IT STARTS

in the Schools

April 2016

UPCOMING EVENTS

April Board-wide Volunteer Appreciation Month

TCDSB staff and students are invited to share

photos of their volunteers in action using the

hashtag #FamilyOfVolunteers

April Board-wide Genocide Awareness and Prevention Month

April Board-wide

Elementary and Secondary Schools

TCDSB Elementary and Secondary Music

Festival

April 1 Board-wide Autism Awareness Day

Schools and offices will participate in a board-

wide dance to the song “We Are Family” and

will raise the Autism Awareness flag. Exact

times will vary from location to location.

April 1 East York Curling Club

901 Cosburn Ave, East York, ON

(416) 396-2816

TDCAA Recreational Curling

April 1 St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School

636 Glenholme Avenue, Toronto, ON

416-393-5236

Dancing Classroom Competitions

10:15am

April 2 Board-wide - Elementary Schools

Madonna Catholic Secondary School

20 Dubray Avenue, Downsview, ON

416-393-5506

TEAMS Math Olympics

April 6 &

April 7

Cardinal Carter Academy for the

Arts

36 Greenfield Avenue, Toronto, ON

416-393-5556

The Heart in Motion: Celebrating 25 Years

of Artistic Excellence

7:30 p.m.

April 7 St. Timothy Catholic School

25 Rochelle Crescent, Toronto, ON

416-393-5298

Girls Only Individual Grade (1-8) Chess

City Finals

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

April 8 O’Connor House

Senator O’Connor Catholic School

60 Rowena Drive, Scarborough, ON

416-393-5505

OTF Celebration with The Honorable

Michael Coteau, Minister of Tourism

Culture and Sport and Member of

Provincial Parliament for Don Valley East

9:45 a.m.

April 8 St. Timothy Catholic School

25 Rochelle Crescent, Toronto, ON

416-393-5298

Open Individual Grade (1-8) Chess City

Finals

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

April 10 –

April 16

Board-wide Volunteer Appreciation Week

Celebrating our family of volunteers

April 12 St. James Catholic School

230 Humbercrest Boulevard, York,

Ontario

416-393-5275

The Ned Show will be performing at St.

James School

2:15 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

April 14 Father John Redmond Catholic

School

28 Colonel Samuel Smith Park Drive,

Etobicoke, ON

416-393-5540

Kaleidoscope of Art 2016

6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

April 20 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto

416.222.8282

Exemplary Practice Awards

Celebrating innovation and excellence in

Catholic Education

7:00 p.m.

April 21 Board-wide

Cineplex Cinemas Yonge-Dundas

10 Dundas St E #402, Toronto, ON

416-977-9262

Toronto Catholic Family Film Festival

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (by invitation only)

April 22 Board-wide TCDSB Community Clean-up

April 22 St. Francis de Sales Catholic School

333 Firgrove Crescent, Downsview, ON

416-393-5366

10th Annual Spanish Spelling Contest

Awards Ceremony

10:00 a.m.

April 22 Board-wide

Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282

Administrative Assistants’ Day

April 22 Notre Dame Catholic Secondary

School

12 Malvern Avenue, Scarborough, ON

416-393-5501

Dance Off! 2016

April 23 St. Maurice Catholic School

45 Kingsview Blvd., Etobicoke, ON

416-393-5379

St. Maurice 40th Anniversary Celebration

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

April 26 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto

416-222-8282

TCDSB Student Trustee Elections

A student trustee will be elected to the Board

of Trustees for a two-year term

4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

April 26 Board-wide – Female Students

Bishop Marrocco/Merton Secondary

School

1515 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON

416-393-5545

3rd Annual WENTT Conference

(Women Entering Non Traditional Trades)

April 28 Board-wide - Secondary Schools

Father Henry Carr Secondary School

1760 Martin Grove Road, Toronto, ON

416-393-5521

Mock Criminal Bail Hearing & Mock

Criminal Trial

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

April 30 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Ave. East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282 ext. 2302

Parent Engagement Resources Event

9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

May 1 –

May 6

Board-wide Catholic Education Week

May 2 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Ave. East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282 ext. 2302

TCDSB Awards Night

Celebrating the accomplishments of leaders in

our Catholic community

7:00 p.m.

