JANUARY, 2015

355 Annette Street, Toronto, Ontario M6P 1R3

Lorinda Mazza, Principal Dr. Jim Saraco Barbara Poplawski, Trustee, St. Cecilia Catholic Church Marisa Cicero, Olga Geryluk (CSAC Co-Chairs)

Victoria Purri, Vice-Principal Superintendent TCDSB, Ward 10 Father Joseph Tran, Pastor, Teresa Pavlin, CSAC Secretary

Maria Fauceglia, Secretary 416-222-8282 ext. 2486 416-512-3410, 416 -241-7130 416-769-8163 Sandy Moutinho, CSAC Treasurer

Lisa Grise, Carole Mills & Graziella Zampini, Clerk Typists

St. Cecilia Motto: Learning with Hearts, Hands and Minds - Growing in Harmony

St. Cecilia’s C.S.A.C. TCDSB has made revisions to the Secondary School Policy. They

are soliciting parent feedback until January 9th, 2015. Please take a mo-

ment to read through the draft via the Board website at

http://www.tcdsb.org/PolicyConsultation and send any comments, con-

cerns, suggestions electronically by clicking on the icon.

CSAC will be hosting 2 movie nights this year as a "thank you" to St.

Cecilia students and families for all their support and as an opportunity for

everyone to have some fun! There would be no charge to attend the

event. The first movie night will be for grades 4-8 and will take place on

Thursday, January 22, 2015 (the next day, Friday, Jan 23 is a PA

day). Please look for more information on this event and details on how to

reserve tickets in the next 1-2 weeks.

The movie night for JK-Gr. 3 students will be in June.

Next CSAC Meeting

Our next meeting will be on January 14th at 7pm. Our principal, Lori

Mazza, will be discussing the topic of St. Cecilia student EQAO scores

(large scale, standardized testing for grades 3 and 6), specifically related to

math. Everyone is welcome and childcare is provided.

REMINDER - Social Media Safety Presentation on February 4th

We want to remind you about the media safety session renowned expert

Paul Davis will be holding on the evening of Wednesday, February 4th for

St. Cecilia parents. This is a very important issue - Paul will share a

wealth of empowering information and valuable tips. For more info on

Paul, please visit: http://socialnetworkingsafety.net/sample-page/.

Wishing you a Happy New Year with hope for many blessings in the year

to come.

Marisa Cicero & Olga Geryluk, CSAC Co-chairs

Go to www.saintcecilia100.ca

to comment and contribute to our school’s

100th Anniversary.

Principal’s Message Happy New Year! 2015 brings with it some exciting events

for Canada and Toronto including the Women’s World

Cup Soccer in June, the Pan Am Games in July and today’s

Junior Hockey Final. In May we’ll be hosting our

St. Cecilia Centenary Open House celebration, and we’ll

soon be selling the leaves for our Centenary Tree. Notices

will be sent out soon explaining the ordering process. If

you do not receive our email notices and would prefer to

switch from paper, to this more timely form, please let

Ms. Maria know in the office so she can add you to the

distribution list.

The new year has brought winter back too! It looks like

January and February are set to make up for the milder

temperatures in November and December by keeping us

very cold. The students need to be bundled up well to

combat the chilling wind effects so typical of January.

Also, make sure all garments are labelled so that if some-

thing is lost, it can be returned to the owner.

We welcome back Mrs. Pelech (SK-1) after her leave, and

we say good-bye to Mrs. Zurawik (JK) who has left early

for her leave. Ms. Malek-Ossefyans will be temporarily

replacing Mrs. Zurawik until a long term occasional

teacher is hired in her stead. We wish her all the best.

Lorinda Mazza, Principal

SCHOOL HOURS Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

(416) 393-5218

School Website:

http://stcecilia.tcdsb.org

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Virtue of the Month: cOURAGE

Le courage est le juste milieu entre la peur et l’audace. Aristotle

While January sees the beginning of the New Year, many of us also regard it

as the true beginning of the long, hard winter. In this sense it is apt that the

virtue for January is COURAGE. The quote for this month is Isaiah 41:10,

“Do not be afraid; I am with Y ou” “Be not afraid!” is also what the angel tells

Mary at the annunciation. (Lk 1:30) and at the

resurrection, another angel uses the same words to

tell the women at the tomb that Christ has risen.

(Mt 28:5) Jesus himself uses these words to

strengthen his apostles. (Jn 6:20) It takes a lot of

courage to practice and be true to our Catholic

faith. This month at St. Cecilia C.S. we will

demonstrate our courage to live our faith by being

true to our gospel values and being ‘upstanders’ in

our school community.

St. Cecilia ECO Team Wins Project Neutral Contest!

Thank you to all who completed the Project Neutral Survey. It was a success and

St. Cecilia came out on top winning the $500 prize. The survey's aim was to help

students and parents track and decrease their household greenhouse gas footprint.

The Eco Team will be meeting in January to discuss what eco initiatives they would

like to use the prize money for. Go Green and Go Tigers!!!!

St. Cecilia Glee Club Performs for Patients

On Monday December 8th, the

St. Cecilia Glee performed

Christmas carols for the patients of

Runnymede Health Care Centre.

