Board Meeting Highlights for June 2019
For Immediate Release
June 26, 2019
GUELPH, Ontario – The June meeting of the Upper Grand District School Board was held on June 25, 2019. The following provides highlights from the meeting.
Mental Health Review 2018-19
UGDSB Mental Health and Addictions Lead Jenny Marino provided an overview of highlights from this year and progress made in the UGDSB Mental Health and Well-being Strategy.
Goals of the action plan include continuing to increase youth engagement to enhance awareness of youth mental health and addition needs, increasing mental health and well-being awareness for staff at the school and classroom level, continuing to provide a variety of social emotional training for schools, integrating evidence-based mental health and substance abuse program into the health curriculum, increasing school capacity to create suicide safer environments, continuing to share priorities with the community, and developing the 2019-2023 Mental Health and Well-being Strategy.
School Traffic Management Update
Staff presented information on the board’s work in School Traffic Management. Traffic on and around elementary and secondary school sites has increased in recent years due to more parents who choose to drop off and pick up their children instead of walking/wheeling to school or using provided bus transportation. This has led to congested parking lots and driveways and caused increased concern over student safety.
Since 2016 and through the work of the board’s School Traffic Management Coordinator, schools have been supported in their efforts to improve traffic flow and pedestrian safety. Significant efforts have been made, with a focus on improving site safety, improving traffic flow for all types of traffic (school bus, private vehicle, pedestrians, cyclists, etc.), and encouraging active travel.
At the June Board Meeting, information was provided on the methodology used to assess and prioritize sites, the multi-pronged strategy implemented, and the progress made to date to improve pedestrian safety and traffic flow.
Traffic management has focused on increasing site safety by improving traffic flow for all users of the site including pedestrians, buses, cyclists, and private vehicles. Several small changes and initiatives are combined to have a significant impact. The board’s multi-pronged approach focuses on: encouraging active travel to increase the number of students who walk/ride/scoot to school, assessing and improving existing site conditions to optimize traffic flow, and assessing and improving traffic flow on the surrounding streets.
The report outlines that since 2016 significant improvements have been made at a number of school sites. Work will continue to focus on high priority schools, development of Traffic Management Plans, and continued encouragement of active travel.
IB Survey Results and Feasibility Study Report
Staff presented a report on the Orangeville/Dufferin and Erin International Baccalaureate (IB) Survey Results and Feasibility Study, which looked at the feasibility of expanding the IB programme to the Orangeville, Dufferin or Erin area. The report examined survey results and other feasibility criteria such as enrolment levels, participation rates and financial implications of expanding IB.
Based on the information considered, the Board confirmed that it is not feasible to offer IB in Orangeville, Dufferin or Erin at this time. Staff were directed to consider including a review of IB feasibility in Orangeville/Dufferin or Erin in the work plan resulting from the comprehensive five-year review of the UGDSB’s Long Term Accommodation Plan in 2022-23.
Policy Updates
Trustees approved the following revised board policies: Policy 418 Employee Ethics, Policy 602 Animals in the Classroom (formerly called Animal Care), and Policy 605 Cooperative Education.
The following items were received for information: Procedures Manual 208-A Smoke and Vape-Free Environment and Protocol P.11 Violent Threat Risk Assessment Protocol.
Trustees approved a motion directing staff to prepare a Drug and Alcohol Overdose Protocol, and that staff include a recommendation on the implementation of Naloxone in schools in the Drug and Alcohol Overdose Protocol and report to the Board before December 2019.
To view all UGDSB policies and procedures, and to provide feedback on draft policies, visit www.ugdsb.ca/policy.
The next regular monthly meeting will be held on Tues. August 27, 2019, at the Guelph Board Office, 500 Victoria Road North. Everyone is welcome to attend. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.
About the Upper Grand District School Board
The Upper Grand District School Board serves approximately 34,000 students through 65 elementary schools and 11 secondary schools in the City of Guelph, County of Wellington and County of Dufferin. The UGDSB covers the ancestral and traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Six Nations of the Grand River, and Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territories. Student success is the goal of over 3,000 dedicated teaching and support staff who are aided by the contributions of caring volunteers and community partners.
Learn, Lead, Inspire…Together
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Media contact:
Heather Loney, Communications and Community Engagement Officer
Upper Grand District School Board
519-822-4420 ext.725
[email protected]
Megan Sicoli, Administrative Officer, Communications
Upper Grand District School Board
519-822-4420 ext.764
[email protected]
Categories: Media Releases • News Tags: International Baccalaureate • Mental Health