SAC's subcommittee against education cuts has to share the following information: Dear Parents/Guardians/Caregivers, As you may already be aware, the TDSB’s budget process for 2024-25 is currently underway. During a Special Meeting on April 4, 2024, Trustees approved a motion that outlined several actions to take place over the next few weeks related to the TDSB budget. Last week, the Chair sent a letter to the Minister of Education to highlight the budgetary challenges we continue to face as a Board and to ask that the Ministry of Education address these funding concerns. Read the full letter here. Trustees have also created a brief survey to gather feedback from communities as they consider next steps with regard to the budget. Please find a link below and complete as many of the 7 questions as possible. Thank you in advance for your participation. The budget survey will remain open until Friday, May 3, 2024 at 12 noon. Budget Survey (Click here to complete the survey) Additionally, Trustees will hold four Budget Town Hall meetings to give all members of the TDSB community the opportunity to learn more about the budget, ask questions and provide feedback. Downtown Budget Hall (In-Person)
Thank you in advance for your feedback as Trustees look at how to best support Toronto students and communities through the 2024-25 budget process. For more information, please visit www.tdsb.on.ca/budget. Sincerely, Rachel Chernos Lin Chair, Toronto District School Board Spring Fling is taking place on Friday, May 31st at the school. Get excited! If you're not familiar, Spring Fling (formerly known as Spring Into Summer, formerly known as Spring Fling—we've had some name changes!) is a big, fun celebration of our school community. The primary goal of the event is to bring students, staff, parents and caregivers together for a great afternoon and evening. Our secondary goal is to raise money to support school enrichment and other activities that benefit our students. We have so much planned for this year's event, including:
Spring Fling is a big undertaking, and the more hands on deck, the smoother it will go. Can you help? There are a lot of ways to get involved. You can:
We're partnering with Mad Science to offer a Spring after-school enrichment programs, starting on April 17th. This is a paid, optional program that take place in the school. Program: Fantastic Forces In this program, kids explore a variety of introductory topics in engineering, physics, and chemistry as they learn how science can be applied in everyday life. They learn about concepts like bridge construction, the forces of flight, how air pressure can be used to move things, and more! Weekly Topics: Current Events, Fundamental Forces, Che-mystery, Science of Magic, Fantastic Fliers, Super Structures, Under Pressure, and Wacky Water
We have an update on the Campaign Against Education Cuts from the Toronto Schools Caregiver Coalition: Hello everyone, Last Tuesday, March 5th, 2024, the Toronto Schools Caregiver Coalition had an organizing meeting with parents, caregivers, and guardians. Trustee de Dovitiis (Ward 4), Saman from Progress Toronto, and Jennifer Huang from Labour Council, Toronto and York Region also attended the meeting. We are officially in the TDSB budgeting season. If you agree that our schools need more funding, please take action. We need all hands to get what our children deserve. Keep in mind that per pupil funding is down by $1,200 since 2018. For a school of 300 students that's $360,000. Preliminary school staffing allocations will be released on March 18th. In the meantime, TDSB staff is projecting a $200,000,000 deficit. Cuts to VP positions and SK/JK (based on declining enrollment) have already been proposed and accepted by the Board. Adding another $200,000,000 on top of that means that dramatic cuts will be put on the table at the budget committee meeting on March 19th. The full Board votes on the budget on April 2nd. The coalition's proposal is as follows:
Don't be scared of a provincial takeover. This course of action does not risk provincial takeover, nor does it necessarily advocate for risking provincial takeover in the future (that will warrant another debate down the road). The Trustees' obligation to the province is to pass a balanced budget by June 30th. The Trustees are free to amend in June any budget that passes in April by regular vote. What we have in this brief moment, just this month, is the opportunity to empower our Trustees to make a statement on April 2nd—this could be a potentially game-changing statement. The reality, which we all have experienced, is that there is not enough funding for education from the province. The reductions that have already been imposed over the last 6 years have had huge effects. So many of our kids are academically behind, and our schools lack staff and resources to help them catch up. Our special ed kids are being deprived of their right to education, and the same is true for ESL kids who get abandoned in a corner with an iPad running Google Translate. There are not enough caretakers to keep our schools clean and safe. There are not enough lunchroom supervisors, social workers, or supply teachers. Children and youth are experiencing poor mental health, bullying, and racism. The lack of books and educational materials, the sad state of our libraries, dilapidated buildings and classrooms are all part of the poor studying conditions that over the years have become normalized. So many students are being improperly served, and still the cuts keep coming. To keep their jobs, the Trustees must accommodate the funding calculation that the district receives from the province. That means that they half-heartedly point blame at the province, but otherwise have to pretend that everything is fine. Many of the Trustees have grown accustomed to looking us in the eye and pretending that it's possible to make $200,000,000 in cuts and still deliver the same quality of education. We all know it's not possible. If we, the public, are going to have any hope in making a successful demand of the province for more funding, we need our Trustees, the education advocates we elected, to act on behalf of our kids ‘well-being. We need them to publicly make a statement that the funding from the province is not enough. This budget could be that statement. If we can get the Trustees to pass an "unbalanced budget" on April 2nd, then we can turn to our Members of Provincial Parliament with more than our opinions and our lived experiences. We would have a public document that demonstrates in black in white precisely how much is needed. It would give us a concrete number that we can demand. It would give us just the tiniest bit of wiggle room that could break the double bind that we find ourselves in, between the Trustees and the provincial government, that effectively leaves no clear decision-making party to hold to account. Here is our action timeline (summarized in this shareable link: https://bit.ly/ON-budget-action and the attached flyer) Now through end of March Break
