Comox Valley District
Parents Advisory Council

Subtitle

Committees

Parents have the opportunity to sit on many different committees with SD71 staff and trustees throughout the school year which deal with many important issues in the district. Parents are welcome to volunteer at any time by submitting their name, email address and phone number to any DPAC executive


Committee participation is addressed in our Constitution and Bylaws. A parent does not have to be a current DPAC executive or DPAC representative to participate on a committee. 


Communication Committee

May 2018
Budget Survey

The top 5 priority items that came out of a DPAC-delivered survey for the surplus budget are, in order from the 52 respondents:

1.      Add 5 FTE District Support Teachers & SLP

2.      Add 10 FTE for EA’s for Special Ed

3.      1 FTE Dedicated Teacher at Elem with Early Intervention

4.      Increase budget for Learning Resource in Libraries

5.      Add 0.4 FTE to bring physio & occupational therapy to 1.0 FTE each

On the items beyond the SD71 list, the highest response was to “Increase Non-Teaching Staff”, which is in line with the SD71 list prioritization.


June 2017
Communication Survey  

DPAC Presentation Date: October 2017
SD71 Presentation Date: November 9, 2017

The Survey: https://goo.gl/fQ8Bgm
Timeline: Created March 2017 w/ Kim Isles ( CanadianSchoolApps.ca )
Revised: May 23, 2017
Deployed: June 7, 2017 ( ~5700 email addresses )
Concluded: June 21, 2017

1. When and how was it collected? 
875 clicks, 581 survey submissions

2. What schools and ages is the data from? 
Mostly primary, but still a good spread

3. Who responded? 
39% Parents generally not engaged with PAC; 
36% PAC engaged parents, 
13.3% staff

4. Effectiveness of communication forms? 
VERY GOOD Email; 
GOOD PAC Notifications; 
OK Newsletters, School website, District website, Facebook

5. Other formes of communication noted? 
DIrect contact; 
Paper based; 
DIgital: Weekly teacher email / synervoice/ texts/ google drive / anotic / e-portfolio

“I think an ombudsman would be wonderful to have to communicate between parents and school board. If you want to talk in person, it isn't anyones 'Job' and they arent available.”

6. Level of satisfaction with communication? 
Primary 74%; 
Secondary 68%

7. Preferred Platform? 
43% computer; 
39% mobile; 
9% tablet; 
9% paper

What does the objective data say?

581 submissions representing an even mix of parents from primary and secondary, various schools and levels of engagement
~10 Minutes per submission = 5810 minutes →
97 hours of parent time + analysis time
Dominant method to access survey was a mobile device (phone / tablet)
As of June 2017, parents are generally satisfied with communication in SD71, with parents with primary-aged kids showing greater satisfaction
Parents generally want to receive information digitally (mobile = desktop), but there is a range of preferences

What parents really want to hear about?

Emergency Communications
Time Sensitive Updates
School Events
Parent-Teacher Interviews
Information pertinent to each child (e.g., report cards, class activities, student progress)

Requests for consistent forms and amounts of communication across years, schools and teachers. Also parents want to know early in the year how they’ll be communicated with.


School District 71 Committees


Calendar Committee


Parents are requested to participate with the Calendar Committee (usually in the Spring) to provide parent input. Feedback is often requested by surveying school PACs and reporting through a DPAC representative.


The Ministry of Education no longer stipulates the school calendar. School Districts can form their own school calendar.



District Hiring Committee


The Human Resources department of SD71 requires parents and staff be involved in the hiring process to participate in a one-day course regarding policy and procedure for interviewing and hiring. Contact your school's DPAC representative to have your name forwarded on if you are interested in District Hiring.



Standing & Ad hoc Committees

Standing and Ad hoc committees may be established when necessary by motion of the Executive or the Council. The Chair of the committee will report regularly to DPAC.

Documents

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