May 2 Nathan Philips Square

100 Queen St W, Toronto, ON

416-203-2600

Music Monday

St. Denis students will be performing in a joint

celebration at Nathan Phillips Square

10:00 a.m.

May 2 Madonna Catholic Secondary School

20 Dubray Avenue, North York, ON

416-393-5506

Intermediate W5H City Championship

7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

May 2 Francis Libermann Catholic School

4640 Finch Ave. East, Scarborough, ON

416-393-5524

His Eminence, Cardinal Thomas Collins

Blesses a Painting of the Holy Family

10:30 a.m.

May 3 Board Room

Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Ave. East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282 ext. 2302

Student Mass for Catholic Education Week

10:00 a.m.

May 4 Our Lady of Wisdom Catholic School

10 Japonica Road, Scarborough, ON

416-393-5273

Blessing and Opening of Addition at Our

Lady of Wisdom Catholic School

5:00 p.m.

May 5 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Ave. East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282 ext. 2302

Team Chess City Finals

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

May 6 Montecassino Event Venue and Hotel

3710 Chesswood Dr, Downsview,

416-630-8100

OAPCE 77th Annual Conference and AGM Networking Reception - 7:00 p.m.– 10:00 p.m.

May 7 Montecassino Event Venue and Hotel

3710 Chesswood Dr, Downsview,

416-630-8100

OAPCE 77th Annual Conference and AGM Conference, AGM, Mass & Dinner

7:30 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

May 7 St. Nicholas Catholic School

33 Amarillo Drive, Scarborough, ON

416-393-5308

St. Nicholas 50th Anniversary

Mass at 11:00 a.m., followed by a barbecue

lunch

May 9 Catholic Education Centre

80 Sheppard Ave. East, Toronto, ON

416-222-8282 ext. 2302

Play It Forward Celebration

Participating schools invited to a culminating

celebration including a closing Mass.

10:30 a.m.

May 11 Sala Caboto at Villa Colombo

40 Playfair Ave., Toronto, ON

Victor Angelosante Awards Dinner

To recognize and honour the many Coaches

and Convenors who volunteer their time

through TCSAA on behalf of

TCDSB student.

Presentations begin at 6:00 p.m.

May 12 St. James Catholic School

230 Humbercrest Boulevard, York,

Ontario

416-393-5275

Welcome to Kindergarten Evening

6:30 p.m.

May 14 Loretto College School

151 Rosemount Ave., Toronto, ON

416-393-5511

Loretto College School 100th Anniversary

Reception at 3:00 p.m.

May 27 St. Augustine Catholic School

98 Shoreham Drive, Toronto, ON

416-393-5328

Blessing of Kindergarten addition to St.

Augustine Catholic School

9:30 a.m.

May 28 Cardinal Carter Academy for the

Arts

36 Greenfield Avenue, Toronto, ON

416-393-5556

Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts 25th

Anniversary Alumni Reunion and Show

RECENT HIGHLIGHTS

Congratulations to the 2016 TDCAA Champions:

Father Henry Carr OFSAA Champs Congratulations to the senior boys basketball

team from Father Henry Carr Catholic

Secondary School for winning their first ever

OFSAA title.

Bishop Allen Sr Girls Hockey Champs

2016 Congratulations to the senior girls hockey team

from Bishop Allen. They are the 2016 TDCAA

champions.

St. Dorothy City Champs Congratulations to St. Dorothy’s intermediate

girls basketball team who recently won the

school’s first City Championship in intermediate

basketball. Click here to view photos

TCDAA AA Senior Boys Basketball

Champions Congratulations to St. Mary’s Secondary Sr.

