JRPS School Council Agenda - November 12, 2025

Attendees:

Present: Asia, Catherine, Sarah, Helen, Amy, Erin, Mr. Chin, Ms. Leung

Joining Virtually: Donna, Parviz, Georgia
Sending Regrets: Rockell, Banu

Absent: Melissa

Before Meeting:

Premeeting Info:

• Look at the Year Plan and Roles that need to be filled.  Please think about at least 2 roles/committees/initiatives you can be involved in and sign up at the meeting or if absent or virtual, let me know ahead of time what to sign you up for
• Bring your calendar to set whole-group, general council meeting dates: Feb. Apr. June
• OPAL:
  • Staff has been promoting the use of the Play Day Activities
  • Erin updated the OPAL Binders that live in the office.  They include information about loose parts play and OPAL, include a list of plant materials on site, Risk/Benefit Analysis of Loose parts, copy of the Play Day activities.  Another binder includes all the original construction info, permits, plans, etc.
  • The OPAL Committee is working on spending the rest of the Landscape Ontario Grant from 2 years ago and Dejardain Grant for last year by the end of 2025.  Recent purchases include: more milk crates, metals scoops, mini rakes are coming.

Landscape Ontario Grant

What we have - $414.59

Desjardian OPAL Grant

What we have - $3,000

To Spend: $3,414.59

Left to spend: -$1,109.13 (Proposed) -$1,590.18

• Next steps may include an update to yard duty information
• You may notice that Raven’s Rack isn’t in this year’s plans
• The grade 8s are going to work on a community service project that would have had a lot of overlap with the Raven’s Rack, so in consultation with Georgia, we will not run the Raven’s Rack this year.
• There may be ways we can support the grade 8s if asked
• Will still collect some items so office can outfit underdressed kids or kids that get wet.
• Erin is still going ahead with the Food Drive, working with Ms. Ritacca’s grade 3/4s
• Erin has applied for the Dejardain grant again this year to support the purchasing of Make Do kits, wood, glue, and other consumables for the Maker Space in the library ($3000)

STEM Question

• There are different pieces of the makerspace, make-do kits, little plastic parts, can make things out of cardboard
• Getting the materials, teaching teachers how to use the materials and the space, having durable work tables
• Need to create a space and figure out where to store the supplies

Meeting Agenda

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (1 minute)

Shout Outs (Erin - 5 minutes) Thanks to:

• Play Day Planning Committee: Amy, Rockell, Sarah, Banu, Jana
• Play Day Volunteers: Amy, Melissa, Jana
• Helen for vetting a compiling a list of grant opportunities
• Open House Volunteers: Sarah for working on signage, On table: Asia, Donna, Amy, Melissa, Banu, Helen, Sarah, Rockell, Catherine, Parviz

In retrospect, we should have an October meeting to flush out ideas 

The WhatsApp group is best for reminders, setting meeting plans and updates.
We will not have the immediacy of a group chat, but conversations are best had in person in the council meetings or committee meanings.

Treasurer's Report (Catherine - 10 minutes)

• Funds are in a school playground fund
• School lunch fund (revenue from the lunches that the school council generates) is merged with the school general account
• School CashOnline money comes in weekly installments
• Traditionally every year we save $2500 that goes into this fund
• The play structure was built with previous money
• Play structures last 15-20 years
• $50,000+ for future a play structure (we have to save a little bit each year)
• Previous councils have paid it forward for the current generation of JRPS students, and we will continue to do this for future playground fund
• We have to continue to maintain and repair the play structure from wear and tear (must have a fund for this)
• Last year we received a Desjardins grant $3000 for OPAL, loose parts, milk crates, metal scoops (technically needs to be used by the end of 2025)
• Granitic sand and was a donation but the delivery was not (the grant helped pay for this)
• Milk crates needs to be replaced from use and damage over time
• In the winter, the crates get buried and occasionally run over by snow plows
• Donna has a potential connection to Gaylea/milk crates 

*See Treasurer’s Report documents at end of Minutes

Quick Feedback Re: What We've Done (Erin - 5 minutes)

• Open house, our presence, the format in classrooms
• Play day
• Your kid’s experiences with current lunches

This will be sent out via email

Feedback of the Year Plan (10 Minutes)

• Additional events/initiatives not listed?
• When to do Staff Appreciation? February?  March?

Can parents donate food/drink for staff appreciation? (was previously done at Crosby PS) 

• January family event instead of February (or not at all this year)?
• Set meeting dates: Feb. Apr. June 

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Wednesday, June 10, 2026 

I need people for the following roles: (please sign up for at least 2 roles, roles may change based on later discussions)

1. Lunch Committee (research, options for Jan-Mar & Mar-June (send to Council for feedback)

Paramount lunches have the best fundraising revenue 

2. Pop-up committee [Research Fun Food Pop-ups (what, how often, when offered)

Mondays do not have hot lunches so this could be a good day for pop-up sales 

Pop-ups are a great way to try out new vendors for school lunches 

Pop-ups are occasional/one time events 

The hot lunch program is planned far in advance for fundraising initiatives

3. Staff Appreciation Committee [Plan the format, invite staff, compile messages to teachers, make/buy food, be at event set up, clean up, to cover yard duties -only if available] 

Would it happen in February or March? 

