Near North District School Board

Parent Involvement Committee Partners with Georgian Bay Biosphere

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Students looking at organic plant materialMay 14, 2018 – During the 2017-2018 school year the NNDSB Parent Involvement Committee partnered with the Georgian Bay Biosphere to offer 6 free events for families across the school board. The events were designed to increase parent engagement in learning, while providing participants with an opportunity to develop an increasing awareness of the importance of habitat and the environment.

Under the title of “Growing with the Biosphere”, sessions were held in which students and parents were able to learn more about Monarch Butterflies and Mason Bees. Families were provided with the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with respect to seed starting and veggie gardening.

The final event was held at Humphrey Public School on May 10th, 2018 where a group of elementary students and their families had the unique experience of building homes for Mason Bees. The event also involved the creation of seed starting pods to grow the important plants for our pollinators.

These homes and seeds will be placed in the Humphrey Public School community as a part of their new Outdoor Learning Space.

For more information, please contact:

Mairghread Knought
Information/Communication Officer Near North District School Board
P. (705) 472-8170, extension 5010
E. Mairghread.Knought@nearnorthschools.ca

Chippewa Students Get Innovative

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students working hard on posters and presenting their workMay 7, 2018 – On Monday, April 30th, grade 10 Chippewa Secondary career studies students participated in a day-long workshop that focused on the global competencies of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship (ICE).

The ICE challenge is a concept that was originally generated in the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) program, but Ontario's Ministry of Education is working with teachers across the province to modernize the curriculum. ICE is a component that has been proposed as part of a new curricular push towards integrating 21st century global competencies into career studies.

Throughout the day, students had an opportunity to develop application prototypes, hear a keynote presentation from local entrepreneurs and participate in a Shark Tank type panel that served to provide feedback for student-generated prototypes.

The efforts from the students who participated will be documented and shared with Ministry staffers to help guide the design of new curriculum. Near North was one of the only boards participating in the pilot project that tested the new curriculum using an ICE Challenge outside of school.

Students, teachers and entrepreneurs contributed to the overall success of the event assisted by the North Bay Chamber of Commerce for finding local entrepreneurs to inspire students.

For more information, please contact:

Greg Deschamps, Program Coordinator E. Greg.Deschamps@nearnorthschools.ca P. (705) 472-7015, extension 5039

students working hard on posters and presenting their work

 

Testing Page

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SEAC Minutes and Agendas

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  SEAC Agendas SEAC Meeting Minutes Agenda October 19 2017 Agenda September 21 2017 Agenda June 15 2017 Agenda May 18 2017 Agenda April 20 2017 Agenda March 16 2017 […]

2nd Annual Parry Sound HS Alumni Chef’s Dinner

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Parry Sound High School is proud to announce the second annual Alumni Chef’s Dinner on Tuesday, May 15, 2018.

This dinner features a six course tasting menu of outstanding food prepared by former students of Parry Sound High School including Chef Emily Hart, Apprentice Chefs; Justin Denman and Michaela Hawkins, 2017 Third Place Ontario Skills Culinary Winner Darryn Hrycyna, Georgian Baking 2018 Graduates Jessica Woermann, Amanda Haggart, Connor Heffernan and current PSHS Culinary students.

Tickets are $35 per person and are limited to 60 for this event. There are three sittings available 5:00, 5:30 and 6:00 and limited to twenty people per sitting.

Proceeds from the meal will be used to support the Culinary Program at Parry Sound High School.

Tickets are available by contacting Blair Cousins at blair.cousins@nearnorthschools.ca or calling 705-773-7979 ext. 8459

Community Remembrance Project 2018

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May 1, 2018

Parry Sound High School announced today that it is reviving the Community Remembrance Project for 2018 in response to popular demand to honour more local veterans on street banners.

In 2017, as part of the school’s trip to the Vimy 100 commemoration in France, PSHS established a program to allow community members to sponsor street banners that would honour local veterans and be put up every fall in downtown Parry Sound. The response was overwhelming. 118 veterans were commemorated on 59 banners that went up in October and November of last year.

The program was a partnership between the high school, the Town of Parry Sound, the Downtown Business Association, the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 117, and the Museum on Tower Hill.

Since the banners went up last fall, requests for another chance to order them have been non-stop. Before the program could be revived, funding to purchase and install more banner arms had to be secured. Thanks to the Town of Parry Sound and the Downtown Business Association, an additional 35 banner arms can be purchased, allowing us to accept orders for up to 70 additional veterans to be honoured on one side of a banner.

The new banners will be ready to go up in Parry Sound, along with last year’s banners, from Thanksgiving weekend to Nov. 15th of this year.