Boys Basketball team who won TCDAA ‘AA’

championship. Click here to view photos.

Bishop Allen TDCAA Senior Girls

Volleyball Champions Click here to view photos.

Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton

TDCAA Boys Indoor Soccer

Champions

Click here to see a full list of TDCAA winners

and upcoming events.

St. Wilfrid TCSAA

Intermediate Basketball

City Champions On Friday, March 4th, the Boys

Intermediate Basketball defeated

St. Jean De Brebeuf to become

the TCSAA City Champions!!

Congratulations boys and their

coaches for all your hard work

and dedication.

Click here to view photos.

THINKfast at Archbishop

Romero From February 26th to 27th, 30

students and 8 staff members from

Blessed Archbishop Romero

Catholic Secondary School hosted

their eighth annual THINKfast

event. THINKfast, a Development

and Peace initiative, is a 24-hour

fast. The staff and student

participants began their fast after

dinner on Thursday evening and

ended on Friday with a community

meal. The goal of THINKfast is to

bring youth together to learn more

about, create awareness for, discuss, and fundraise for social justice issues at local, national, and

international levels. This year the students focused their attention on mental illness. The event included a

variety of activities – games, reflections, guest speakers, and a film. Their efforts brought in $621. The

money was donated to the Griffin Centre and a local shelter supporting those who suffer from mental

illness.

Click here to view photos.

Our Lady of Sorrows Wins Marlies

Middle School Meltdown Hockey

Tournament

On Friday February 26th, various

elementary schools from the TCDSB

competed in the Toronto Marlies Middle

School Meltdown Tournament. On Saturday

February 27th St. Gregory and Our Lady of

Sorrows played in the championship game.

Our Lady of Sorrows defeated St. Gregory

4-1 to take home the cup!

Click here to view photos.

TCDSB High School Debating

Competition Congratulations to the St. Michael’s Choir

School Senior Debating Team - consisting

of Paul Picotte, Sebastien Duckett, Jacob

Brozyna, Martin Halek and Amit Nehru,

for winning the 1st Annual TCDSB High

School Debating Competition.

Congratulations to Sebastien Duckett in

particular, for being awarded top debater in

the tournament. Click here to view photos.

OMNI Teacher of the Month Congratulations to Christine Nisan from Senator

O’Connor Seconary School named Teacher of the Month

for OMNI's Golden Apple Award contest.

Click here to view photos.

St. Fidelis Learn Safety through Kids, Cops & Computers

The Kids, Cops and

Computers program

taught the students at St.

Fidelis about safety,

cyberbullying and how

to be safe within their

school environment. The

members of the program

were lucky to meet

Sargent Moore, who is

part of the K9 Corporate

Unit. He showed them

special tricks and tips

that the dogs are trained

to do while they are in certain situations. They also had the chance to sit in the police car and learned

more about what exactly police officers do.

Click here to view photos.

Msgr Percy Johnson Celebrates

Closing of African Canadian

Heritage Month A huge celebration marked the end of

African Canadian Heritage Month at Msgr

Percy Johnson, featuring a blend of music,

dance and theatre, including a presentation

of the Underground Railroad.

Click here to view photos.

St. Matthias Celebrates Carnaval St. Matthias celebrated the French Carnival with games,

projects and learning walks through different activities.

Students also had the opportunity to try French food such

as croissants and biscuits!

Click here to view photos.

Breakfast for Perfect

Attenders On Thursday, February 25th

Francis Libermann Catholic High

School celebrated a group of

students who had achieved

perfect attendance for the first 100

days of school. There were 63

students invited to a special

breakfast, before school, ensuring

their record of perfect attendance

remained. During a hot breakfast,

which was catered and served by

the Libermann Family Studies students, each honoree was presented with a certificate to commemorate

their accomplishment.

Click here to view photos.

Youth Ordinandi Event 2016 Students from across the TCDSB participating in the 2016 Youth Ordinandi Event.

