Parkview Public School Council - March 27, 2025

Parkview Public School Council

Thursday, March 27, 2025

In person – 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Welcome/Introductions –Meeting commenced at 7:05 pm.

Quorum: Quorum met with 9 voting members present.

Participants:
Aimun Puri (A. Puri),Cecilia Li (C. Li), Heidi So (H. So), Jenny Zhang (J. Zhang), Joyce Vickers (J. Vickers), Joanne Suh (J. Suh), Laura Lee (L. Lee), Melody He (M. He), Nazish Hirji (N. Hirji), Stephanie Cao (S. Cao), Wendy Xiao (W. Xiao)
Approval of minutes
Minutes from previous sessions were not tabled for approval at the March 27, 2025 meeting.
School update by the principal

Juniors off to provincials: The school is excited to recognize the Lego Robotics team for their participation in various competitions at Humber College. Representing the entire York region in Ontario, they have earned a spot in the provincial finals.
B the I in Kind Food: The food drive received a generous amount of donations, which were then delivered to the food bank.
Shadows of racism: Grade 6-8 participated in this program and conducted presentations for each class covering subjects such as identity, history and challenges faced by people of Asian descent. They emphasized on how people succeed despite such barriers. Currently, 6-8 grade students are working on expressions through visual art pieces such as dance, drama, music or spoken word etc. and many gravitate towards the visual component. The celebration of identity isn’t just restricted to older students in fact, professional learning community working with KG to grade 3 demonstrate self-expression by taking pictures of their hands and displaying other forms of artwork to showcase talent. The Markham Civic Centre will display grade 6 artwork from different schools of Markham in May.
Organization assembly: Some staff wanted to highlight the learning skills hence, a monthly heritage assembly is being conducted to have an opportunity to recognize excellence or improvement in learning skills for a teacher who has shown a strong performance.
Chatime bubble tea: The sale will begin on April 25th, with orders opening on School Cash Online starting April 1st. The school is collaborating with Chatime to host a monthly bubble tea sale, similar to the hot lunch fundraiser model. Parents will be able to make their selections, with options for drinks that are halal (without gelatin).

Pro grant:
The proposal for pro grant has been approved with a grant of $800. It was submitted to address topics related to technology, social media use, and online bullying for families. A survey will be conducted to determine which areas to prioritize when selecting a speaker. As a next step, Ministry of Education's PRO (Parents Reaching Out) funding is to be spent by mid-June.
Fun fair updates:

Food truck: Same food trucks from last year have been confirmed and additionally in talks with Jake’s on Main that may participate. An Ice cream truck and bubble tea are also being arranged.
Sponsors: Candy table and bubble station sponsors have been secured. Currently working on securing silent auction sponsors.
Activities: Mr. Hewson is working on planning activities and finalizing the total number of activities involving Grade 8 students. 3 high school students will come to volunteer. Robotics team will also come. Budgeting for activities this year is set higher than last year on account of inflation and supporting local business.
Poster launch: Underway by Miss Nakada
Raffle basket donations: Underway by Jenny Zhang.

Treasurer’s report (by H. So)
Approval of $1000 to donate to a charity on behalf of graduating class for June 2025.

Motion to approve: N. Hirji

Seconded: H. So

Approval of a budget of $3800 for activities for the funfair this year.

Motion to approve: W. Xiao

Seconded: H. So

Adjournment

Next parent council meeting was scheduled to be on May 29, 2025.

Meeting was adjourned at 8:05 pm and recorded by A. Puri.

These minutes are not a verbatim transcript, but a record of motions and discussions.

Thursday, February 20, 2025

In person - 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Welcome / Introductions

Meeting commenced at 7:01 pm

Quorum: Quorum met with 9 voting members present.

2. Participants

Aimun Puri (A. Puri),Ali Sadeghain (A. Sadeghain), Cecilia Li (C. Li), Heidi So (H. So), Jenny Zhang (J. Zhang), Laura Lee (L. Lee), Melody He (M. He), Michelle Lee (M. Lee), Nazish Hirji (N. Hirji), Sheshon Selvoroman (S. Selvoroman), Stephanie Cao (S. Cao), Wendy Lo (W. Lo), Wendy Xiao (W. Xiao)

3. Approval of Minutes

Minutes from previous sessions were not tabled for approval at the February 20, 2025 meeting.

4. School Update by the Principal

N. Hirji shared the agenda for the meeting. The acting principal, Joyce Vickers was welcomed by the board.

Ms. Vickers gave school update including details about trip to Lake St George, drumming group for black history month and learning skill assembly held on February 20, 2025. Sports for the rest of the year included basketball, badminton, soccer, and football. In addition, rugby tournaments and after school tournaments for Parkview students are in planning. It was also shared that student-led clubs are opening different opportunities for Parkview students. The board was also updated on the graduation planning which is currently in progress. A few observations were shared by Ms. Vickers regarding pickup and drop off by families. Due to snow and a small bus loop, there is disruption and violation of ‘no passing’ sign. Families parking in the bus loop is also causing disruption in the morning. The board was informed that these safety guidelines will be communicated in the upcoming newsletter.

5. Principal Profile

L. Lee, S. Selvoroman and N. Hirji have prepared the principal profile which has been submitted to the superintendent.

6. Movie Night

The movie night was a success with a net profit of $525. More importantly it was a networking opportunity to parents. The board also expressed appreciation to Mr. Suleiman and Mr. Hewson for the support in execution of movie night.

7. Treasurer's Report (by H. So)

The school utilized approximately $24,000 to pay for wishlist items. H. So shared expense details of movie night that was at a net profit of $525. Taking the wish list items into account, we have approximately $5000 in the account to allocate towards any future expenses that the Council approves. A $1000 may be allocated to graduating class (upon approval) after which the remaining balance will be $4000

8. Funfair

Proposed date: June 12, 2025

Committee chairs: A. Puri, L. Lee, W. Lo, and M. He.

The committee has different coordinator positions that need to be filled in. This will be posted in the family newsletter on Fridays to ask for volunteers.
Launch poster contest (organized by Ms. Nakada and Ms Mullet last year) will be conducted
W. Lo volunteered to be the food truck coordinator while J. Zhang volunteered to be activities coordinator
Timeline for volunteers was set to Feb 27, 2025
Wristband tickets prices were set to $20 (includes raffle tickets and access to all activities)
Ms. Vickers shared rules for the funfair such as raffles, inflatables and vendor advertisements not being permitted. Whereas, silent auction, inflatable games, board vendors for game rentals will be allowed at the funfair.

9. Pro Grant Areas of Focus (N. Hirji)

The board needs to identify focal areas and file an application to accommodate as many parents as possible. Areas of discussion included bullying, raising mentally strong/resilient children, responsible use of technology and impact of social media on mental health. A. Sadeghain will draft a paragraph and submit to the whole council for approval in the next meeting. School and council will work in conjunction to execute the grant funding.

10. Adjournment

Next parent council meeting was scheduled to be on March 6 at 7 pm
A sub-committee for funfair will meet via zoom on February 26 at 7:30 pm.

Meeting was adjourned at 8:17 pm and recorded by A. Puri.

These minutes are not a verbatim transcript, but a record of motions and discussions.