Waterloo Region District School Board

Students in the Waterloo Region District School Board with an interest in Economics will benefit from a new agreement between Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU) and the Waterloo Region DSB.

The agreement allows Waterloo Region students, who complete the advanced standing dual credit requirements for Grade 12 university-type Economics, to earn their first university-level credit.

Three Waterloo Region District School Board students will be receiving the Ontario Public Supervisory Association (OPSOA) President’s Leadership Award at a Special Board Meeting this evening.

Kendra Stirrett from Huron Heights Secondary School, Fatima Chleilat from Glenview Park Secondary School and Sarah Marion from Bluevale Collegiate Institute will be presented with a plaque and a cheque for $1000 to support their post secondary education.

School board results released today by the Education Quality and Accountability Office, indicate that 85% of Waterloo Region District School Board's grade 10 students passed the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT). This surpasses the provincial average of 84% by 1 percentage point.

MaryLou Mackie, Executive Superintendent of Education, commented, "We are very pleased that our scores continue to surpass the provincial average. More of our students wrote the test this year and we are encouraged to see the participation rate increase.

The Waterloo Region DSB's Character Development program has been recognized by the Ministry of Education. The Ministry highlights the Character Development website as a successful practice for providing online support and resources to help staff embed character development into the daily life of their schools and classrooms and highlights the character development work being done throughout the board.

Pictured here: Minister of Education, Leona Dombrowsky, centre, with Chair of the Board, Mike Ramsay, Trustee Harold Paisley,Mary Anne Richer -Principal, David Conlon -Vice Principal, Linda Fabi -Director of Education, Keith Halley -Vice Principal, Leanna Pendergast -MPP and Stephan Reist-Vice Principal during her visit to EDSS.

Students from the Waterloo Region District School Board were recognized on May 6, 2010 for their work within the community, at the Kitchener Youth Action Council (KYAC) Awards. KYAC is a group of volunteers, ages 14-24, who work with the City of Kitchener to serve as a voice for youth within the community and raise awareness of youth related issues. Congratulations to the following students for their achievements:

Harley Kaufmann-Sacrey, a student at Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute is a member of this year's Minister's Student Advisory Council. The Council is a group of 60 students that represent all areas of the education system (English, French, Public and Catholic) from all over the province. The Council meets a few times a year and shares ideas and advice with the Minister of Education on how to make the education system in Ontario the best is can be. Harley was selected from over 400 applications to be a member of the Council- congratulations Harley!

Waterloo Collegiate Institute won the Rotunda Gallery's annual juried High School Art Exhibit.

Students have created a series of 50 sequential images, in an exhibit called "Coming and Going." Students in two grade 11 art classes created two large-scale, deconstructed zeotypes, each 25 images in length. A zeotype is a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures.

The Concourse Oratoire is a French speaking competition that is held every year in Waterloo Region. The winners of the Regional competition will move on to compete in the Provincial contest, hosted by Canadian Parents for French and the Ontario Modern Language Teacher's Association on Saturday, May 8, 2010 at York University in Toronto.

Congratulations to the following schools who will be advancing to the Provincial round:

Principal of Lexington PS, Frank Ewald, challenged the staff and students to read 5000 pages. If the goal was met, Principal Ewald promised to shave off half of his beard for a day, or two days if 10,000 pages were read. Students and staff rose to the challenge and read a combined 103,000 pages. As promised, Principal Ewald shaved off half of his beard in an assembly yesterday.

Principal Ewald showes off his new beard