Allison Casey, Samantha Smith, Jodeen Swan, Marissa Nixon, Dawn Sinclair, Nancy Lublinkhof, Miranda Cameron, Kayleigh Rempel, Ashley Perepelkin, Amy WIggins, Jessie Edwards

1. Approval of Last meeting minutes
2. Trustee’s Report- See Attached link Trustee Report
3. Community Report - Rink and ball diamond repairs and updates have been completed. Sea cans have also been repainted. Shale work will happen next year. Community fundraisers are planned for the year.
4. Principals' Report-Caretaking, Indigenous Day -activities are planned for students and staff. Volunteers are welcome to join Tuesday the 27th. Start Up - fantastic start up this year.  Staff Update - additions of Mr. Whitecotton and some new EA’s, class Size -,donation - Little house of hope has donated $2500 towards a school nutrition program., pre-k - excited about the program and so far it is going very well. , after school program -  once licensing is approved can accept 24 kids. Right now they can only accept 6 kids. 
5. Teacher’s Report -  Great start to 2023 year so far.
6. New Business: 

1. Current Executive
1. Chairperson- Shelby Shortneck
2. Vice-chairperson - 
3. Treasurer-Brittany Sands
4. Secretary-Taylor Liivam
5. Communications Officer -Leah Casey
6. Events/ Volunteer Officer -Allison Casey

2023 New Executive

1. Chairperson- Shelby Shortneck
2. Vice-chairperson - Allison Casey
3. Treasurer-Brittany Sands
4. Secretary- Kaleigh Rempel
5. Communications Officer - Leah Casey
6. Events/ Volunteer Officer - Allison Casey

2023 New executive directors have accepted the positions above. Samantha Smith motion to accept the new executive directors listed above for the 2023-2024 school term and Ashley Perepelkin seconds. All in favour. 

Meeting Schedule - Thoughts on splitting meetings - Try a school meeting after assemblies. Parents are interested in the school side of meetings and would like it to be accessible to all parents. January we will try a split meeting schedule and see what the outcome is. 

Setting the Year's Meeting Schedule 

(Last year:  October , November,January,March, May

October - Combination meeting Oct. 19th 630

November - Combination meeting Nov 2nd 630

January - School council 29th following assembly. (Parent council meeting will be Jan 19th)

March - Combination meeting - march 21st

May - Combination meeting MAy 9th

Bussing questions -North kids get here later and are having trouble not having that downtime. School and teacher direction is helping kids make those connections and forming friendships.Seating arrangements change monthly and children move in different groups each day.  Staff are not loving the split dismissal and arrival times but are working with the kids to ensure they have productive days.  Things are starting to settle into a good routine. Any bussing concerns should be taken to WRSD directly and to our Trustee Penni Lougheed. School dismissal and sign out process concerns. Sign out will be streamlined with the office to help all parents. If your child needs to be dismissed please make sure you contact their teacher, bus driver and sign them out at the office. 

Adjournment: 7:54pm

Charlotte Small School Council Regular Meeting

May 11th 6:30pm

Location: Grade 6 Room
Meeting Link; meet.google.com/cko-rzpi-jue
Time: 6:30
Attendance: Shelby Shortneck, Jackie Heide, Cheryl Kalev, Penni Lougheed, Taylor Liivam, Brittany
Sands, Leah Casey, Dawn Sinclair
Approval of Last meeting minutes:March 9 School Council and PAC minutes
Trustee’s report - See Attached Trustee Report
Teacher’s Report - No teachers report this meeting.
Principal's Report May 11 2023
Special Events this year
Grade 4, 5,6-Junior Achievement Programs-financial literacy
Dare to Care Anti-bullying program-Lesson Plans and special virtual classes for anti-bullying week
Joe Social Media-digital citizenship
Telus World of Science-Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire. Our Science in Motion (SIM) team will take your
school through a four day discovery with daily demos and classroom challenges. All classes enjoyed
these presentations.
Grade 3 Red Deer Polytechnic presentation
Indigenous Teachings this Year
1 Moccasin Activity
2. Eagle Story with Elder Glen-Shared story of an eagle and the importance of the values of kindness,
caring and love
3, Winter Solstice-making Ornaments
4. Grade 1-4 The Giving Tree: The retelling of a traditional metis story
5. Grades 5-6 Metis sash and finger weaving lesson
6. Several Staff and two parents attended Indigenous Conference April 12. All staff have been working
through U of A Indigenous Course for an hour or two each PD day
Upcoming Special Event
Motivation Magic-May 23
June 8 Metis Story and Jigging
June 21 Indigenous Day
*Pre-K program has been approved-2 full days a week Tuesday/Thursdays