Students also had the opportunity

to meet with patients and staff af-

terwards to deliver homemade

Christmas cards.

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“Christmas Came to Me This Way…”

“Christmas Came to Me This Way…” was a wonderful presentation of

the true meaning of Christmas. Many thanks to the staff and students

for their tremendous efforts to produce such a heartfelt production. We

would like to acknowledge the incredible efforts of Mrs. Spalding to pro-

duce, direct and teach the songs and for her unending attention to all

the details of the concert. A very special thank you to Father Joseph for

allowing us to use the church for the evening.

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TCDSB 2014—2015

SCHOOL YEAR CALENDAR

First Day of Classes September 2, 2014

Thanksgiving Day October 13, 2014

Christmas Break Dec 22, 2014–Jan 2, 2015

Family Day February 16, 2015

Mid-Winter Break March 16–20, 2015

Good Friday April 3, 2015

Easter Monday April 6, 2015

Victoria Day May 18, 2015

Last day of classes June 25, 2015

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY DAYS

Nov 14, 2014 Parent-Teacher Conferences

Dec 5, 2014 Faith Day

Jan 23, 2015 Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting

Feb 13, 2015 Parent-Teacher Conferences

June 5, 2015 Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting

June 26, 2015 Provincial Education Priorities

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School Masses and Sacraments

January 16 @10:00am Courage

February 18 @12:45pm Ash Wednesday

March 10 @ 10:00 Lent

March 25 Lenten Reconciliation

April 9 @ 12:45pm Easter Mass

Saturday, April 11 Confirmation

April 24 @ 6:00pm Sacrament of Reconcilia-

tion

Saturday, April 25 First Holy Communion

May 22 @ 10:00am Caregivers

June 16 @ 6:30pm Graduation

June 25 @ 10:00am End of Year Mass

Christmas Bazaar Raffle

Winners for December 6, 2014

#1. Gloria Borjas Pair of Toronto Maple Leaf Tickets

#2. Gabriele Sims 48" LED HDTV

#3 Leny Sferlazza Pair of Toronto Raptor Tickets

#4 Yalem Sisay Pair of Toronto Raptor Tickets

#5. Angela Tung Pair of Toronto Raptor Tickets

#6. Sherry Hughes won the Collector Victorian

Minnie

#7 Lucy Trozanoswky Kids Discovery Laptop

#8. Sara Obonsawin Teapot/Infuser

#9 Janine Mitsuki Godiva Gift Basket

#10. Neary Troeung $10 Rona Gift Card

#11 Mike Mann $10 Rona Gift Card

#12 Isabella Tuzi $10 Giant Tiger Gift Card

Congratulations!!

Many thanks to the community for

your generous support. The raffle was

a great success. Thank you to The

Grade 8 Confirmandi Domenic M,

Betty S, Christopher T, as well as Emi-

ly W and Amy S who helped out with

acts of Hospitality at the 21st Annual

St. Cecilia Bazaar and Raffle at St.

Cecilia Church on Saturday, December

6. A very special thank you to Mr. Rob

Tuzi for his tremendous efforts in

coordinating the event and raffle.

St. Cecilia's Choir Sings at Annual St. Paul's Christmas Concert

On Friday, December 5th the St. Cecilia

School Choir sang at the annual St. Paul

of the Apostle Christmas concert. The

choir sang beautifully to a full audience,

and had the opportunity to perform with

a local community band. Thank you to

our choir member parents for your sup-

port!

Virtue of the Month Assembly

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Recipients of the ‘Virtue of Peace’ Award Recipients of the ‘Virtue of Charity’ Award

Thank you to Mrs. Slywynska, Mme. Nicoyishakiye, Mme. Calcada, Mrs. Spalding and the grade 5 students for

their gifts of music and leadership in their presentation of the Virtues of Peace and Charity.

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Christmas Spirit Week Christmas Spirit Week was full of surprises

at St. Cecilia’s. On each day of the week the

students and staff had the opportunity to

demonstrate their Christmas spirit by: wear-

ing Christmas colours (red/green), dressing

up like a Christmas Character, wearing PJs

for Pajama Day, decorating their classroom

door for a friendly competition, and trying

out a new hairdo for Crazy Christmas Hair

Day. The staff also participated in an addi-

tional activity and wore their favourite

Christmas sweater. Thank you to Mme.

Verelst , Mr. La Gamba and the student

council for making this week very enjoyable.

Guidance Corner Welcome back from what I hope was a restful and blessed holiday. I wish the school community all

the best throughout the New Year!

Setting Goals

During this time of new beginnings, I hope that we remember to take the opportunity to evaluate

goals that we have set for ourselves. This would be a good time to review the six Learning Skills

and Work Habits and think about ways that we can grow in these areas. We can find the six Learning Skills and Work

Habits on the first page of the report card.

They include: Responsibility, Collaboration, Initiative, Organization, Independent Work and Self-Regulation.

