Gledhill Parent Council Nov. 9 Meeting Notes

Thank you to everyone who attended the Gledhill Parent Council meeting last Tues. Nov. 9!

Please find a summary of the meeting and follow-up notes below.

Introductions and land acknowledgement – 23 people attended the meeting, including the Gledhill Principal and Vice-Principal, 4 Gledhill staff, and 1 guest from DA Morrison 

Guest from DA Morrison Parent Council – Andrew Egan 

• Andrew informed attendees that parents from DA Morrison Middle School would like to get a crossing guard for the corner of Lumsden Ave. and Gledhill Ave. as: traffic has increased on Lumsden Ave., the available time to cross at the light is short, and kids will often run to get across the light before it changes which can create a dangerous situation. 
• Unfortunately, DA Morrison does not meet the criteria for requesting a crossing guard as the priority is for requests made from grades K-5 schools. 
• Gledhill would quality to apply; therefore, it is being asked that Gledhill apply with support and input from DA Morrison. 
• It was also suggested that the intersection may also not currently meet accessibility (AODA) standards for Ontario which could also be considered. 
• Action – Cathy McAleese (Gledhill Principal) will connect with Marc Mullen (DA Morrison Principal) to discuss further. 

Gledhill Principal and Vice-Principal Updates

• Welcome to the new Gledhill office admin staff member – Maxwell Harris!
• There was a coyote spotted on school property last week (when kids weren’t around) and it left on its own; the City of Toronto was informed; kids were informed not to approach or chase any coyotes if they see them; please also reiterate this message to your kids; the school staff will continue to watch for this in future. 
• It was a great Halloween at Gledhill, however, please limit the candy that kids bring to school going forward and also watch that any candy brought to school is nut-free. 
• The free muffin snack program at the school is going well. 
• Progress reports are being sent home the week of Nov. 15 and teachers have and will be in touch to schedule interviews. 
• Reminder of the PA Day on Fri. Nov. 19.
• Remembrance Day (Nov. 11) announcements were held over the school PA system; photos from the day will be shared in the next school newsletter. 
• November is Indigenous Education Month as noted in the recent Gledhill Newsletter. 
• Grades 1/2 teacher Chantal Leclerc explained how she communicates the land acknowledgement to her students in a way they can understand. 
• There are two upcoming spirit days:
  • Fri. Nov. 26 is creative hat day
  • Fri. Dec. 17 is pajama day
  • Students are asked to not bring any stuffed animals to school for these days
• The school is collecting non-perishable food items to donate; children are to bring one item each by Fri. Nov. 26.

TDSB Book Study – The TDSB is having a book study on the book “Reading Sweetgrass”; 3 copies of the book will be available to circulate to interested parents; please email thegledhillguardian@gmail.com if you would like to borrow a copy. 

The Healthy Kids Committee – Erin provided an idea about collecting and making/sharing a list of healthy lunch and snack ideas for parents to pack for their kids; this was supported by meeting attendees; emails with ideas can also be sent to thegledhillguardian@gmail.com.

School Improvement Committee

• Erin let the group know that the outside of the school will be decorated soon for the holidays; it was suggested that the beginning of December was good timing for this. 
• An indoor giving tree is also being donated by a Gledhill parent and will be displayed by the school office at the beginning of December.

December Council Meeting Speaker – Marisa shared that a guest speaker, Michelle Munroe, will be presenting at the Dec. 9 Parent Council meeting on the topic “Talking Race”; more information will be circulated about this. 

Pizza lunches – a question was asked whether pizza lunches would be allowed this year; it was confirmed that pizza lunches are not currently permitted by the TDSB due to COVID restrictions.

Parent Engagement Discussion

• Michael led a discussion on ways the Gledhill Parent Council can foster parent engagement this school year, especially considering current COVID restrictions. 
• The Council has sought input from parents and guardians in past years using online surveys, however, specific feedback on ways to engage and build community has not been collected (and is perhaps a good idea).
• It was suggested that the Parent Council review current meeting times to ensure they are good for parents; it was also suggested that blog posts could highlight pictures of kid-related items from the school (e.g., kids’ art) as these are things parents like to see; additional parent engagement ideas or input can be sent to thegledhillguardian@gmail.com.
• It was noted that the Council may still need a lead person for the Communications role (for activities like posting on the blog) in case anyone is interested. 

The next Parent Council meeting is scheduled for Thurs. Dec. 9, 6:30pm with the “Talking Race” guest speaker. 

Have a great week!