Chair report - Bussing - Board will look into route changes and safety concerns regarding bussing.
Changes may be implemented in the new school year.
Umbrella Meeting is coming up on May 16th
PATS- Looked into differing dates- due to written tests vs online tests. Earlier dates for online tests on, but
decided by school division. PAT test dates are determined by Alberta Education. This year the test dates
were set for after our school year has ended. Other divisions in our province have different test dates;
however those dates are only for online testing.
Old Business:
1. After School Care-Boys and Girls Club of Red Deer
- Looking into after school care, but may not be enough interest for before school.
- Drop ins are dependent on the worker to child ratio.
2. Pictures-Leah
- Life touch - Lots of packages, regular photography, plus rewards programs. Child safety
cards are available, if a child goes missing, authorities can be provided with a picture. 26
for lowest package price, can opt in to contracts. A individual class photo can be
purchased
- Kids Photo from Calgary - no cost to school, solely based on what parents buy. Packages
start at 18 and goes up to 99
- Local photographers offer digital packages or prints. But a PIXIT account would be
needed to manage the photos by the parent council.

New Business:
1. Budget/staff numbers for next year 2023/2024
- $10 per child funded for field trips
- More EA’s
- Trying to keep down split classes
2. Summer projects
a. Sound system/video display
- Will be installed
b. Bulletin boards
c. Bleachers
d. Outdoor Seating
Meeting adjournment time - 7:20pm
Next meeting- Set date for Annual General Meeting September 2023 - Date set for Spet. 14th 2023

New Business:
Last Hot dog day May __
Hot lunch for track and fields: Last year, items were donated, This years T&F concession should also be
covered by donations. Need to know where T&F is being held to set up concession

 

March 9th School Council Charlotte Small
Location: Grade 6 Room
Time: 6:30
Attendance: Allison Casey, Shelby Shortneck, Kailegh rempel, Taylor Liivam, Brittany Sands, Alex Pattison, Mellissa
Pittendriegh, Tracy Carson, Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide, Jodeen Swan, Alesha Makenzie
Approval of Last meeting minutes: January 19, 2023 minutes Approved by Allison Casey.
Trustee’s report - See Attached.Trustee Report Questions about the new corridor bus changes were asked and
addressed to Penni. Concerns regarding the bus routes and time changes were voiced. Penni will take concerns to
WRSD and the director of transportation. A suggestion was made that the parent council ask for a division meeting
with Brad Volkman, the director of transportation and a rep from prairie bus lines. Update for parents regarding the
meeting will be available on the parents page.
Principal’s report - See Attached Principal Report
Teacher’s Report - Thank you to the Parent Council for swimming, shelving and water bottle prizes for archery.
Basketball tournament went well! SKi trip coming up! 3 and 6 food presentations were fun to watch.
Chair report - Division Deloitte survey results. Posted on the parents page. Will also be addressed by division at the
upcoming umbrella council meeting on May 16th. All are welcome to attend. Will be in person with registration this
year, Contact Shelby if interested in attending. ASCA is having their annual conference if anyone is interested in
attending please contact shelby.
Condor Community Center - Condor Community- Lots happening willow weaving classes just completed. There was
a survey circulated and the results of that are in and will be discussed at our next meeting. Amber Misner is looking at
doing a musical at the hall and there will be handbells starting up as well as drop in guitar. Just looking at dates for
those. Playgroup is meeting on Tuesdays and we have 2 news joint coordinators - Miranda Cameron and Adrielle
Chenard. The Seniors Group is also going strong with personal care days and weekly lunch on Tuesdays and Coffee
on Thursdays. We have several weddings booked for this summer as well - hopefully the construction will be done.
Old Business:
1. Report card Plan-(year end print, sample, communication, feedback) - Moving report cards to digital over
power school. Parents have asked for a tutorial video on how to use the power school portals. Info can be
found on the school website.
2. Parent night for book fair - March 22nd parents welcome to come and shop. Wish list for parents to
purchase for classrooms. Notify parents if the book fair is cash or debit so they can be prepared.
New Business:
1. School Instructional time/ staff assignable time- adjusted bell times - nothing has been changed officially
regarding start times due to bussing issues being worked on. Limited on time that teachers can actually
teach. If buses continue to arrive late then times may change. Work in progress. Communication discussion
on how to best reach parents. Several apps are currently used to send info to parents. School Messenger is
our biggest app that sends info to parents. Each teacher can use a separate app to send info to parents
specific to their own classroom. Some apps used are google classroom and seesaw. Questions as to why
info is not consolidated into one app. Answer - Teacher preference/ age of students. Some apps are better
suited for different forms of communication. Also division wide use is suggested for apps like Powerschool.
Overall, Parents like the amount of communication coming from the school. Less is not required in this case.
Each parent can choose what apps to subscribe to and how to receive notifications/ info from the school.

