There are a couple of significant changes from last year's school calendar being proposed for the draft school calendar for the upcoming school year and the Board of Education of School District No. 83 (North Okanagan-Shuswap) is hoping parents and staff will provide their feedback!

The Board gave approval to the draft district calendar for the 2023-24 school year so that it can now be shared for public feedback. Assistant Superintendent Ryan Brennan presented the draft calendar, which he explained was created by the District Calendar Committee, which includes senior leadership team representatives, principals and vice principals, and North Okanagan Shuswap Teachers' Association (NOSTA) reps. He noted there are a couple of significant changes from the previous year's calendar including the re-introduction of a half day session, this time on Wednesday, September 6, as feedback from staff was that it was needed to organize classes. Also, noted Brennan, winter break will be aligned with neighbouring districts and will begin Friday, Dec. 22 (with the last day of school being the Thursday, Dec. 21). Parents are being asked to please complete the district calendar survey, which can be found by clicking here.

Brennan also added that the committee is also looking at trying to get the draft of 2024-25 calendar completed and brought to the board for approval later this Spring.

The Board gave three readings and approval to the 2022/23 Amended Annual Budget at its meeting on Tuesday evening at PVSS.

Although the district did receive additional funds due to enrolment being a little higher than projected, and some additional increases in funding for unique district and unique student funding there have also been additional costs (staffing changes, benefits, substitute costs and increased fuel, oil, and utilities for example).

Culler took the Board through a detailed presentation about the budget (please see amended budget slides) and noted that the district is now sitting with a budgeted accumulated surplus at the end of June 30, 2023 of $522,603, which is lower than he is comfortable with. "We are going to have to be thinking about this when we go into our next budget term." He said a good measure is to have between one and two per cent of your operating fund.

Culler thanked the SD83 Human Resources (HR) team and the finance team, particularly Director of Finance Jeremy Hunt, for all the work that went into getting the amended budget completed.

Superintendent Donna Kriger updated the Board on the work being done on the district's five year strategic plan. A key portion of the strategic plan, which is required of every school district in the province by the Ministry of Education, is the development of a Mission, Vision and Values. These are very important when it comes to governance. It is also important for budget planning as it helps districts align all of the available resources with the strategic priorities of the Board. She noted that the Ministry has priorities including early learning, truth and reconciliation, mental health and wellness, meaningful graduation and career development, literacy and numeracy. However, there may be other key areas, identified by the Board that are important locally and having a strategic plan will identify these.

Currently in the stages of collecting and collating feedback, in-person sessions are being held around the district and one online session is also going to be held for those who can't attend in person. Kriger is also attending "student voice" sessions in all secondary schools, the alternate schools, and in Indigenous support rooms and she said the conversations have been extremely interesting.

She showed a slide (seen below) with results from the survey from students, parents and educators. "The tools in the ThoughtExchange survey really allow us to distill the conversation far more than I could do. In my conversation with kids earlier today it was really interesting to hear their feedback of what the survey showed." She explains that on the slide shows a "heat map" with the darker blue being significant and as it lightens it is less significant.

"Kids are telling us that work ethic is really important to them. They want to know how to be responsible in terms of getting work done, on time, and be able to talk lots about how to work with others, growth mind set, resilience, community being important, and life skills." Kriger pointed out that in the life skills category students are connecting this to financial literacy, completing applications, and interpersonal skills.

Kriger also reported that recently there was an amazing announcement from the Ministry saying SD83 will be receiving an Integrated Child and Youth Team. The teams are part of the provincial A Pathway to Hope strategy for mental health and substance use care. The community-based teams deliver wraparound services and supports for children and youth. Kriger noted that even though the seven team members work for different government agencies (the Ministry, Interior Health and SD83), they will work as a hub of employees and one united team. She noted it also means SD83 will receive funding to hire a clinical counsellor for our district as well as a half-time child and youth peer support.

Kriger wrapped up the Superintendent's Report with some district celebrations including:

The Ministry of Education has recently released two resources, The Ministry's K-12 Anti-Racism Action Plan and the Teacher Resource Guide, explained Director of Instruction (Indigenous Education) Chelsea Prince.

Prince noted that "anti-racism" is a relatively new term that is used in education, and it means to be actively against racism. The Anti-Racism Action Plan is a long-term strategy in which we, as educators, learn to support students to become a generation of future leaders with the confidence and skills to identify and address all forms of racism. 

She said when the anti-racism plan was first released, she felt that it was wonderful that the Ministry had a plan, and that it was forward thinking and very exciting but a little lean on details. She explained two weeks ago the guide for teachers was released and filled in the details. She noted it has a similar structure to the supporting student health guides and connects anti-racism work in our schools and classrooms to both the core and curricular competencies in the learning continuum. There are also posters that schools can use and detailed ideas on how to embed anti-racism work into every subject area at every age level.