On March 18th
March 21st @ 7PM - "How to Make a Delegation"
March 26th @ 4:30PM - Public Delegation Meeting - TDSB Finance & Budget Committee
April 2nd
April, May, & June
Thank you! The Toronto School Caregiver Coalition torontosccoalition@gmail.com
Hello Dovercourt Community,
I’m writing with an update on the TDSB budget town hall meetings that were held on February 20th and 21st. Unfortunately, the meetings were not that different from the ones held in previous years. They were not done in the spirit of consultation but rather to share information. The presentations were fast-paced and difficult to follow. Here is a link to the slides that were presented: https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Portals/0/aboutus/Business%20Services/2024-25%20Budget%20Town%20Hall%20Slides.pdf The most important piece of information that was shared is that more cuts are coming (on top of all the cuts from previous years). The Toronto School Caregiver Coalition (led by Katrina Matheson) is preparing a letter to be sent to the Trustees on Monday March 4th. On that day, a preliminary 2024/25 budget will be proposed. Cuts will be recommended because the staff don’t have the authority to present an ‘unbalanced’ budget (unlike Trustees). We need your support in opposing these cuts. Please sign the caregiver coalition’s letter by Sunday March 3rd as it will be sent to the Trustees on Monday, March 4th. Here is the link to the letter: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1a5iiDhksDQ_AXyZe75YlJ9Ol8s2aAX6J2Z_aBz7Tw6E/edit?usp=sharing. We are also looking for parents/caregivers/guardians to attend the March 26 meeting as delegates. If you are interested, please get in touch with me ale.gojime.21@gmail.com It is crucial that we continue mobilizing against these cuts and that parents/caregivers/guardians create a common front with unions and progressive Trustees. Education workers, the Elementary Teachers of Toronto, the Labour Council and the OSSTF/FEESO have started their own campaigns against education cuts https://www.fundourschools.ca Jana Alejandra Gonzalez Jimenez On behalf of the subcommittee Against Education Cuts Bust out your dancing shoes: Our annual Dovercourt Dance-a-Thon fundraiser is coming up! The Dance-a-Thon is a fabulous way for our kids to shake it in the gym while raising funds for our school. Every class will take a turn busting moves to playlists by Dovercourt’s Student Council. This is a free activity—there is no cost to participate. That said, students are welcome to get donations to support our school from friends, family members, and neighbours—via School Cash Online, cash, or cheque. The money we raise goes to efforts that make our school more equitable and enjoyable for all students, from enrichment activities (including field trips) to community-building events (including our big Spring Fling celebration). Donations over $25 will receive a tax receipt. We’re raising money to put kids first! How to donate:
Thank you for supporting Dovercourt Public School students. Your donation will help the terrific kids at our school by supporting enrichment activities, school events, and more.
We use School Cash Online, the Toronto District School Board’s platform for processing online donations. All funds submitted through School Cash Online go directly to our school. Below are some instructions to help you navigate the site. Step 1: Visit Dovercourt's School Cash Online donation page You can find the link here. It looks like this: An update on our SAC Movie Night taking place February 15: Unfortunately, our Wish has been denied! The Disney movie Wish has been unexpectedly removed from our school's streaming licence. But don't fear! The Trolls are coming to save the day! We'll be screening Trolls Band Together instead. Details:
See you on the 15th for a fun night of food and film!
A message from the SAC Subcommittee Against School Cuts: The TDSB will hold virtual budget town halls to discuss budgeting priorities on February 20th and February 21st. If you are able to, please attend. As you know, our students, teachers, staff, Principal and VP are experiencing the ongoing education cuts. If your child is experiencing the lack of a Special Needs Assistant, Educational Assistants, Lunch Assistants, as well as issues related to large classes and overcrowded classrooms, please let the TDSB know at these meetings. The TDSB needs to hear from Dovercourt parents/guardians/caregivers about what our children need. The TDSB trustees have voted to accelerate the budgeting process this year. This means that they will be creating an operating budget BEFORE the province provides its provincial funding calculations. This should put the TDSB in a better negotiating position because it creates a specific ask. It also enables parents/guardians/caregivers to make demands of our elected officials when there is a specific ask. Last year, budget town halls happened in May - after the funding calculation was made, when the budget was more or less fixed because funding was so tight. This year, because of the accelerated timing, your contributions at these meetings will actually mean something. This 2024/2025 budget is meant to be centered around student needs: special ed, racial and socio-economic equity, ESL, fully staffed offices and classrooms, transportation, educational materials, libraries, facilities, repairs, etc. This is a chance to advocate for what our school has lost or missed over years of cuts. Virtual Budget Town Halls Public consultations are an important part of the budget process, and we want to hear from you! Please join us for a Virtual Budget Town Hall to share your ideas and feedback:
For reference, here is a link to the website with meeting schedules: Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee (FBEC) Meetings 2024 If you have questions, please email Alejandra (Jana) Gonzalez Jimenez at ale.gojime.21@gmail.com. Dovercourt SAC is hosting a movie night at the school on February 15th—the same night as parent/teacher interviews! Join us for pizza, popcorn, a showing of Disney's Wish, and lots of fun. We'll be serving up fresh popcorn for free, and selling slices of pizza on a cost-recovery basis. (Please bring cash or your debit card to pay for pizza. Note that we cannot accept credit cards.) We'll also be selling an array of Dovercourt Dragons Spirit Wear t-shirts for $20 each—including some new pink options, for Pink Shirt Day on February 28th. First come, first served! Here are the key details:
Volunteers needed! If you'd like to help set up, serve food, or clean up (especially the latter), please email us at dovercourtcouncil@gmail.com. Join us as we beat the February blahs with a bit of movie magic!
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