2. Before/After School Care - not started yet. The Red Deer Boys and Girls club is gathering interest but needs
more response. Will send out another survey in April.
3. Possible Pre-K - Trying to start this up at our school. Leah Odenski from WRSD is trying to start this
program in our area.. In the past this program ran alongside the playschool. A certified teacher is needed to
run this so they are trying to run it through the school system. Discussion surrounding gathering interest for
a pre-k program. Will need at least 15-20 children to run.
4. Volunteer Appreciation/Open House 2:15-3:00 -May 2 Recognition at Assembly/ followed up with Open
House/classroom visits? Feedback/Ideas/suggestions - Volunteers don't love the idea of an assembly
recognition. Appreciation can be expressed in small ways such as coffee and donuts on hot lunch days,
public recognition through the facebook pages, cards and expressions of thanks. A pancake breakfast was
suggested for outside of school hours. Volunteers would have a hard time not helping with the breakfast.
Whatever choice happens not all parent volunteers will be reached but still small acts of kindness are always
welcome.
5. Chromebook expiry list - about 10 that are expiring. A request has been made to the WRSD IT department
to order 20 touch screen chromebooks for the Kinder class. We don't know when they will arrive but
hopefully it is soon.
6. Bussing Questions - Questions were given surrounding the new corridor bussing routes and the transfer.
Some parents have issues with Prairie bus lines drivers and long pick up/drop off windows. See above
Trustee report for more info on discussion.
7. Hold and Secure notification policy - Priority was given to getting the info our asap. Facebook is the fastest
and the notification was sent that way. During the hold and secure the situation was given priority over
notifying parents. Email may be sent later as it takes longer to create and send. In the situation a timely
manner of notifying parents was used.
8. Facebook page - Discussion was had involving if the parents page should be separate from the school or
have school admin/teachers access. Some parents felt it needed to be a place for parents to be able to vent
and ask questions without the risk of teachers/ admin seeing. Other parents felt it was needed for questions
and info and that having admin/ teachers on the pages can help expedite parents getting answers. Some
negative comments have been made by parents in the past regarding school spaces and staff. Teacher and
admin already see if there are unkind comments via screenshots of discussion. If there are frustrations from
parents they can reach out to parent council or direct the issue to admin or higher at WRSD. Overall the
general consensus was that the page needs to be for school info / any questions parents may have
regarding school topics and not a place to vent frustrations. School admin and Staff are welcome to join the
page if they choose. Discussion about WRSD joining the page. - Parents felt that WRSD would not be a
benefit to the parents page as it is unlikely they would be able to solve issues/ answer questions on a social
media platform. Any questions or concerns can be emailed directly to the director of the department and
Brad Volkman our superintendent.
Meeting adjournment time - 8:55

Next meeting-May 11

 

 

January 19, 2023 School Council Charlotte Small

Location: Flex Room  https://meet.google.com/gxg-nfij-wws?hs=122&authuser=0

 

