Thursday, June 17, 2021

Trustees approve MYSP that will be board’s roadmap

The five-year roadmap that charts the course for Near North District School (NNDSB) has been approved by the Board of Trustees. It has taken 16 months of extensive research and collaboration to get the Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP) to this stage. Now that the plan is approved by the Board, staff will be oriented to their role in the MYSP, which will officially launch in September.

The MYSP is more than just an assertion of the work the board wants to accomplish. It is a comprehensive document that incorporates the voices and concerns of internal and external stakeholders into a plan whose goals all focus on student achievement and well-being. As a living document, the MYSP will adapt as new ministerial and community initiatives come forward to align with the board’s ultimate goal of student achievement and well-being.

Board Chair Jay Aspin said, “With strong and capable leadership from our Director, Craig Myles, this Multi-Year Strategic Plan has been one of the most important initiatives our board has undertaken. This strategic plan will be our compass in focusing on marshalling our resources on student achievement and well-being over the next five years. This process included comprehensive survey scans by Nik Nanos of Nanos Research, one of Canada’s most prominent research firms who concluded ‘our board was headed in the right direction’. Committee Chair Trustee Bill Steer did a tremendous job of shepherding our board through this important process despite the disruptive challenges of a pandemic.”

The MYSP has four strategic priorities: Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Excellence in Communication, Excellence in Building Relationships and Excellence in Innovation. The work of the committee included overseeing the creation of improvement plans for schools, departments and the board that set measurable goals that aligned with the four priorities.

With the MYSP in place, the processes and decisions of the board will be guided by the plan, which will ensure all resources are aligned to the board’s core purpose of student achievement and well-being.

The full MYSP report to the board can be found on Page 64 of the agenda package. All MYSP information can be accessed on the MYSP page of the board’s website.

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Information about Near North District School Board:

Near North District School Board is an English-language public school board serving the North Bay – Parry Sound – Nipissing area. The Board consists of approximately 10,000 students in 27 elementary schools, seven secondary/senior schools and various alternative learning centres. For more information, please visit nearnorthschools.ca and follow Near North District School Board on social media.

For more information, please contact:

Deb Bartlett
Communications Officer
Near North District School Board
P. (705) 472-8170, extension 5010
E. Deb.Bartlett@nearnorthschools.ca

Tuesday, June 15, 2021

Trustees approve compliant 2021-2022 budget

North Bay, ON –

At tonight’s meeting, the Board of Trustees of the Near North District School Board (NNDSB) approved the 2021-2022 budget, which has an operating revenue of $160.9 million. The budget was developed, after review for efficiencies and savings, to align with the Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP) and provides resources that support the Board’s mission and vision.

The budget was first reviewed and approved by the Finance Committee, which is chaired by Board Vice-Chair John Cochrane.

Ministry of Education funding to boards is provided based on enrolment and the needs of students in each board. NNDSB expects to receive 90 per cent of its operating revenue from the province in the form of operating grants based on enrolment of 9,488.5 students in the 2021-2022 school year, an increase of 136 students.

Expenditures are projected at $161.2 million, resulting in a deficit of $417,000, or 0.3 per cent of the total budget. COVID has significantly impacted revenue and expenses this year, and the Ministry of Education is allowing boards to access previous years’ surpluses to assist with the current budget. The Ministry has allowed two per cent of operating grants ($2.9 million for NNDSB) but asked boards to budget half this amount. This budget is compliant.

This year’s operating budget projects a decrease of $3.4 million (2.1 per cent) less revenue than 2020-2021 revised estimates.

The budget has been prepared with the knowledge there will be support for remote learning in the fall, though there was not enough information to determine the number of students registered with the remote school. There will be further Priorities and Partnership Funds (PPF) announced in the coming weeks which may reduce the deficit.

By function, 71 per cent of operating expenses are spent on instruction. A further 17 per cent is on pupil accommodation, which are costs associated with maintaining the buildings that house students.

