School Council Constitution | York Region District School Board

Article 1: Name and Address

The organization will be known as the Oscar Peterson School Council.

The members of the School Council shall be responsible for maintaining the constitution.

Oscar Peterson Public School

850 Hoover Park Drive

Stouffville, ON L4A 0E7

Article 2: Mission Statement

Our School Council believes that collaborative partnerships among the school, the family and the community are essential to improving student learning and increasing a shared sense of accountability for public education.

Article 3: Purposes and Objectives

Foster and encourage effective parental involvement in the education of their children.
Provide a means for regular communication and dialogue between all partners in education.
Participate in the school improvement planning process
Provide and encourage meaningful consultation and involvement of all members of the school community in support of student learning.
Collaborate with the Principal, undertake fundraising and decisions about the management of such school-generated funds in accordance with the School Fundraising and Administration of School Generated Funds and other relevant Board policies and procedures. (referenced from policy 262 and 676)
Provide input into decisions made by the school administration, the Board and the Ministry.
Encourage effective parental involvement by focusing on the following areas: parenting skills, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making, collaborating with the community and recognizing diversity within the community.
Help to support the services for school, family and community partnerships related to social, physical and mental health, recreational and nutrition programs that assist in the education of children
Facilitate the building of a viable school community which works together in the best interests of our students and their education, using the school plan as its guideline

Article 4: Procedures and Operating Guidelines

The operational procedures of this Council are outline in the YRDSB Procedure #262. All recommendations and activities of the Council shall comply with all the Ministry of Education Acts, York Region District School Board Policies and Procedures, and Staff Collective Agreements.

Article 5: Membership

There shall be no more than one member on the School Council from any one household. Any individual must declare employment by the board when declaring interest in joining Council.

5.1: Number of Parent Voting Members

The number of parents acting as voting members on the School Council will be a maximum of 20 which includes all named executive members and members-at-large.

Parents who are employees of the Board but do not work at OPPS may be voting members but cannot hold the executive positions of Chair/Co-chair, Treasurer or Secretary.

Parents of students at the school who are also employed by the Board and work at OPPS can be voting members if a written exemption is obtained from the Board through the Principal. The intent is to include parent/staff to participate in School Council to share their unique perspective and experiences. They shall not hold the executive positions of Chair/Co-chair, Treasurer or Secretary. They shall not vote on motions or requests for funds that they are involved in as it would represent a conflict of interest. The number of members that this clause can apply to is a maximum 2.

5.2: Number of Community Representatives

The number of community representatives will be 1 and will not hold a vote in the decision-making process. They cannot be employed by the school but can be employed at another location by the Board.

5.3: Student Representatives

One student representative can be appointed by the Principal. The student representative may represent the interests of the school but do not count toward the 20 voting members and do not have the right to vote on motions or monetary requests.

5.4: Teacher/Non-Teaching Staff Member Representative

Other members such as (1) teacher representative and (1) non-teaching staff member representative may represent the interests of the school and have one vote each.

5.5: Non-Voting members

Non-voting members are those attendees who were not formally voted/acclaimed onto the Council.

5.6: Principal of the school

Does not have a vote in decision making process.

Article 6: Elections

6.1: Acclamations

Parent elections shall be by acclamation when the number of candidates is equal to or less than the number of parent voting member positions on the Council.

6.2: Election Procedures for Parent Members

Each parent/guardian seeking election must be nominated or self-nominated in writing, must have a child registered at the school, and must declare if he or she is employed by the Board
Each parent/guardian of a student enrolled in the school shall be entitled to one vote at the School Council meeting for each vacant parent/guardian membership position on the Council
The School Council shall strike an election committee (max of 2) in June to help plan the election process, the gathering of nominations, and the running of the election. The election shall be held at the first School Council meeting in September. The date shall be set for the election at the final meeting in June. No one standing for election, or the spouse of anyone standing for election, shall be a member of the election committee
The principal together with the election committee shall:
1. provide nomination forms in school welcome package
2. ensure that the school community is notified of election procedure and election date(s), location and time, at least 1 week in advance of the election
3. request a profile from all candidates and make these available to the electorate
4. conduct the election by ballot
5. count the ballots
6. keep all results and related information confidential
7. only release the names of successful candidates. A list of candidates and the vote results will be kept in the office for use in the event of vacancy on the Council
8. The results shall be shared with Council before the end for the first School Council meeting and with the school community in the first home communication from the school

6.3: Terms of Office

The term of office for each elected member is one school year. Elected and appointed members may seek additional terms of office. There will be an active attempt each year to recruit new members the Executive positions on the Leadership Team