Time:  6:30

 

Attendance: Shelby Shortneck, Allison Casey, Kayleigh Rempel, Brittany Sands, Leah Casey, Lucy Hake, Cheryl Kalev, Dawn Sinclair, Janneke Steegink, Penny Lougheed, Brenda Hall, Brenda Lewis

 

Principal’s report: Door issues that are being looked at. Problems with being locked when they should be open. Visitor policy is in place for a reason and the school is trying to stick to it. Doors are clear window paneled. This is a concern for safety among parents and staff. . Parent council would like to write a letter to the division addressing concerns on windowed doors and the large windows with blinds that take a long time to close. 

Review Emergency Response Plan - See attached

 

Trustee’s report - Board Highlights - See attached 

 

Chair report - none at this time

 

Condor Hall report - See attached

 

Old Business:

1. School photographer - (tabled to Spring at Leah’s request)

 

New Business:  

1. PAT - days used to be able to be set by each school. Now they are set division wide. The new dates are now June 20th, June 22, June 23rd, June 26th, June 27th. The last PAT tests are on days that school has already ended. Unfortunate dates that were set by the province but hands are tied. If students do not take pats it affects the schools overall provincial score. It does not affect funding. 
2. Book Fair (March 21-23) - Staff wish list possibly. School will have days for parents to shop as well. 

 

Meeting adjournment time -7:31

 

Remaining meetings: March 16, May 11

 

November 9 Charlotte Small School Council Meeting

Location: Flex Room  https://meet.google.com/gxg-nfij-wws?hs=122&authuser=0

 

Time:  6:30

 

Attendance: Shelby Shortneck, Allison casey, Vanessa Bosovich, Dawn Sinclair, Brittany Sands, Taylor Liivam, Nancy Lublinkhof, Cherly Kalev, Penni Lougheed, Kayleigh Rempel, Lucy Hake

 

Approval of last meeting Minutes: All approved

Principal’s report: Mission and vision for Charlotte small. Update on the annual ed results. Assurance Survey was sent to parents last year and we discussed the results. Pat results are best in division, our results went up during the pandemic, the ed results explain the pat results in comparison to division and provincial. 

Trustee’s report - Board Highlights - October 18, 2022 (found on wrsd.ca website)

2023-2024 Draft Calendar

The Board of Trustees approved in principle the DRAFT 2023-2024 Calendar.  The calendar will be distributed for public feedback before receiving final approval at a future board meeting.

Policy Revision

The board approved the recommendations made by the policy committee for changes to 

Policy 10 - Policy Making

Accountability Reports

The Board heard the highlights from the 2021 -2022 Wellness Accountability Report,   FNMI Accountability Report and Personnel Accountability Report.

Enhanced Programming through Academies

The Board discussed at length the possibility of offering enhanced programs through the use of academies.  Other school divisions are offering unique programs that earn students external credentials for example, flight, hockey, or farming academies.  This will be discussed at our November 3 Umbrella School Council meeting.

Superintendent’s Report 

WRSD September 29, 2022 Enrollment, Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence Certificate of Achievement, Honouring Spirit:  Indigenous Student Awards, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, PowerSchool - Student Information System - Migration to hosted service, WRSD / Town of Drayton Valley Joint Meeting, Capital Project Update, Grade 2-4 Learning Disruption Grant. 

Deloitte Review - currently the board has asked for a review of WRSD operations - administration and more. Parents were not going to be involved but we have asked that there be some input from them included. A survey will be coming but not certain if it will be to the School Council groups or what form it will take. 

Have enjoyed being in schools - DT today for Remembrance Day and Caroline during a tournament. Great kids at both. Looking forward to bell season. 

Chair report - Umbrella council meeting minutes will be attached once finalized.

Teachers report:  Teacher appreciation supper was very welcome, Remembrance day ceremony  was fantastic with lots of student involvement. Halloween dance was super fun! Staff are excited for penny carnival. 

