Lakehead District School Board and Keewatin-Patricia District School Board Jointly Announce Changes in Senior Leadership

Lakehead District School Board:

Stephanie Rea

Communications Officer

stephanie_rea@lakeheadschools.ca

(807) 625-5214 (office)

(807) 621-7342 (cell)

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Local Government Week - October 18-22

Media Release - October 18, 2021

October 18-22 is Local Government Week.  The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board, along with the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA), are working to raise civic awareness by observing Local Government Week.

School board trustees are the oldest form of elected representation in Ontario.  Since 1807, generations of community-minded citizens have made decisions on behalf of local, publicly funded schools, building the foundation of our system today.  The board of trustees sets the vision, develops policies, allocates resources, and sets the goals that lay the foundation driving programs and operations in the board.  Collectively, they create the multi-year strategic plan for student achievement and well-being and recruit and monitor the performance of the Director of Education to ensure their progress in meeting the goals of the board.

Sherri-Lynne Pharand, Director of Education, stated “Trustees play a key leadership role in ensuring that schools provide a high standard of education and that the programs and services school boards provide remain responsive to the communities they serve. Here at the KPDSB, we are incredibly thankful to our Board of Trustees for their passion for education and dedication to ensuring our students always come first.”

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board of Trustees:

• Cecile Marcino, Chair of the Board (Kenora/Sioux Narrows)
• Roger Griffiths, Vice-Chair of the Board (Machin)
• Eric Bortlis, Trustee to Represent the Interests of Indigenous Students
• Dave Cornish, Trustee (Kenora/Sioux Narrows)
• Marilyn Duncalfe, Trustee ( Red Lake)
• Barb Gauthier, Trustee (Dryden)
• Michelle Guitard, Trustee (Pickle Lake, Savant Lake and Upsala)
• Darrin Head, Trustee (Sioux Lookout)
• Jennifer Kitowski, Trustee (Kenora/Sioux Narrows)
• Gerald Kleist, Trustee (Ear Falls)
• Robert O’Donohue, Trustee (Ignace)
• Mason Gallagher, Student Trustee (Red Lake District High School)
• Mackenzie Shakakeesic, Indigenous Student Trustee (Sioux North High School in Sioux Lookout)

Fast Facts about Trustees

There are different kinds of trustees:

• Trustees elected every four years during municipal and school board elections, including more than 320 publicly elected trustees representing 31 public English school boards and three school authorities across Ontario.
• Indigenous Trustees appointed to the board by First Nations communities.  More than half of Ontario’s English public English school boards have Indigenous Trustees.  Trustee Eric Bortlis currently holds this important position at the KPSDB.  The KPDSB also has an Indigenous Student Trustee position on the Board.  Indigenous Student Trustee for the 2021-2022 school year is Mackenzie Shakakeesic from Sioux North High School in Sioux Lookout.
• Student Trustees elected by the student body of the board. The Ontario Student Trustees' Association (OSTA-AECO) represents more than two million students.  Student Trustee for the 2021-2022 school year is Mason Gallagher from Red Lake District High School.
• Hospital board/school authority trustees are appointed by the Minister of Education for a term of four years, on the same term cycle as publicly elected trustees.
• Attend and participate in meetings of the board, including meetings of board committees
• Consult with parents, students and supporters of the board on the board’s multi-year plan
• Bring concerns of parents, students and supporters of the board to the attention of the board
• Uphold the implementation of any board resolution after it is passed by the board
• Entrust the day–to-day management of the board to its staff through the board’s director of education
• Maintain focus on student achievement and well-being
• Comply with the board’s code of conduct.

Trustee Role and Responsibilities

What are the Responsibilities of a School Board?

School boards – the elected board of trustees – are responsible for student achievement and well-being, for ensuring effective stewardship of the board’s resources and for delivering effective and appropriate education programs for their students.

The Education Act and its regulations set out the services that district school boards and school authorities must offer. The responsibilities of a school board include a key governance role with respect to:

• operating schools according to provincial legislation
• having a vision statement that reflects the board’s philosophy and local needs and priorities
• setting the board’s budget within the provincial grants and accompanying regulations
• implementing curriculum according to ministry curriculum policy
• developing and delivering other programs that reflect provincial policies and local priorities
• providing for the hiring of teachers and other staff required in their schools
• maintaining school buildings and property with regard to student safety and in accordance with provincial legislation
• monitoring the policies of the schools and the achievement of students and, through the director of education, holding the entire system accountable for meeting provincial and board standards.

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KPDSB & OSSTF Northern Shield Occasional Teachers' Bargaining Unit reach tentative settlement

Media Releases - December 14, 2020

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board (KPDSB) and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation of Ontario (OSSTF), Northern Shield Occasional Teachers’ Bargaining Unit, have reached a tentative settlement within the Local Bargaining Framework.  Both parties have now ratified the tentative settlement.

