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What is a School Council?
PURPOSE OF SCHOOL COUNCILS
Under the Education Act Regulation 612 , school boards in Ontario are required to establish a School Council for each school within the board. The purpose of the School Council is “through the active participation of parents, to improve pupil achievement and to enhance the accountability of the education system to parents.
THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOL COUNCIL IS TO:
- Advise the principal and, where appropriate, the school board.
- Place students’ interest first
- Support school success planning goals
- Encourage parent and community involvement
- Promote positive attitudes towards public education
Meetings:
Meetings are typically held on the first Tuesday evening each month. At the first meeting of this year, future meeting dates will be set. Also, meetings this year will be held virtually by MS Teams, the same platform students use during their remote learning classes.
Next Meeting – Wednesday, November 24th, 6:00 pm
Please email [email protected] for more information.
Constitution and Elections:
School councils are governed by Ontario Regulation 612 which sets out the purpose, membership and election requirements for school councils. Under section 2(1),
COMPOSITION/MEMBERSHIP
Every school must have a School Council and members include:
- Parents (must comprise the majority of the membership)
- Principal
- Teacher from the school
- Student (in high schools with some provisions for student membership in elementary schools)
- Non-teaching staff member
- Community representative(s) appointed by the council
- Home and School Association representative from the school (if a Home and School Association is a partner at the school.)
ROLES
School Councils have voting members:
- Chair or Co-Chairs (must be parent members)
- Other possible roles (at the discretion of the Council)
- Members (see above). Note: Once voting membership is established, School Council must have quorum to vote. Quorum is 50% of the voting membership plus one.
Updated on Wednesday, November 17, 2021.