Of the work done by staff throughout this school year, Board Chair Jay Aspin says, “What a year! This board has overseen the consolidation of three high schools into two and put final touches on the consolidation of three elementary schools into one in North Bay, as well as the consolidation of two elementary schools with a high school to form a K-12 school in the Parry Sound area. The completion of a Multi-Year Strategic Plan will focus resources on student achievement and well-being over the next five years.

“Every staff member deployed new and innovative methods of instruction to deal with disruptions in the face of a costly and unpredictable pandemic. All these accomplishments have been achieved with a small deficit due to the dedication and hard work of all members of the Near North board,” says Chair Aspin. “It has been a remarkable year that has moved our board forward considerably despite being challenged by extremely difficult conditions.”

The full budget report can be found beginning on Page 91 of the agenda package.

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For more information, please contact:

Deb Bartlett
Communications Officer
Near North District School Board
P. (705) 472-8170, extension 5010
E. Deb.Bartlett@nearnorthschools.ca 

June 7, 2021

Local businesses support SHSM students’ certifications

Near North District School Board (NNDSB) offers a wide range of programming options for students across the district. One program, the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM), allows secondary school students in the pathways of apprenticeship, college, university or workplace to focus on sector-specific skills. Students gain specialized training and certifications while completing the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) requirements.

In past years, students benefited from many in-person trainings and certifications, but COVID-19 and the resulting lockdowns and shut-downs made accessing the certifications challenging, as in-person training is no longer an option.

Lisa Spencer, coordinator of student success, gap closing, secondary program and SHSM, says that students in the SHSM program complete their secondary school diploma requirements while also earning two coop credits, and between four and seven certifications. There are mandatory certifications, such as automated external defibrillator (AED) training, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS), along with at least one sector-specific certification.

The orders in place around COVID meant that no one was able to come and teach those components.

NNDSB’s Health and Safety and Maintenance Coordinator, James Coventry, was able to access and post content through the board’s Safe Schools portal that enabled students to get some safety-related certifications.

Meeting some of the sector-specific requirements was more difficult, says Spencer. Trainers weren’t able to come to the schools, yet “we want them (students) in touch with the sector,” says Spencer. The benefits include businesses knowing about NNDSB students and their training, which opens doors for coop placements and employment, and exposes students to professionals in the sector.

SHSM students must spend six hours in a sector-partnered experience, which traditionally (pre-COVID) meant one day at the location of a business partner. COVID has altered how that is done; it means that students can no longer attend in-person, but it also means students had access to a wider pool of partners thanks to technology.

One such connection made was with Anita Brisson, a local business owner, project management professional and a certified LEAN Six Sigma Black who has been providing professional development since 2006. The SHSM business students at both Chippewa and West Ferris Secondary Schools took her Project Management for Beginners course, in which they learned about time management, task breakdown and budgeting.

“The project management course gave students perspective about project scope and goals, and other skills that are valuable in the workplace,” says Spencer.

Other partnerships that developed because of COVID include Nipissing University, which created a sports/nutrition program for SHSM health and wellness students, and Inksmith, which worked on modules for SHSM students in the areas of math, coding, and innovations, creativity and entrepreneurship (ICE).

Spencer notes the relationships with leaders, sector entrepreneurs and partners in the community has not waned through the pandemic, and in fact, the partners have been helping to solve the problem of meeting the needs of the hours students need to meet their educational requirements.

These partners, she says, “align with our vision for learning”. The priority is always “what’s best for kids”, and other initiatives that have resulted in learning opportunities for students include a sector-partnered experience in coding and workshops for students on musical instrument care.

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Information about Near North District School Board:

Near North District School Board is an English-language public school board serving the North Bay – Parry Sound – Nipissing area. The Board consists of approximately 10,000 students in 27 elementary schools, seven secondary/senior schools and various alternative learning centres. For more information, please visit nearnorthschools.ca and follow Near North District School Board on social media.

For more information, please contact:
Deb Bartlett
Communications Officer
Near North District School Board
P. (705) 472-8170, extension 5010
E. Deb.Bartlett@nearnorthschools.ca