by Erica Braunovan With school districts operating on a fiscal year that runs from September 1 to August 31, the time of budget deliberations is now upon us for the 2016-17 school year. Currently, consultations are being held among board…
Category: OCDSB
OCDSB Report: Debating early French language instruction
by Erica Braunovan Trustee, Somerset/Kitchissippi OCDSB trustees met on February 2 to review and vote on proposed changes to early French language instruction. Proposed changes include evenly splitting junior and senior kindergarten instruction between English and French, and switching from…
Caring and sharing: OCDSB will welcome refugees
by Erica Braunovan OCDSB Trustee, Zone 10 One of the first lessons we teach our young children is that they should be nice to others and share. The Ottawa Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) and its community of educators have…
OCDSB Trustee report – It’s your voice to use: make sure you’re heard
by Erica Braunovan Trustee, Somerset-Kitchissippi Thank you to everyone who submitted feedback to the French language instruction consultation. We were overwhelmed with feedback from thousands of people, from both the public and staff. Given how important bilingualism is in Ottawa,…
OCDSB Trustee Report: You’ve made it to October!
by Erica Braunovan Trustee, Kitchissippi-Somerset Well, you’ve made it to October! I hope you and your children have settled nicely into the new school year by now. This month is a trying time for kids as they are faced with…
Glashan greening update: Transformation in our Centretown middle school
by Kathi Elborn, Glashan Green Team communications As the school year at Glashan drew to a close last June, a fence went up and backhoes and trucks rolled on site. After two years of dedicated work by countless volunteers and…
OCDSB Trustee report: “Mom, what’s a strike?” How to talk with your kids about labour disputes at school
by Erica Braunovan, trustee for Kitchissippi-Somerset Students were back at school on September 8, while contract negotiations continue. My ever curious children have been asking: “Mom, what’s a strike?” We know all too well that kids are sponges. Many of…
Cambridge Street Community Public School: What does community mean to Cambridge?
Staff at Cambridge often field questions about the “Community” in Cambridge Street Community Public School. “Community? I haven’t heard of a school with ‘Community’ in the name before.” For Cambridge, the word is an integral part, not only of our…
Cambridge Street Community School: Happy spring, happy Norooz (Persian New Year), happy Easter!
by Ruth Stewart-Verger With the warming weather, students of Cambridge are redirecting melting snow and water on the play yard! There is so much science to learn at recess! And we are having fun actively engaged in that learning. Math…
OCDSB Trustee report: The first 100 days as trustee
by Erica Braunovan OCDSB Trustee, Somerset-Kitchissippi My 100th day as Public School Trustee for Somerset/Kitchissippi is fast approaching, and what a head spinning 100 days it has been! Thank you to all those who helped on my campaign and supported…
Glashan School is already dreaming of spring
by Kathi Elborn “Every gardener knows that under the cloak of winter lies a miracle … a seed waiting to sprout, a bulb opening to the light, a bud straining to unfurl. And the anticipation nurtures our dream.” ~ Barbara…
Glashan greening update
by Kathi Elborn Go Gators! The Glashan Gator mascot is alive and well, now residing high up on the exterior north-side wall of this Centretown middle school. If you haven’t seen the first two of the four murals now displayed…
WITS and LEADS: What are they and how can they help stop bullying?
by Ruth Stewart-Verger, Kerrie Draper, Stacy Budel, and Mary Young Here at Cambridge St. Community P.S. we have adopted the WITS program. All students were introduced to the anti-bullying program at a whole school assembly in October. They have all…
Glashan schoolyard greening project
by Kathi Elborn November is an exciting month as Glashan Public School moves forward in its quest to develop more greenspace here in Centretown. As this issue of The Centretown BUZZ goes to press, murals are being installed on the…
OCDSB trustee report: Coming full circle
by Jennifer McKenzie One of the signs of an initiative’s success, for me, is when it comes full circle. It felt good, therefore, when, during the last few months of my tenure as trustee, the director told me that the…
Cambridge Street School is busy!
by Ruth Stewart-Verger We are reading! Students at Cambridge just wrapped up our 10th Kiwanis Read-A-Thon. It is wonderful to see the school halls decorated with descriptions of favourite parts of books that Cambridge students have read. Seven hundred books…
School board news
by Jennifer McKenzie OCDSB Trustee for Kitchissippi and Somerset Wards Capital plan decision-making process consultation Every year, the school board grapples with the difficult task of determining which capital projects (new schools in high growth areas, renovation or rebuilding of…