Highlights from the May 10 Upper Canada District School Board of Trustees Meeting – VIDEO

Full details on presentations, reports, and discussions can be found in the agenda or reviewed in the recorded broadcast. Video segments are linked in the subhead for each item below.

Brockville – Trustees with the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) met on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. Some of the items discussed in the public session are as follows.

Financial Forecast

Executive Superintendent of Business Services Jeremy Hobbs presented to Trustees the third and final financial forecast for the 2022-2023 school year. The forecast is based on to-date funding and enrolment information.

This report projects revenues of $412.5 million and expenses of $409.8 million. For compliance purposes, the projected in-year surplus is $2.7 million. $1.8 million of that surplus will be set aside as a contingency to mitigate future transportation obligations and costs.

These updated figures also include additional in-year revenues of $3.6 million from other non-Grants for Student Needs provincial grants released since February’s second Financial Forecast. These additional revenues are offset by corresponding expenses. This forecast includes over $5 million in system and school supports added since the original budget, reflecting district priorities identified in the 2022-2023 Director’s Workplan. Part of this investment includes $1.6 million for technology, equipment and supplies directly related to skilled trades education.

On June 1, 2022, Trustees approved the board’s 2022-2023 budget, which projected revenues of $399M and expenses of $398.8M. During the second financial forecast on Feb. 8, Hobbs shared a revised projected revenue of $410.1 million and expenses of $409.6 million.

Hobbs outlined that some uncertainty remains for the budget as it relates to inflation, labour market, and supply chain challenges.

The Financial Statements for 2022-2023 will be presented to the Trustees in November 2023.

Director’s Work Plan: Reading and Real-World Learning Update

Executive Superintendent of Student Success and Innovation Eric Hardie provided an update to Trustees on the Director’s Work Plan as it relates to reading and Real-World Learning.

To date, $4.34 million has been invested into reading at the UCDSB. This includes professional resources, decodable books, tutoring, a professional learning plan for educators, and the Power Up 2 expansion.

Hardie noted that an updated reading curriculum is anticipated from the Ministry of Education in the fall of 2023. It is expected to be based on recommendations of the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s Right to Read Report and Science of Reading/Structured Literacy. Based on the UCDSB’s work done to date on reading, the district is in a positive position for that rollout.

Five schools were highlighted for their real-world learning projects and initiatives. Gananoque Intermediate and Secondary School’s partnership with the Thousand Islands Playhouse, Vankleek Hill Collegiate Institute’s library re-design, Carleton Place High School’s partnership with Sweet Sanctuary Animal Rescue, The Queen Elizabeth School’s partnership with the Dreamcatcher Foundation for clean water in Indigenous communities, and Naismith Public School students making Story Boxes to assist students with vision needs to visualize illustrations they cannot see.