6.4: Vacancies in Membership

A vacancy in the membership on the School Council does not prevent the Council from exercising its authority
If parent member positions remain vacant on Council, after the election, the
Council may appoint parent members
Positions that become vacant due to resignation or removal shall be filled as soon as possible by:
- Offering the person with the next largest number of votes who was not elected, the opportunity to accept the position
- Where there are not enough candidates to fill the vacancies, notice will be sent to all parents informing them of the vacancies and application by interested volunteers sought
- If there are more applications than positions, an election will be called
- When no more candidates are available, council may appoint parent members

Vacancies will only be filled until June of the current year, at which time the vacant positions will be filled through the September elections process

6.5: Resignations

Anyone who is a Council member, except the principal, may resign their position by writing a letter of resignation to the Chair
If someone resigns, the position vacated will be filled according to Article 6.4 Vacancies In Membership

6.6: Removal

The Council may choose to remove from Council any member who misses 2 consecutive meetings or 3 total meetings during the school year and shall undertake to replace that person according to Article 6.4: Vacancies in Member

Article 7: Executive and Elected Members

7.1: Chair / Co-Chair

At the first meeting, the attending members will elect one Chair or two Co-chairs.

7.2: Other Executive Officers

At the first meeting of the school year, the Council will elect or appoint the following officers:

A vice-chair (if a single chair is elected)
Secretary
Treasurer

Employees of the YRDSB are not permitted to hold the above positions in accordance with Board Policy 262.00

Standing Subcommittee Chairs:

The following roles shall work with the Executive members to form the Leadership Team and can be YRDSB employees:

Events coordinator
Public Relations coordinator
Pizza/Sub – Lunch Fundraising coordinator(s) – may chose to participate as Leadership Team members

Other Voting Members (Non Leadership team)

Members at large (not to exceed 20 voting members total)

7.3: Vacancies in Office

Officer vacancies will be filled as soon as possible according to Article 6.4 Vacancies in membership

7.4: Responsibilities of the Council

The roles and responsibilities of the Executive and the Elected members are attached in Appendix 1

Article 8: Sub-committees

8.1: Establishment

At the first meeting of the school year, or any time throughout the school year, subcommittees may be formed to:

Conduct more detailed or in-depth work than is possible during Council meetings,
Make recommendations to the Council,
Keep the Council informed of issues and developments in its specific area.

Suggested Standing Subcommittees:

Public Relations
Special Events (movie nights/Fun Fair)
Fundraising (pizza/sub etc)

Possible sub-committees:

Library

Special Lunches

Fund Raising / Special Events

Health and Safety

Public Relations

Playground

Other sub-committees will be formed as the need arises

Any/all committees raising funds for the school shall report to the Fundraising coordinator. Monies being spent to support fundraising efforts (supplies for Fun Fair etc) require prior approval by the Council by vote at the discretion of the Treasurer.

Article 9: Meetings

9.1: Timetable of meetings

At the first meeting of the new school year, a timetable will be created which states the meeting dates agreed to for the school year.
A copy of these dates and times will be included in communication(s) to the families of the school
It is recognized that the timetable my change at any time
A copy of the list of dates and times of meeting will be sent to the local trustee
At the final meeting of the school year, an allocation of funds may be made by School Council for the following school year. This will be voted on during the final Council meeting of the next school year.

9.2: Quorum

A meeting will have quorum if the majority of the Council members are present, i.e. 50% of voting members plus one. A meeting of Council can be held if there is no quorum but all voting will be deferred.

9.3: Motions

An individual must be recognized by the Chair before obtaining the floor to make a motion
Once an individual has the floor, he or she may make a formal proposal or motion
Before the motion can be voted on, another individual must second the motion.
If members of the group wish to discuss the motion, the Chair opens debate
Once all discussion has concluded, the Chair conducts a vote by asking for those in favour and those opposed.

9.4: The Floor

All attendees will have the right to the floor to voice their opinions and concerns so long as the subject is in line with the purpose and objectives of the Council. Other attendees will listen with full attention and respect to the speaker. Opinion and consensus shall be of a meaningful nature and free of bias.

The Chair may respectfully limit the time of any person or subject should he/she feel that too much time has been spent on the subject or that the speaker is no longer providing new and useful information to the discussion. The Chair may also limit the time, or ask a member to leave, if a discussion/speaker becomes antagonistic or malicious.