The day featured prayer, song and ice breaker activities, as well as presentations by newly ordained sisters,

priests and other religious guests. Students also heard from Cardinal Thomas Collins, and shared lunch

with the Ordinandi and special guests from the TCDSB.

Click here to view photos.

Secondary French Public Speaking Contest Results Congratulations to all the Secondary Schools who participated in the Finals of the French Public Speaking

competition February 25 & 26, 2016 at the CEC. Click here to view a list of winning students in each

category.

St. Cecilia Junior Choir Places 2nd in Kiwanis Music Festival Members of the St. Cecilia Junior

Choir performed at Crescent

Private School for their

competition in the Kiwanis Music

Festival. The choir participated in

the two-part all girls competition

against St. Clements Private

School. The choir sang

wonderfully and received a lot of

positive feedback from their

adjudicators, scoring 86% and

receiving silver.

Click here to view photos.

Choir Members Sing at St.

Patrick Feast Mass The grade three to six choir members

of St. Cecilia sang at the annual St.

Patrick Feast Mass at St. Cecilia

Parish, on February 28. The mass

was celebrated by his Eminence

Cardinal Collins. The choir

members sang three solo pieces, two

with the St. Cecilia Parish Choir,

including Irish Blessing, I Cannot

Tell, and a hymn in Gaelic with Irish

harpist Eithne Heffernan.

Click here to view photos.

Celebration of Cultural

Diversity Multicultural day is a major event at

the school, and a real celebration of the

school’s rich cultural diversity. The

event includes a talent showcase. After

the showcase students, staff and

visitors roam the school and visit

various cultural pavilions. Cristina

Martins MPP accepted an invitation to

attend.

Click here to view photos.

Moccasin Making Workshop Emily Peluso, footwear designer and

volunteer for the Two Ten Footwear

Foundation volunteered her time to share

her passion and knowledge of the shoe

industry with students enrolled in the

Fashion and Native Studies classes at St.

Joseph’s College School. Students

experienced first-hand what essential steps

are involved in the construction of shoes

and many walked away with a greater

appreciation for the art.

Click here to view photos.

ShareLife Canada Poster Contest Winner Congratulations to Salina B, student of St. Luigi for winning for best poster in the ShareLife Canada

poster contest.

Celebratory Mass for

Cardinal Carter Academy’s

25th Anniversary Cardinal Carter Academy for the

Arts began celebrations for the

school’s 25th anniversary with

special presentations and a Mass on

March 1st. In attendance was the

school’s first principal, Millie

Seguin. Bishop Boissonneau

blessed the school’s chapel to

mirror the blessing of the school by

Cardinal Carter in 1990. A video

taken at the original blessing was

shown to the audience, which

included remarks made by the late

Cardinal Carter at the celebration 25 years ago. Current staff who worked at the school for the past 25

years were acknowledged. Director of Education Angela Gauthier and Superintendent of Education John

Shain presented the principal, Anne Bellissimo, with a framed certificate of congratulations. City

Councillor John Filion extended congratulations to the school on its milestone anniversary. The Mass of

Celebration was con-celebrated by the Most Reverend Bishop Boissonneau with Fathers Obinna and

Laurencic.

Click here to view photos.

Hoza! Speaks to Fidelis

about Love, Forgiveness,

Nelson Mandela and Black

History Month Derek Thorne and Kevin Fell

from Hoza! Creative Mediation

visited St. Fidelis School on

Friday, March 4th, 2016, and

held assemblies for our students

to teach about the virtues of love

and forgiveness and about

Nelson Mandela, in recognition

of Black History Month. Hoza! is

an African word to mean STOP, START or CHANGE. Hoza!’s mission is to help put a STOP to negative

thinking and behaviors, and facilitate CHANGE that is needed to START living in a more socially just

world. The assemblies were a joyous celebration and a deeply touching tribute to the life of Nelson

Mandela. They were filled with live music, song, story, dance, multi-media, and student and staff

participation.

