Annual Meeting April 9: Proposed provincial policy resolutions give parents, educators an opportunity to make an impact
Local discussion of proposed provincial policy resolutions is one of the most important activities that home and school associations go through each year: these resolutions, on issues of broad provincial importance, are the way that the parents, guardians, teachers, administrators and staff of home and school can speak with a collective voice and have a direct impact on education policy.
Resolutions will be voted on by delegates from each school at the PEI Home and School Federation Annual Meeting on April 9. Before that can happen, however, the resolutions must be discussed at meetings in each school, and a local vote taken on each one, to guide the school’s delegates in their voting. This year there will be 5 resolutions to discuss.
The Alberton Elementary Home and School Association has brought forward 2 of these: a resolution calling for the collaborative development of a policy for the use of social media in education, and a resolution calling for examination of a possible Teaching Profession Act for the province, following the lead of Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario.
The Spring Park Elementary Home and School Association has brought forward a resolution on French immersion, calling for an increase in the number of French immersion teachers and substitute teachers, and an increase in learning materials and teacher training to support them.
The Queen Elizabeth Home and School Association has brought forward a resolution calling for Automated External Defibrillators to be installed in every school in the province and for schools to ensure that at least 50% of staff have first aid and CPR training. Finally, the provincial board of the PEI Home and School Federation has brought forward a resolution calling for regular public reporting on, and eventual elimination of, school fees, referencing a 2008 commitment from government to begin this process.
The full text of all resolutions has been emailed to each Home and School president and is also available online at https://peihsf.ca/agm/resolution for reference. All member associations are encouraged to have a vigorous discussion of each resolution at their meetings in March or early April, to hold a vote on each one, and to send delegates to the Annual Meeting prepared to vote according.
Registration packages for the Annual Meeting will be mailed to each member association by March 15. Each association can send up to 5 voting delegates to the meeting (and an unlimited number of other members). Besides the consideration of the resolutions, the meeting is a chance for members from across the province to gather in discussion on issues in education, to celebrate successes, examine challenges, and to learn from each other about how to best carry out the Home and School mission.
The PEI Home and School Federation presented two very deserving educators with Extra Mile Awards during Teacher Staff Appreciation week this year: Kim Crozier of Queen Elizabeth Elementary and Linda Roach from Vernon River Consolidated, both kindergarten teachers, were nominated by their local Home and Schools and recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty to improve the total well-being of their students.
If you have questions about the Annual General Meeting, about resolutions, or about any aspect of Home and School, contact the Federation office at peihsf@edu.pe.ca or by telephone at (902) 620-3186 or, toll-free, 1-800-916-0664.