9.5: Decision Making

The preferred method to resolve issues on Council is by consensus. Consensus is a collective opinion or general agreement by ALL the Council members. Types of decisions that may be required include:

Recommendations for the allocation of School Council raised funds for school use
Administrative requests (i.e. Principal Profile)
Constitutional changes – see section 12.0
Community or traffic issues
Subcommittee recommendations

In the case where a decision cannot be reached through consensus, the Chair may decide on one of the following:

To have a vote by way of a show of hands or a silent vote by those present in which a 51% majority shall carry the vote
To defer the issue to the next meeting
To defer the issue to a special meeting
To defer the issue to a sub-committee

If a decision cannot be voted upon due to lack of quorum during a meeting or due to an urgency of time to allocate funds between meeting, voting can take place via:

Electronic vote– with every effort made to explain the issue to be voted on and to maintain anonymity of responses.

*9.6: Conflict of Interest

If individual Council members perceive themselves to be in conflict of interest, they are honour bound to declare their conflict at the earliest possible opportunity Council members cannot receive any remuneration for their work as a member of Council

*9.7: Conflict Resolution

The Council will undertake to resolve all internal conflicts within it’s mandate in a timely manner. The Council will abide by the conflict resolution policy issued the Board.

Article 10: Financial Records

10.1: Disbursement and Allocation of Money

The Council will work with the Principal to align general fundraising goals (i.e. technology, athletics, music etc.) for the school year by the October meeting. Priority should be given to requests with fundraising goals and student learning/achievement.

A best effort attempt must be made to collect all money by the end of the school year. Funds should be dispersed or allocated to a specific purpose by the end of the year. Council should aim at having a carryover not to exceed $1000 (to cover the costs of the yearly commitments) unless unusual circumstances exist which require the accumulation of a specified amount for an approved project or unless otherwise agreed to by Council.

An annual report will be submitted, including a summary of all monies raised by the subcommittees and disbursed by Council.

The Treasurer of the School Council shall aid the school administration in keeping full and accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursement of the School Council in proper books of accounts. The Treasurer shall provide, at regular meetings of the School Council or whenever required, an account of all transactions of the School Council and its financial position.

10.2: Annual Audit

Each year, be prepared for an audit of the School Council books performed by an accountant.

Article 11: Agenda & Minutes

11.1: Agendas

Items for the agenda must be submitted to the Chair at least one week before the Council’s next meeting.

The Chair will set the agenda with the Principal prior to the meeting. The agenda will be distributed to the voting members by the end of the school day prior to the meeting and should include but not be limited to the following:

Introduction / Welcoming of new members
Treasurer’s report
Principal’s report
Teachers’ report
Students’ report
New Business
Motion to adjourn

11.2: Minutes

Minutes shall be sent electronically to voting members and posted to the School website prior to the next meeting of the Council. The minutes shall include motions, decisions and actions to be taken.

Article 12: Constitutional Amendments

The School Council will review the Constitution at a minimum every two years or as the need arises. A sub-committee can perform the review and bring proposed amendments to the School Council for voting.

Amendments to the Constitution must be present to the Council at a regularly scheduled meeting. Constitutional amendments need a 2/3 majority to be passed.

Footnote: All items in bold are mandated and cannot be changed. Items that appear with a * are bylaws which MUST be included (although you may choose to change the wording) as per the Ministry direction

Appendix 1

Roles and Responsibilities

Conditions of Responsibility for all Council and Sub-committee members

A member of the Council or any sub-committee member shall:

Disclose a conflict of interest
Consistently behave in an orderly manner
comply with the Council’s Constitution

Council Members

Council members shall:

Focus on student learning and school improvement
Maintain a school-wide perspective on issues
Examine all aspects of an issue before arriving at a decision
Represent and communicate the views of the parents and/or community and/or school in a non-political and non-partisan manner
Provide informed advice to the principal
Participate in Council meetings
Participate in information and training programs
Act as a link between the Council and the community
Encourage the participation of students, parents/guardians and other community members
Attend and assist at School Council events
Familiarize themselves with the School Plan as presented by the Principal

Principal

In addition to the roles and responsibilities of a council member as stated above, the Principal shall:

Facilitate and promote the operations and activities of the Council
Act as a link between the Council and the school
Assist the Chair to prepare and setup the agenda
Supports and promotes the Council’s activities
Seek input from the Council on matters related to its mandate
Act as a resource on laws, regulations, Ministry of Education and Training, Board policies and collective agreements
Obtain and provide information required by the Council to enable it to make informed decisions
Communicate with the Chairperson/Co-Chairs and other Council members as required
Ensure that copies of the minutes of the Council’s meetings are kept at the school
Assist the Council in communicating with the community, other schools with York Region and the Board
Communicate the School Plan to the School Council