PARKING PROBLEMS

Our staff and teachers at St. Cecilia are continuously

experience difficulty obtaining a parking spot, especial-

ly in the morning in our school parking lot. Please do

not use the staff parking lot between 8:00am—

3:30pm. Parents wanting to drop-off or pick-up their

children, must do so on Evelyn Avenue. Keep in mind

that the area in front of the school is a bus-loading zone,

please do NOT park in the bus loading zone – PICK-UP

OR DROP-OFF only please! Unauthorized vehicles

will be TAGGED AND/OR TOWED AT THE OWN-

ERS EXPENSE. Please do not

block the parked vehicles or the

north fence, this is a fire hazard.

Please note that there is extra park-

ing on Evelyn Avenue north of An-

nette Street and your children can

cross safely with our crossing

Winter is Here Canada’s winters are very cold and our first week back will be no

exception. Please ensure that your child comes to school with ap-

propriate winter wear: heavy coat, hat, mittens/gloves, boots, snow

pants etc. The students will be outside for recesses unless the tem-

perature is –20 degrees or below. Please be aware that if your child

is well enough to attend school then he/she will be sent out with the

other classmates to enjoy some fresh winter air.

Page 8

Winter is Here And so is the winter weather. Get all the latest information about

cancellations and closures throughout the winter months, and find

out what’s happening across the Board all year long by following

@TCDSB on Twitter.

CSAC Training Session: Parent Engage-ment, Recruiting/Retaining Members and Succession Planning

Speaker: Carolyn Anco, Ministry of Education

January 7, 2015 7-9 p.m.

Catholic Education Centre, 80 Sheppard Avenue East

Interactive Parent Fair—For Parents of Kindergarten Students Help your child improve his/her: Listening and understanding skills,

speaking skills and literacy skills

Hosted by the Toronto Catholic School Board (TCDSB) Speech and

Language Department

Two 2-part sessions at two locations:

St. Jane Frances, 2745 Jane Street, Downsview on Tuesday,

January 20th and Tuesday, February 24th 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm St. Maria Goretti, 21 Kenmark Boulevard, Scarborough on Thurs-

day, January 22nd and Thursday, February 26th 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm

CPIC Speakers Series: Bullies No More; Empowering Independence -Featuring Alyson

Schafer, Internationally Acclaimed Parenting Expert

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 at Don Bosco Catholic Secondary

School

2 St. Andrews Blvd., (Islington, north of Dixon Rd.) 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Free Parking. Child-minding Available (for children aged 5–10)

See poster for full details. Final Alyson Schafer CPIC flyer.pdf

Monthly Update from

the Board : January 2015

Kindergarten Registration Registration will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 8th. Visit

the TCDSB website for details: http://www.tcdsb.org/

programsservices/earlyyears/kindergartenregistration/pages/

default.aspx

French Immersion and Extended French Information evenings at schools across the city continue in the new

year. For a complete schedule, visit the board’s website http://

www.tcdsb.org/News/othernews/2015/Pages/French-Immersion-and-

Extended-French-Information.aspx

Registration for Night School Registration starts January 14th and continues through to February

13th. Classes will begin February 17th. Information can be found

online: www.tcdsb.org/continuinged

Applications for Post-Secondary Studies Application deadline for University is January 14th.

http://www.ouac.on.ca/

College application deadline is February 1st—Apply by January 15th

for a chance to win $500 to $2,000.

http://www.ontariocolleges.ca/home

Board Seeking Feedback on Draft Policies The Board invites parents, students and staff to provide input into two

draft policies: the new CSAC policy and the new Admissions and

Placement policy for secondary school students. For information and

the online feedback form, visit the website here: http://www.tcdsb.org/

news/othernews/2014/pages/consultation-csac-and-admissions-

policies.aspx

Deadline: January 9th

Parents Invited to Consider Serving on Portuguese

Advisory Committee One parent will be selected from among the applicants. The Commit-

tee includes representatives from among Trustees, staff, parents and

students, with the mandate to advise the Board on Policies, Programs

and Services which foster equitable education and greater student

achievement for students of Portuguese heritage. Interested candi-

dates should submit their application form by Wednesday, January

14, 2015 to the attention of Carla Marchetti:

carla.marchetti@tcdsb.org, fax #416-512-4992 or mail:

Carla Marchetti, Coordinator of IL/Parent/Community Engagement,

Community Relations, 80 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto, ON M2N

6E8. Application form and more information here:

http://www.tcdsb.org/FORPARENTS/Pages/Current-Openings--

Parent-Membership-on-Commmittees.aspx

Family Literacy Day January 27th

Take time to read with your children, or encourage them to put away

the electronics and spend some time engaged in a good book.

TORONTO CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEES 2014 – 2015

Ward 1 Joseph Martino Ward 2 Ann Andrachuk Ward 3 Sal Piccinnini Ward 4 Patrizia Bottoni Ward 5 Maria Rizzo Ward 6 Frank D’Amico Ward 7 Michael Del Grande, Chair Ward 8 Gary Tanuan Ward 9 Barbara Poplawski Ward 10 Angela Kennedy Ward 11 Nancy Crawford, Vice-Chair

Hanna McGroarty, Student Trustee Chris MacDonald, Student Trustee Angela Gautier, Director of Education