 

Condor Community Center Update - Condor Community Centre had a big Halloween bash - 200 participants at the kids portion of the night. Raised about $1000 from the whole night for the rink and ball diamonds. Great community support, sponsorship and turnout. Lots of awareness for the project now. Work bee at the rink - small but mighty and got lots done - basketball nets straightened, welding, removal of gates to be repaired and front portion of the skating building cleaned up. Received a quote and donation on materials for the rink - boards and paint. Home Hardware will be making the donation of 10% of the materials and charging $3500ish for the rest. We will need to store the materials in the back of the rink building so will need to have that cleaned out and the lock fixed on the door.  Project manager of the rink is Daryl Lougheed. We will have more workbees coming up as the weather allows. So there may not be a lot of notice but people are always welcome. No word on CFEP grant. CoOp beautification will be considered for next year. No word on Blue Cross Active Living grant. We do have sponsors that are willing to donate as soon as we can finalize our materials list which we should know now. 

Old Business:

1. Joe’s Social Media - post om Facebook and notify parents about program. May have more sign ups.

 

New Business:  

1. School Photographer - tabled to January
2. Charlotte Small Apparel - school will look at options. May ask for help from parent council with parent communication and forms. 
3. Report cards-Report cards will go directly to anyone with portal access electronically through the PowerSchool portal.   (November will be printed)

Remaining meetings:  January 19, March 16, May 11

 

 

Annual General Meeting School Council October 13

Location: Flex Room
6:30

1. Annual General Meeting School Council (On School Matters)
2. Condor School Parent Advisory Committee Meeting (the Fundraising Society)
Start time: 6:38
Attendance: Cheryl Kalev, Jackie Heide,Tracey Carson, Shelby Shortneck, Allison Casey, Brittany Sands, Kayleigh
Rempel, Dawn Sinclair, Janneke Steegink, Nancy Lublinkhof, Leah Casey, Brenda Lewis(Virtual), Tessa Rancier
(Virtual)

1. Approval of Last meeting minutes; Allison approved Dawn seconded
2. Principal’s Report building update wrong doors so they have temporary ones hoping the new ones arrived
before november break ...blinds supposed to come after NOvember 9...then will have lockdown drills...road
construction not to do with the school construction but it is having an impact on school building curbs will
hopefully happen during the november break if not may have to rearrange drop off for a couple days..
Professional development is working on assessing students' needs through standardized and non
standardized methods. Teachers also have personalized plans for what they would like to focus on. Red
Deer Polytechnic has approached to have practicum students attend which will hopefully help with a
substitute situation down the road. No current actual teachers, just observers. Budget is good, no changes
needed. 10% less for what we could buy but dollars stayed the same as last year.
3. Trustee’s report Penny was not here
4. Chair Report Umbrella school council meeting on November 3 at 7pm...virtual meeting anyone can attend
and can get division questions/answers
5. Teachers- Report- Tracey Carson Thank you for doing the turkeys for the turkey trot, The hot dogs were
great today..Grade 6 leadership for playground supervision with fanny packs for first aid kits and swipe cards
to allow kids in and out during recess... Mr. Smith taking 40ish students to a cross country race(ones who
were enthusiastic for running)
6. Old Business
7. New Business:
a. $500 school council engagement grant - see below
b. Joe(s) Social Media presentation- NOvember 17Th is only available date which is a parent council
meeting date. Open to community members as well. Digital footprint for kids and the effect it
has..Yes to kids for sure...can we use the $500 to invite parents for a pizza night for parents to try
to get more involvement. Try to offer childcare for the parent presentation. Make a note about the
importance of social media awareness when we tell people of the event. Try to have a small school
council meeting first and do a split parent council meeting on another day. Parent interviews on
November 8/9 so if all parent council books the same night we could meet one of those
nights..Wednesday tentative date November 9 for school council at 6:30 pm. Nancy motioned to
use the school council engagement grant for the joe social meeting to cover childcare costs and
supply supper. .Dawn seconds all in favor... Parent council after school council meeting on Nov.
9th.
c. MIlk Program- Brenda stated when done in Leslieville it was quite difficult to maintain correct
amounts. Takes away eating time for the grade 6.. Would need an adult to help count correct
numbers per tray. Not sure it's feasible from the schools point of view. Recycling issues pose a
challenge as well. Cost point questionable whether its profitable.. Potentially offer milk as a drink