Click here to view photos.

Mindfulness Ambassador

Council Francis Libermann students are

participating in Mindfulness

Ambassador Councils (MAC).

Students and teachers meet twice

a month to share in this deeply

reflective process. The meditation

involved focuses on Christ, and

brings students deep inside of

themselves, and at the same time,

deep into the heart of God. The

Mindfulness Ambassador

Council (MAC) program offers

youth a forum to meet face to face

and learn about constructive ways

for addressing personal, social

and community challenges.

Click here to view photos.

Celtic Canadian Heritage Month Schools from across the Board gathered at

St. Bonaventure Parish Hall to celebrate

Celtic Heritage Month. A celebration of

Mass, student performances, displays and

refreshments were featured.

Click here to view photos.

Redhawks Win Provincials Congratulations to the cheer squad from Father

John Redmond for winning the provincial

championships for the fourth consecutive year.

Click here to view photos.

Dante Students Visit China Dante students are making history as the first TCDSB student group to visit China.

Dante students, along with their Principal , Flora Cifelli and Superintendent Gina Iuliano Marrello and

Dante Teachers flew to Beijing on Thursday, March 10 to connect with Dante’s “sister school”, Beijing

50, where they will take part in classroom activities. An opening ceremony welcomed the group. Ms.

Cifelli and Ms. Marrello were invited to address everyone, which included their School Director, other

officials and school educators. After a week in Beijing, they visited Xi’an to explore some of the historic

sites, including the Terra-cotta warriors, before returning to Toronto.

Click here to view photos.

Loretto Abbey Team

Springs into 2nd Place at

Engineering Idol The student team “Spring Step”

from Loretto Abbey placed 2nd in

the Engineering Idol competition.

Presented by the Professional

Engineers of Ontario (Etobicoke),

the competition brings together

teams from 10 selected high

schools to participate in a

challenging engineering task.

The teams were assigned the

same engineering task related to

the design of a prosthetic hand to

perform tasks. Each team will

consist of 4 – 6 students with a

teacher or supervisor for moral support. It is a design & build competition giving students the opportunity

to create an effective prosthetic hand that will be able to perform a number tasks outlined in the launch

document. It enabled students to brainstorm creative ways of using pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical and

mechanical methods to facilitate finger and hand motions. Other participating TCDSB schools included

Father John Redmond and Michael Power/St. Joseph. Click here to view photos.

Gryphons Robotics Head to World Championships Congratulations goes out to the Chaminade College School Robotics Team: Team 2634 - The

Gryphons, on their FIRST Robotics Greater Toronto East Regional Championship. With this win, the

Gryphons qualify for the World Championships that take place in St. Louis, Missouri at the end of

April.

Click here to view photos.

Ontario Model Parliament Two of Blessed Cardinal Newman's Grade 12

students, Adebisi Akande and Domenic

Jayetileke, participated in an amazing

experience at the Ontario Model Parliament

from February 24-26, 2016. The Legislative

Assembly of Ontario Model Parliament is a

new educational program designed for civic-

minded high school students in grades 10 to

12, who are interested in current events and

provincial issues. This unique educational

experience brought together 107 students,

representing each of the province’s ridings, for

a three-day Model Parliament Program in Toronto. Students had the opportunity to meet key figures in

Ontario’s parliament as well as learn about the history of the provincial legislature and the legislative

process through workshops and presentations. Adebisi and Domenic had the opportunity to forge new

friendships and meet like-minded students from across Ontario.

Click here to view photos.

St. John’s Mini Swim Meet St. John’s students participate in the mini swim meet which is a precursor to the board-wide swim meet

later this spring. Click here to view photos.

.

Junior W5H City

Championship Congratulations to St. Michael’s Choir

School who were named 2016 Junior

W5H City Champions.

Click here to view photos.