The parties are pleased with the work done through virtual platforms to achieve this local settlement and look forward to its implementation.

For more information, please contact Sherri-Lynne Pharand, KPDSB Director of Education at (807) 468-5571 or Dave Rhind, President, OSSTF at (807) 466-1165.

Dave Rhind, President
OSSTF, Northern Shield 

Cecile Marcino                                              
KPDSB Board Chair                                                                                                                                                         Occasional Teachers Bargaining Unit

Sherri-Lynne Pharand
KPDSB Director of Education           

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KPDSB appoints Chantal Moore as Interim Superintendent of Education

Media Relese - November 10, 2020

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is pleased to announce the appointment of Chantal Moore as Interim Superintendent of Education. Moore will replace Joan Kantola who has accepted a position with School Mental Health Ontario for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year.

Moore started her teaching career at Crolancia Public School in Pickle Lake in 1994.  She has 19 years of K-12 administration experience, working at Wabigoon, Ignace and Upsala schools.  She has held various system responsibilities including leading Creating Pathways to Success, Principal/Vice-Principal Professional Development, eLearning/ConnectEd and Leadership Development.  Moore has a specialist in Guidance and Special Education.  She holds a BA/BEd from Lakehead University and a Master’s Degree from University of Toronto with a focus on instruction, curriculum and leadership.

Moore is passionate about providing optimal learning conditions for students by focusing on high yield instruction, creating caring, supportive and inclusive learning environments and maintaining high expectations. She is committed to meeting the needs of the whole child – academic, physical, emotional and social – which drives her avid professional reading, learning and leadership.  She is dedicated to ensuring that all students can reach their potential by focusing on students’ strengths, seeking student voice and providing opportunities. 

Moore stated, “I am prepared to work incredibly hard and ready to serve students and staff in a greater capacity as a Superintendent of Education for the KPDSB.  It is truly an honour to more widely collaborate with KP educators, support staff and all staff who work relentlessly to provide the best possible conditions for students to achieve. There is incredible collaboration, innovation, initiative and resilience in our organization.  I am extremely proud to be part of the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board and I am eager to expand my contribution and support KP students, staff, parents and communities.”

Sherri-Lynne Pharand, Director of Education, added, “Senior Administration, Trustees and I are so pleased to welcome Chantal to our team.  Her many years of administrative experience, her integrity and her passion for both student and staff learning will enable KP to continue to provide the best possible education for all.”

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Lillian Berg PS Receives Grant for Commemorating the History and Legacy of Residential Schools

Media Release - November 10, 2020

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board (KPDSB) and Lillian Berg Public School are honoured to share that Lillian Berg Public School, in partnership with Grassy Narrows First Nation and the Municipality of Machin, has received a $6000.00 grant to support commemorating the history and legacy of residential schools. 

The grant money will be used to cover the costs of yard maintenance at the McIntosh Indian Residential School Memorial site, which now belongs to Grassy Narrows First Nation, as well as to purchase books and resources about the history of residential schools for a community book club and for Lillian Berg Public School.  The school also hopes to use some of the money to host a special Orange Shirt Day ceremony next October at the McIntosh Indian Residential School Memorial site.    

Chief Randy Fobister, Grassy Narrows First Nation, stated, “I always support any initiatives that help the community in any way and especially the history of residential schools that has to be remembered for generations to come.  It is history where important life lessons can be learned.  I welcome the beautification project and landscaping. The elders and community will be very thankful for that. Miigwetch.”

Shannon Elliott, Grade 7/8 Teacher and lead on the project, said, “It is hoped that through this project we will achieve increased awareness of the history and legacy of residential schools, not only across Canada, but in our own backyard.  Our hope is for students, staff, and community members to gain a deeper understanding of the history and legacy of residential schools and the lasting impacts they have.”

Doris St. Jules, Principal of Lillian Berg Public School, added, “We are grateful for the support of Chief Randy Fobister and look forward to working together in the planning of a very special Orange Shirt Day ceremony next year.”

Background

In the fall of 2019, Ms. Elliott’s Grade 7/8 class from Lillian Berg Public School in Vermilion Bay, visited the McIntosh Indian Residential School Memorial site, located just northwest of Vermilion Bay, ON, as part of a class study of residential schools in Canada.  While at the memorial site, the students noticed that the grass around the memorial site was overgrown, which limited the access to it, and they felt a site with this much importance deserved more care. 

The class initially started making plans to go back to the site in the spring and do some yard maintenance themselves, but their teacher had heard that the Department of Canadian Heritage was accepting grant applications for Commemorating the History & Legacy of Residential Schools.  A proposal was put together and submitted in early April 2020 with the support of then Chief Rudy Turtle, Grassy Narrows First Nation, (which the McIntosh IRS Memorial site now belongs to), along with the Municipality of Machin, who agreed to provide workers and equipment to complete the yard maintenance. 

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