Chairperson (or Co-Chairs)

The Chairperson(s) or designate shall:

Set the dates for Council meetings in agreement with the Principal
Chair Council meetings
Prepare an agenda for meetings in consultation with other Council members and the Principal
Ensure that the minutes of the meetings are recorded and maintained
Co-ordinate the activities of the Council and committees of the Council
Communicate with the Principal
Sign any contracts, minutes of meetings, School Council Constitution and other documents which the council has authorized.
Liase with the Trustee and Board as required
Represent School Council at school events as requested by the Principal, e.g. Curriculum Night, Graduation Ceremony
In agreement with the Principal set the date for the annual General meeting
Co-ordinate the preparation of the annual report with the Council Members and principal
Send the Annual Report to the York Region District School Board
Instruct voting members to consider whether or not funding requests support fundraising goals and student achievement.

Vice Chairperson (or Co-Chair)

The Vice-Chairperson or Designate shall:

Record and post the minutes in the Secretary’s absence
Catalogue all correspondence (incoming and outgoing) and distribute
Provide support for the Chairperson as required
Act as Chairperson in the absence of the Chairperson

Past Chairperson:

The Past Chairperson shall:

Act as a resource to the Council on past activities of the Council
Advise the Chairperson on proper procedure for the Council and meetings
Encourage the Chairperson and Council Members in their role to act in the best interest of the students, the School and the Council

Secretary:

The Secretary or Designate shall:

Record attendance and the minutes of the meetings of Council
Share the minutes with the Principal within 14 days of the meeting
Distribute the minutes of the previous meeting to all Council members
Ensure that all records are kept in a safe place
Keep a directory of all Council members
Monitor and manage all email communication to School Council email address

Treasurer:

The Treasurer shall:

Maintain the finances of the Council
Prepare a Treasurer’s report and distribute copies to attendees at Council meetings in accordance with the requirements of the Board and in a format as agreed with Council
Aid in keeping full and accurate accounts, receipts, disbursements and books belonging to the Council
Communicate the allocation of funds the Council as authorized by the Council to requestors
Submits records for the annual audit
Submits a report for inclusion in the annual report in a format agreed by Council

Sub-Committee Chairs:

One member of each sub-committee shall assume the responsibility of Sub-Committee Chair. The SubCommittee Chair or designate shall preside at all Sub-Committee meetings and shall report regularly to the Council summarizing the activities of the Sub-committee in writing or by attending a School Council meeting. The Sub-Committee Chair shall:

Provide orientation to new members of the sub-committee
Carry out the specific tasks outline in the mandate (or purpose) for each sub-committee
Deal with any matters laid before him/her by Council
Set the time, date and agenda for sub-committee meetings
Provide a summary of the activities of the Sub-committee to the Council meetings in writing.

Event Planning Coordinator:

The Event Planning Coordinator shall:

Organize and oversee all fundraising Council events unless otherwise delegated
Collaborate with School Administration re timing of events
Keep Council informed of issues and developments, and take all ideas for both fundraising and expenditures forth to Council for final decision

School Lunch Fundraising Coordinator:

The School Lunch Fundraising Coordinator shall:

organize fundraising lunch programs such as pizza and sub delivery with the dual goals of providing parents with easy lunch opportunities and raising funds to support the school’s education needs
Participate as part of the Executive if desired
Liase with Council to provide updates on funds raised by school lunch programs and address any issues that may arrise.

Public Relations Coordinator:

The Public Relations Coordinator or designate shall:

Ensure that there is communication with the community
Inform the community at large of events related to the school as request by the Council and approved by the Principal
Foster two way communication between the School Council and student’s families in as many ways as possible to share information
Maintain, monitor and mediate any School Council Social Media platforms in a positive manner

Appendix 2: Evergreen Funding

The School Council commits to fund the following list of items/projects/events on an annual basis without a new request being made or a vote occurring:

Compassionate Care:
The purpose of this fund is to support students or families of students at OPPS who are facing a hardship or grieving.
Annual Fund: to be determined yearly by Council
Outdoor Classroom:
The purpose of this fund is to maintain, repair and support the outdoor classroom area in the south west section of the backyard.
Annual Fund: $2,000.00
Graduation Fund:
The purpose of this fund is to contribute to the costs associated with the annual Grade 8 graduation ceremony.
Annual Fund: $1,000.00