Voices that Challenge Event

2016 TCDSB Secondary student leaders

participated in the Voices that

Challenge event on Tuesday March

22, 2016 at St. Michael's College.

The Keynote Speakers for this

year’s event

Emmanuel Jal

Craig Kielburger

Click here to view photos.

Skyping Out of this World!

Students from Holy Angels Catholic School had the

opportunity to skype with a Canadian astronaut,

Jeremy Hansen. From NASA in Houston, Texas,

Jeremy answered students’ questions and inspired

them with his knowledge and personal anecdotes.

He is preparing for a future trip to space. His final

words to the students is that it comes down to

believing! Believe in yourself because you have

something important to do in life and you have

contributions to make to Canada and the

world.” Thank you to Jeremy Hansen and the

Canadian Space Agency for this unique learning

opportunity.

Click here to view photos.

Brebeuf Students’ Pilgrimage through

Rome While on their pilgrimage in Rome, with the

supervision of Fr Thomas and Monsignor Owen,

Brebeuf students had an opportunity to visit Rome.

On their journey, the students had an opportunity to

come face-to-face with Pope Francis. It was truly, a

pilgrimage for our young men over this Holy Season.

Click here to view photos.

Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month. The students at Blessed Margherita wore green on Thursday, March 24th to mark Cerebral Palsy

Awareness Month. The students raised over $150 for the Ontario Federation of Cerebral Palsy.

Click here to view photos.

Bowling League for Students with Multiple Exceptionalities Our TCDSB Multiple Exceptionality bowling league has grown quite substantially since its humble

beginnings from serving Ms. Bottos’ 8 students at St. Roch school. There are now 20 Multiple

Exceptionality Classes from TCDSB elementary and secondary schools participating in this initiative.

Ms. Bottos is currently working collaboratively with the staff from St. Basil, Father Henry Carr and

Monsignor Percy Johnson to create a division where Secondary Students with multiple exceptionalities

can engage and participate in this most unique bowling league as well. A very special welcome to the

York District School Board’s Woodbridge College, as they too have joined the Bowling League that

provides social and physical interactions among our most precious and prized athletes. The end of year

Bowling League Celebration and Banquet will take place on June 8th at La Victoria Banquet Hall. The

students will be treated to a sit down lunch, trophies, and trophy presentation. The lunch is generously

being funded by Con Drain's Giovanni Cotognini.

Click here to view photos.

Rally Against

Child Labour The grade 5 students

at St. Francis Xavier

School read a unit on

Children Who Work.

They were shocked

and appalled in

learning that children

their age and younger

were working. After

reading the tragic

story of Iqbal Masih,

a Pakistani child who became a symbol of abusive child labor in the developing world, our students

decided to investigate further and to their disbelief learned that there are many countries that still use

child labour. The grade 5 students at St.Francis Xavier wanted to learn more about this pressing issue

and wanted to bring awareness. On March 11th, the grade 5 students prepared and performed their rally

against Child Labour.raising $852.60 for "Free The Children.

Click here to view photos.

““IT STARTS IN THE SCHOOLS” is published monthly throughout the school year. Events, locations and times are subject

to change. For more information, call 416-222-8282 Ext. 5314. This publication can be found on the Internet at www.tcdsb.org,

see “news”.

The Toronto Catholic District School Board educates more than 92,000 students from

diverse cultures and language backgrounds in 201 Catholic elementary and secondary

schools, serving close to half-a-million Catholic school supporters across the City of

Toronto. As the world’s largest publicly funded Catholic school system, we educate

students in an inclusive learning community rooted in the love of Christ, where they are

challenged to grow in grace and knowledge and to lead lives of faith, hope and charity.

At Toronto Catholic we transform the world through witness, faith, innovation and action.

Toronto Catholic Schools

April 2016

Toronto Catholic District School Board, 80 Sheppard Ave. E., North York, ON M2N 6E8

phone: 416-222-8282 website: www.tcdsb.org email: webmaster@tcdsb.org