Orders will be accepted at the Town of Parry Sound Office from May 14th to June 15th, on weekdays during regular business hours.

The order form is available on the Parry Sound High School website, the Town of Parry Sound website, and the Museum on Tower Hill website. Paper copies of the form can be picked up at the PSHS office or the Town Office.

For more information contact:

Richard Lund, History Teacher PSHS
Email: Richard.Lund@nearnorthschools.ca

Child Care Addition at Woodland – North Bay

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Construction of an addition for a child care facility at the new Woodland Public School began on October 16, 2017.  Working with the District of Nipissing Social Services Administration Board (DNSSAB) and the YMCA of Northeastern Ontario, the future Woodland Early Learning and Child Care Centre will provide high quality child care for the Woodland Public School community from infancy to 12 years.

In addition to the current Before and After School Program, four, full day, early learning child care classrooms will be built with 1 infant room, 1 toddler room and 2 preschool rooms. The new facility will include an enclosed entrance and exterior play space.

Exterior work has commenced with the creation of the additional parking lot at the bus loop entrance.  Construction will continue throughout the school year with an anticipated completion date of Fall 2018.

 *The Board graciously acknowledges the financial support the Government of Ontario has committed to the Board's capital projects.

Early Years and Family Services Centre at Land of Lakes – Burk’s Falls

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Working in partnership with the Parry Sound District Social Services Administration Board (DSSAB), the Board looks forward to creating a new EarlyON Child and Family Centre for children and families in the Almaguin Highlands area.

The project is moving along well.  Exterior design will be the final phase of the project and will involve the reconfiguration of the parking areas and a possible new bus loop/roadway with planned construction for early July 2018.

Secondary School Consolidation – North Bay

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On September 26, 2017, Trustees approved the consolidation of three North Bay secondary schools (Chippewa, West Ferris and Widdifield) into two schools with the rebranding of the West Ferris (South) and Chippewa (North) sites. Since that time staff in all three schools have collaborated to discuss how best to use this opportunity to enhance student program options.

There is much transition planning ahead which will take some time to complete. In the interim, the Board is pleased to share its transition programming framework. The planning of transition activities will involve student, parent and staff voice.

To relieve current accommodation pressures at Chippewa and in order to prepare instructional space required for the 2019 transition, the following programs will transition in September 2018:
• Current Grade 6 Sunset Park French Immersion students
• Current Grade 6 W.J. Fricker Extended French students
• Current 7-11 Chippewa Extended French students
• Current 7-11 Chippewa French Immersion students (zoned for Sunset Park).

The following programs will be fully implemented in September of 2019:

SOUTH SITE (CURRENTLY WEST FERRIS):

Arts Nipissing Program / S.T.E.A.M. Program (Grades 9-12)
French Immersion Program (Grades 7-12 zoned for Sunset Park)
Extended French Program (All North Bay area Grades 7-12)
English Program (Grades 7-12 zoned for West Ferris).

NORTH SITE (CURRENTLY CHIPPEWA):

International Baccalaureate Program (Grades 9-12)
French Immersion Program (Grades 7-12 zoned for Alliance)
English Program (Grades 7-12 zoned for Widdifield and Chippewa)
W.J. Fricker English Program (Grades 7-8).

*Widdifield Secondary School will close in September 2019.

Special Education Programs - As we look ahead now to transitions beginning in the 2019-2020 school year, we are committed to ensuring parents are kept apprised of decisions impacting their children and young adults attending school in one of our system special education programs.  We hope that the information below will help to ease any possible concerns:

  • There are no proposed changes to our current model for Special Education Programs in 2018- 2019 for Chippewa, Widdifield and West Ferris;
  • There will be no reduction in the number of special education programs for the 2019-2020 school year coming through the transition;
  • It is proposed that there will be 4 programs at the north site and 4 programs at the south site beginning in the 2019-2020 school year (this includes one Intermediate and 3 Senior classes at each site); and.
  • There will be clear and comprehensive pathways established that support student need, and allow for enhanced opportunities for collaboration and flexibility within this model.

The Board remains committed to providing parents, students, staff and communities with relevant and timely communication. The Board thanks its stakeholders in advance for their patience to allow for the time required to develop a thoughtful and purposeful transition plan.

Biindigen

Mii gwi Anishinabek wewena nkenmaaminak dependajig maa kiing.
"We acknowledge in a good way, the original people of the land here"
We value the cultures, histories and relationships with the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island (North America)

Connect With Us

Near North District School Board
963 Airport Road, P.O. Box 3110, North Bay, ON P1B 8H1
[P] 705-472-8170   [TF] 1-800-278-4922   [F] 705-472-9927