PARENT INVOLVEMENT COMMITTEE (PIC)
 Parents/guardians play an important role in the success of their children in school. The Ottawa Catholic School Board is proud to help foster a nurturing relationship between parents/guardians and their children by engaging the entire school community.
The Parent Involvement Committee (PIC) works to engage parents in our school community by providing support and resources to encourage participation in their child's personal and academic success. This initiative is part of the Ontario Ministry of Education's mandate to enhance parental involvement in education, part of the
Ontario Parent Involvement Policy, released in 2005.
Parenting Now Symposium - Open to all parents / guardians
The Catholic School Parents’ Association (CSPA) has received a regional PRO grant to spend on parent engagement, and will use the funds for the following event, consisting of workshops workshops on various topics of interest to parents and designed to help parents help their children be better students and better people. There will also be displays by community partners.
Don't miss the 5th annual Parent Engagement Symposium "Parenting Now” with keynote speaker Barbara Coloroso
Saturday, April 10th from 8 am to 1 pm at St. Patrick’s High School, located at 2525 Alta Vista
Click here to register today >>
Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants
The Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants is a grassroots initiative from the Ontario Ministry of Education to support parents in identifying barriers to parent engagement in their own community, and finding local solutions to help more parents get involved. There are two components to the PRO Grants – school council grants and regional/provincial grants.
PRO Grants for school councils support school-based projects that focus on engaging parents who may experience challenges in becoming involved in their children’s education. These challenges may include recent settlement to Canada, level of language proficiency in English/French, socio-economic difficulties, physical challenges, or difficulty in getting transportation to the school.
Ottawa Catholic School Board schools and school councils have received
41 individual PRO Grants totaling $33,473.
School councils work with school and the PICommittee to identify potential project opportunities to help parents get involved. Schools and their school councils may apply for funds and grants from the Ontario Ministry of Education to aid the development of creative projects. Schools can receive funds to be used by school councils to spend on activities that increase parent engagement (PIC Funds).
Parent Engagement Matters!
Studies show that student achievement improves when parents play an active role in their children’s education, and that good schools become even better schools when parents are involved. Ontario’s new parent engagement policy is designed to recognize, encourage these many forms of parent engagement, to break down barriers that exist for many parents, and to support all parent with the skills and knowledge they need to be engaged and involved.
Find out more about the new Ontario Ministry of Education’s Parent Engagement Policy – how it is defined, how goals will be reached, and how it will benefit parents, teachers, students, and schools.
Catholic School Parents' Association (CSPA)
The Catholic School Parents' Association (CSPA) works closely with our Board to help engage parents in our schools. Find out more about the association by visiting their comprehensive website. Visit CSPA's website...
Additionally, every school in our Board has a school council, and many of them have a webpage. Get involved and see what your school's parent community is doing to improve the success of your child. Visit your school's website today!
 Take a look at CSPA's brochure on School Council Best Practices
 Learn more about funding and grants available to schools by the Ministry of Education
CSPA Executive Members 2009-2010
From left to right: Front row - Karen Delaney, Vice Chair; Caroline Bachynski, Vice Chair; Joanne MacEwan, Chairperson; Sean Jackson
From left to right: Back row - Cathy Philpott; Jan Meijer; Roxeanne Marberl; Josée Kowala; Susan Elsdon; Alex Volodarsky; Patricia Walsh; Mike Labelle
Missing from photo - Kim Faulkner; Jim Fitzgerald; Gordon Thomson; Scott Jackson
PICommittee Members and Meetings
The PICommittee is Chaired by a parent; the membership includes parents, trustee representatives and the Director of Education. Any parent of a student within the Ottawa Catholic School Board is eligible to join the committee, but are utlimately appointed by the Catholic School Parents' Association (CSPA). Parent membership is reviewed regularly to ensure continued parental involvement.
- PICommittee Chair: Joanne MacEwan, Chair of CSPA
- Parent Members: Caroline Bachynski, Karen Delaney, Patricia Walsh
- Trustee Members: Catherine Maguire-Urban, Trustee, Zone 4; Betty-Ann Kealey, Trustee, Zone 7
- Administrative Member: James G. McCracken, Director of Education
- Committee Administrative Resource: Alana Schryburt, Executive Officer to the Director of Education
The PICommittee meets quarterly during the regular school year – four times between September to June.
2008-2009 School Year - Annual Report
Last Updated: 2010-03-22
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