Director of Operations Travis Elwood updated the Board on the progress of the gym replacement project at Pleasant Valley Secondary School.

He commented they hope to go to tender on May 1st and then, once awarded are looking at a 14 month construction window. "I know it is slow for those who are enduring it here," said Elwood. "It is challenging for the school not to have a gym and we really appreciate their flexibility and the community's support."

Earlier in the day Elwood and Project Manager Ed Hildebrandt hosted a session at PVSS for anyone who wanted to come and give input on the draft designs.

Elwood also shared information with trustees about two pilot projects taking place in B.C. where seatbelts are being used on school buses. He commented the pilot projects will finish up in June and then a report of the findings will be shared.

One pilot project is at SD68 Nanaimo/Ladysmith and the other at SD78 Fraser Cascade. The projects are a partnership between Transport Canada and the Association of School Transportation Services. He noted some of the findings from the pilot projects (which have the driver and an aid to assist the driver) thus far include:

He added the cost analysis shows the cost of shoulder belts on new buses is approximately $7,000 to $10,000. For the buses that are able to be retrofitted (Western Bus newer than 2014) it is approximately $22,100 per bus. He noted 33 of the district's current 49 buses would be capable of being retrofitted. He added one other thing is liability considerations. He noted BC Legislation puts the responsibility of students wearing their seatbelts and having them properly adjusted on the driver of the bus for all passengers under the age of 16, which in SD83's case is 2,272 of the 2,798 riders.

2023-24 Budget Guiding Principles

The Board gave approval to the 2023-24 Budget Guiding Principles as presented.

Committee Chair Marianne VanBuskirk reported that at the recent Ed Direction Committee meeting Director of Instruction Reid Findlay and Career Education Coordinator George Richard reported on a kindergarten to grade 8 career exploration program. This program helps expose students in BC to different career options through customized and virtual activities. VanBuskirk said they watched a fascinating video about career gender stereotypes, which can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qv8VZVP5csA

Committee Chair Amanda Krebs reported the Finance and Facilities meeting was a busy one with the amended budget, quarterly financials, PVSS gym update and more. She noted the preliminary funding announcement for the upcoming annual preliminary budget is expected from the Ministry in mid-March.

Culler updated the Board on the district's financial position in a quarterly financial report. As per the Budget Monitoring and Reporting Guidelines proposed by the Financial Health Working Group for School Districts of BC, all school districts must provide the Board of Education (or committee of the board) with, at minimum, quarterly financial reports which indicate forecasted results compared with actual budget, and offer a discussion and analysis, as necessary, to fully communicate financial performance and key risks. Culler noted that when looking at the financials, trustees should be aware that even though we are half way through, it doesn't necessarily mean the budget should be at 50 per cent. "We have 12 month, 11 month and 10 month employees. I wanted to bring attention to that."

He also told trustees that the amount SD83 is charged for the school protection plan insurance premium is going to increase this year as the School Protection Plan re-valued the facilities and replacement costs have jumped up significantly.

VanBuskirk reported there was a partner group session on January 27. Under discussion was whether members felt that the committee had run its course. It was originally formed when the district had a single appointed trustee and was an effective way to meet with everyone at once. VanBuskirk noted some felt it had run its course, some were in favour of keeping it going but meeting perhaps three times a year. A few also spoke in favour of maintaining the current format. Trustees determined they would pause the committee until trustees held a committee of the whole or trustee working session when they would further discuss committees. VanBuskirk thanked all of those who have served on the Partner Group Liaison for their work over the past five years.

VanBuskirk compiled a written report to the Board about the All Boards Chair Meeting on Feb. 9 and the Ministry Partner Liaison Meeting on Feb. 10.

Lachmuth reported there was a First Nations Education Council (FNEC) meeting on Feb. 15 at Splatsin, where a lovely acknowledgement of VanBuskirk, who is no longer the trustee rep, took place. She added district staff updated the council, which will soon be known as the Indigenous Education Council (IEC), in areas such as professional development content, the Student & Family Affordability Fund, and the Knowledge Keepers program. VanBuskirk added it was an emotional meeting for her. "The work that is done at that table is extremely valuable to all students, staff and families."

VanBuskirk reported that there were a lot of fantastic activities for Unplug and Play Week. She spoke in particular of an event at Hillcrest, where the PAC brought in a break dancing instructor for a fun session. Each child taking part also got to take home a free book! She also reported that it was a privilege to learn from presenter Carolyn Roberts, who was in the area doing some work with FNEC and district staff.