option for hot lunch? Allison says it's very difficult to deal with the company. The staff's feeling is
that it's not a great idea for the time being.
d. Mindfulness-Jackie and Cheryl are doing the courses for this. Being aware of what is around you
and how it affects you inside.. Giving children strategies to understand what is happening in their
bodies and how to deal with them. MIndful breathing is one of the biggest things to work on. More
body awareness. Lessons with classrooms and letters will be sent home with the children for the
parents to make them aware of what it is and why they do it. Falls under the health and wellness
part of the curriculum. If any questions parents can contact Jackie.

October 13, 2022 at 6:30pm
November 9, 2022 at 6:30pm
January 19, 2023 at 6:30pm
March 16, 2023 at 6:30pm
May 11, 2023 at 6:30pm
Adjournment: 7:26 pm

 

Annual General Meeting School Council September 14, 2022

Location: Meeting start time:  6:36 pm

Format of meetings

 

1.  Introductions:
2. Annual General Meeting School Council (On School Matters) 
3. Condor School Parent Advisory Committee Meeting (the Fundraising Society)

Condor School Council Annual General Meeting

 

Goals: School Council is a group whose purpose is to advise the principal and the school board on matters relating to the school.  It functions to work together with the school to enhance student learning. The School Council is based on premises of  mutual understanding, relationships, trust and clear communication. 

 

Guiding Principles:

1. Concise, timely meetings with clear agenda
2. Agenda items submitted to the School Council chair or principal at least 24 hours prior to meeting time.
3. Chairperson ensures every person wishing to speak is given the opportunity; one person speaking at a time. 
4. Motions must be formally recorded with who made a motion, seconder and record of vote results
5. Notes can be anecdotal summary of discussion unless motion is made
6. Operating Procedures -

1. Approval of Last meeting Minutes:  Leah approves and Liz seconds.
2. Principal’s Report - First day of school went really well. Open house went well with lots of members of the community attending. Final finishes to the school could take up to 6 months. 

 

1. Trustee’s Report- 
2. Teacher’s Report - Teachers excited to see the new school come together. Lots of hard work from staff to get the school unpacked and ready for the first day.
3. Old Business: 

• Wheelchair accessible swing - quotes were $4000-$8000 however were not approved in Canada. Current approx price will be $18,000.00 for an approved swing. Insurance personnel is aware of the hopes to get a swing.

 

1. New Business: 
1. Separation of meeting times school council/parent council 
2. $500 school council engagement grant - tabled to Octobers meeting. Bring ideas on how to get parents interested and engaged in council.
3. Prairie bus line update: kindergarten and grade 1 can not get off bus alone unless parent or older child is there. 
4. November 4 - school council division meeting. All parents are welcome to attend - must register through division or parent council chair. 
5. Painting seacan - community center was given the go ahead to work on rink development and diamonds. Waiting on samples for paint to paint the seacan. School division won't pay for paying for seacan. 

1. Current Executive
1. Co-Chairperson- Shelby Shortneck, Tessa Rancier 
2. Secretary- Penni Loughheed
3. Communications Officer - Leah Casey
4. Events/ Volunteer Officer - Allison Casey
5. All Other Members have voting rights on all motions.  

 

2022 New Executive

Chair person -  Leah nominated Shelby Shortneck, Melissa seconds, all in favour - motion passed

Vice Chair - Leah nominated Tessa Rancier, Melissa seconds, all in favour - motion passed

Secretary - Shelby nominated Ashley Perepelkin, Kayleigh seconds, all in favour- motion passed

Communications officer - Shelby nominates Leah Casey, Kayleigh seconds, all in favor - motion passed

Events / Volunteer officer -  Sam nominates Allison Casey, ashley seconds, all in favor - motion passed

Setting the Year's Meeting Schedule 

(Last year:  October , November,January,March, May 

 

October 13, 2022 at 6:30pm

November 17, 2022 at 6:30pm

January 19, 2023 at 6:30pm

March 16, 2023 at 6:30pm

May 11, 2023 at 6:30pm

Adjournment:  7:36 pm