October 27, 2009

The Labrador School Board held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on October 23rd  and 24th in Labrador City.  As per the Board’s Constitution, the election of officers for the Executive of the Board took place.  The Board of Trustees is pleased to announce the following individuals were elected to Executive – Goronwy Price, Chairperson; Glenn Andrews, Vice-Chairperson; Heather Leriche, Treasurer; Patricia Loder, Secretary; and Bernie Bolger, Member at Large. There remains one vacancy for the position, member at large.  This vacancy will be filled in the near future to reflect representation from the coastal region of the school district.

The meeting began with the singing of O’Canada by the Primary Choir from A.P. Low   Primary School in Labrador City.  The Primary Choir consisted of ninety-six primary students, all of whom wore their “I-Care” tee-shirts during their vocal performance.  The Board would like to thank Mrs. Marlene Smith, Music teacher at A.P. Low Primary School for the opportunity to hear the beautiful young student voices singing with great enthusiasm as they performed their vocal selections. 

The Board received a presentation from Rose Neville, Principal and Ramona Noseworthy, Vice-Principal of A. P. Low Primary School.  The school administrators spoke about academic success on recent testing scores in the areas of English Language Arts and Mathematics.  The results demonstrated a significant improvement in English Language Arts and Mathematics.  The challenges identified by the school administration included safety concerns related to vehicle and recreational vehicle traffic on school property, and the need for a green space which would include a playground area for the benefit of students attending the primary school. 

New business included the approval of the Labrador School Board’s 2008-2009 Annual Report.

Other business included a review and discussion of programming initiatives on student academic performance on Public Examinations and Criterion Reference Testing.  The Board was provided with a detailed review of data on student performance in all district schools.  The Board was pleased to observe the positive student achievement trends throughout the district.  In addition,  other topics discussed included: professional development activities for the 2009-2010 school year, a discussion of the Professional Learning Communities initiative implemented in district schools; and an update on Adult Basic Education programs in the north coast communities of Nain and Hopedale.  In addition to programming initiatives, the audited financial statements were presented and approved by trustees.  A summary of maintenance completed during the 2008-09 school year was provided and capital application priorities for the Board were decided for the 2009-2010 year.  An update on staff recruitment and ongoing challenges related to teacher recruitment was also discussed at the meeting.

Mr. Price thanked trustees for their efforts and contribution to the School Board over the past four years and noted that the next School Board meeting will take place following school board elections which are scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2009.   Bruce Vey, Director of Education, also thanked trustees for their support and acknowledged the numerous accomplishments undertaken over the past four years to improve the education system for the benefit of students.

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