4. Terra Cotta Fundraiser Coordinator (coordinate with Terra Cotta, create letter for families, advertise, coordinate sending cookies home with families, organize cookie parties)

Popular, raises about $1000

5. January Family Event Committee (decide on format, apply for Pro-grant, plan, execute)

It has to happen at the end of January 

6. Spring Gardening Event (advertise, attend)

Families are invited to JRPS on the weekend to help spruce up the garden 

7. June Fun Fair Committee (help coordinate, help run)

Planning happens in April 

Scheduled for Wednesday, May 20th, 2026

8. Welcome to Kindergarten (compile existing letters and information, be on hand to greet families)
9. Fundraising Consultation and Procedures committee (decide on a future process to follow when setting funding priorities, to be implemented next year)

Ongoing Oliver’s Labels fundraising with a 20% revenue share to the school Possibly a Krispy Kreme or Love Gelato fundraiser/pop up?

Did not put the silent auction for this school year 

*See Year Plan at end of Minutes

Fundraising Plan: (35 minutes)

• “Improving transparency to other parents and school accountability with regards to fundraising initiatives” and ideas about an approach (Helen)
  1. What procedure can we follow in future years to decide on fundraising priorities?  A committee to decide procedures for future years?
  2. In past, have shared spending in Raven’s Review and Meeting Minutes, on Google Site, report to the Board every year
  3. Can have a record of spending linked to School Council page in website?

Improving transparency to parents 

Do we need a different procedure/road map/more formalized approach?

As a council, we represent the community. Meetings are always open to the whole school community (mentioned in the Ravens Review)

• What are we fundraising for?  Why? (Mr. Chin)

  1. Community’s Priorities (still to come)

  2. School wish list: (these items are requested by the JRPS staff, different staff have different wishes)

  3. $3000 for basketballs and storage rack (balls are $50 each times 30)

$2500 for 15 size 5 and 15 size 6 basketballs 

Equipment must be purchased through board approved vendors 

It was already purchased because it is priority with the upcoming basketball season

4. Recess balls and equipment $800-$1000

Recess balls and equipment $800-$1000 (mesh bags with equipment are given to classrooms for signing out)

Outdoor volleyball net purchased

5. Projector and screen for library $7500

New screen will be in the area where the Lego wall used to be

A technician is coming to take a look at the library space for the installation 

6. Chromebooks for cost sharing up to $8850 *top priority for the school

The Chromebook has to be a board image with secure logins, specific Chromebooks 

We will continually fund this and we must update the technology every year 

Likely with the cost sharing, the school wouldn’t have to pay the full amount.

7. Climate action kits for grades 4-8 $4000 (can try for grants)

We can try for grants

Learning activities, STEM related for environmental solutions, have a class set, put the materials in and do the professional learning for teachers so they are used in the class 

Uses microbits, uses coding (higher level thinking example: a farmer needs to collect information about his farm, do coding for a drone) 

8. ORFF instruments (wood and metal xylophones) for K-3, 20 big instruments $15,000 *top priority for the school

9. Traditionally funded by Council:

• $2500 to go towards funding future improvements in the Eco Schoolyard and/or a future playstructure
• $250 for staff apprecation

Motion put forward by Erin to fund the following items:

• $7500 music 

• $4750 future cost sharing for Chromebooks 

• $2500 school yard 

• $250 for staff appreciation 

Seconded by Sarah.

Motion was passed unanimously by members present. 

• Ways to fundraise (Erin)

  • Will establish a Fundraising Committee that will discuss option for fundraising

  • Silent Auction?

  • Pop-ups? (Bubble tea, fun food pop ups)

  • Terra Cotta?

  • Invest in Education?

  • Lunches

Principal's Report (Mr. Chin - 20 minutes)

Parent Question

Bus seat belts on school buses are not mandatory.

Event calendar for the school year is shared:

Preparing before the parent teacher interview, during the interview and post interview *to be shared in the Raven’s Review

Multi-Year Strategic Plan: Building Unity, Achieving Excellence 

Student achievement 

Health and Well-Being 

Human rights and inclusivity 

Celebrating events 

Staff is committing to honouring identities 

Trying not to celebrate commercialized holidays 

Having a tropical theme for the primary winter performance is more neutral and promotes inclusivity

A winter theme which could be more exclusive because it could be linked to certain cultural/religious traditions celebrated in the winter

Celebrating identity, voice and choice for students 

8 different leadership teams/Professional Learning Communities at JRPS all building towards the same goals 

1. Equity Leadership Team
2. Indigenous Education Lead Team
3. Student Success Team
4. Leadership Team
5. OPAL Leadership Team
6. Student Leadership Team
7. Math Leadership Team
8. Early Learning Team

Other Business (5 Minutes)

Could potentially raise $16,000 for fundraising for the school year 

Currently have $9000 (lunches, bubble tea and leftover funds from last year) 

Cheque drive/Investment in Education needs to happen in early September (can do it in the first 3 weeks) 

At June council meeting, will discuss Investment in Education and lunches for the following year 

We could have a table during the Fun Fair to highlight the fundraising initiatives and the outcomes 

Action Items:

• Establish committees (Council Members sign up for minimum 2) Erin
• Look at Helen’s Grants (Erin)
• Research fundraising options (Donna-Lobe Gelato, Catherine-Krispy Kreme)

Treasurer's Report

School Council Year Plan 2025-26