Reflections from Crumbly Acres: school staffing

Here we are, Monday morning again. There was interesting news about our Ottawa school boards. At the end of September every year, the school board reassesses the total school population based on attendance, rather than predicted enrolment. In June they staff schools according to the predictions. They then rejig the staffing levels of each school. I dreaded it every year. Sometime we'd have a surplus teacher, and the one with lowest seniority was placed at a different school. Split-grade classes would be formed. Teachers had spent a month creating a classroom community, setting up seating plans, routines, and expectations.

Ottawa Carleton (OCDSB) is the Ottawa school board where Josephine and Isabelle attend. The OCDSB overanticipated their 2023/2024 school population. They had planned for an increase of 2.5% at the girls' school board (1119 students). In fact they overestimated by 1600 students. This didn't change anything for Josephine (gr. 11), but they had to amalgamate and integrate a class for the intermediates in gr. 7/8. Izzy is happy, as she is in a straight gr. 8 class.

I liked teaching gr.7/8 best! Here was my class 18 years ago.

The Catholic school board (OCSB) had an unexpected increase of 2252 students. Whoopsie!

🚫 You will recall that we won the vote against the creation of a gun range. The landowner appealed. There was a 'pre-merit' hearing Oct. 13th. The township applied for a dismissal, as the gun range simply doesn't fit in with our township plan. There was a 'written hearing,' which befuddles me. No one was allowed to attend. Apparently, the hearing was conducted, but we await the posting of the results.