Hyland Heights Elementary School

•               • Full Day Kindergarten Class Size Average for the Board is 26 students

•               • 90% of Full Day Kindergarten classes with 29 or fewer students

•               • 10% of Full Day Kindergarten classes with up to 32 students, under certain circumstances

•               • 90% of the Board’s primary classes with 20 or fewer students

•               • 10% of the Board’s primary classes up to a maximum of 23 students

•               • Grade 3/4 classes have a cap of 23 students

•               • Junior/Intermediate Class Size Average for the Board is 24.5 students

Each student has the right to learn in a safe, inclusive and accepting school climate.  As part of this mandate, the UGDSB will strive to eliminate all forms of bullying through prevention and intervention strategies, which foster positive learning environments, support academic achievement, and help students reach their full potential.

Bullying is defined by the Education Act as ‘aggressive and typically repeated behaviour by a pupil where:

A.            The behaviour is intended by the pupil to have the effect of, or the pupil ought to know that the behavour would be likely to have the effect of,

a.             Causing harm, fear or distress to another individual, including physical, psychological, social or academic harm, harm to the individual’s reputation or harm to the individual’s property, or

b.             The behaviour occurs in a a context where there is a real or perceived power imbalance between the pupil and the individual based on factors such as size, strength, age, intelligence, peer group power, economic status, social status, religion, ethnic orgin, sexual orientation, family circumstnces, gender, gender identity, gender expression, race, disability or the receipt of special education.

Bullying includes the use of physical, verbal, electronic, written and other means.

We strongly recommend contacting your child’s teacher or school administrator to share any incidents of bullying.

Alternatively, we have an online reporting tool that we ask students or families to complete anonymously online.  We ask that you share as much details as possible for us to investigate.

Online Reporting Tool: https://webapps.ugdsb.on.ca/reportbullying/ 

It is the policy of the Upper Grand District School Board to support and maintain a positive school climate for all students.  A positive school climate is a safe, accepting and inclusive learning and teaching environment, which allows every student to reach their full potential.

The UGDSB will work with its community partners in a whole-school approach to promote positive student behaviours, focusing on early and ongoing interventions and supports, and progressive discipline practices. Principles of equity, inclusion and mutual respect will be embedded in the learning environment and inform curriculum, school climate, teaching practices, policies and procedures.

All consequences assigned as a result of inappropriate or unacceptable behaviour will include the opportunity for students to continue their education, and access learning opportunities that will reinforce positive behaviours. The goal of any response will be to correct a student’s behaviour, rather than punish the student.

As an educational community we have a responsibility to identify and describe racism and oppression and then work to dismantle it. The Upper Grand District School Board is committed to disrupting systemic racism and oppression in all of its forms. We will implement ongoing mandatory anti-racism and anti-oppression training for all staff, review our protocols and policies, including our hiring practices, and be fully transparent and accountable to all Upper Grand students, staff, families, and stakeholders in an ongoing manner.

In response to racialized global events, the UGDSB established a task force in June 2020 to review police presence in UGDSB schools.  The task force received feedback through interviews, townhalls and surveys on police presence in our schools.

View the final report here: https://www.ugdsb.ca/schools/safe-equitable-and-inclusive-schools/provide-your-input-police-presence-in-ugdsb-schools/

At the April 2021 Board Meeting, the UGDSB Board of Trustees approved the following 7 recommendations:

1.    The UGDSB and police services continue to deliver all foot safety patrol training (including street, driveway, and parking lot patrols) and bus patrol training.

2.    As per the Violence Threat Risk Assessment (VTRA) Community Protocol, the presence of police at all UGDSB schools continue when a Violent Threat Risk Assessment (VTRA) is activated.

3.    All police presentations be vetted using the Presentations in Schools Guidelines (updated in 2019) developed by the Student Support and Program Services department of the UGDSB.

4.    All students and parents be notified in advance of all police presentations at school.

5.    Staff collect feedback from students and staff on all police classroom/school presentations.

6.    The School Resource Officer program in the UGDSB be discontinued.  Only applicable to Guelph schools as they were the only Secondary Schools with School Resource Officers.  

7.    Administrators collect data on all incidents that police respond to at UGDSB schools.