PURPOSE OF ORGANIZATION
Objectives, Activities, and Programs
The Quilchena Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) is essentially a parent’s group. Its purpose is to provide support to the school’s program and teachers for the benefit of the students. It consists of an executive of elected parents and involves the principal, a teacher representative and parents of children at Quilchena. Meetings are held usually every four to six weeks and are open to all parents whose children attend Quilchena. Membership is voluntary; the executive consists of parents who do not receive remuneration for their services.
Parents can be involved in a number of ways. The elected officers conduct the meetings, manage funds raised, and are responsible to the parent body. The volunteer positions are usually specific tasks which one or more persons have agreed to help with. The Class Parents are important liaisons between the parents of a class and the PAC, and also act as liaison between the parents of a class and the teacher.
Activities and programs:
- Parent Education, Speakers.
- Fundraising for projects identified by the PAC and school staff as valuable for the school.
- Support for teachers in the classrooms.
- Running programs promoting the safety of the children — Block Parent, Safe Arrival, and Parking Patrol.
- Running programs like the Lunch Bunch noon hour activities for children during the rainy winter season.
Fundraising proceeds from the 2003–2004 school year were used primarily for safe arrival phone rental, fine arts performances, artist in residence, library books, teaching aids, the 3R Campaign (Reference, Resources and Reading), completing the Intermediate lunch counters, sports equipment, supplemental computers and the Single Parents’ Food bank. In recent years fundraising proceeds were used for computers for classrooms and the lab, a sound system for assemblies in the gym, the replacement playgrounds (Primary and Intermediate) and a teaching garden.
The primary Quilchena PAC fundraising projects usually are Hot Food Days for the students, the Autumn Book Fair Sale, a Direct Appeal to parents for funds (or alternatively something like a Gift Wrap Sale or Spellathon), the Christmas appeal for the Single Parents’ Christmas Food Bank, the Casino License and the June BBQ.
The primary Quilchena PAC school spirit activities usually are Autumn Bingo, February Square Dance and May Sports Day Hot Food and Refreshments.
If the grade seven French immersion class is raising money for a field trip to Quebec, there may be an auction in conjunction with the February Square Dance and a raffle (separate from the BBQ raffle) or frozen pizza sale (or alternatively something like a flower bulb sale) in conjunction with the June BBQ.
Both the English and French immersion grade seven classes may take turns holding Bake Sales at recess and lunch to raise funds for their special year end field trips.
PAC encourages parents to consider being part of the BIRTHDAY BOOK/SOFTWARE CLUB. The club invites you to remember that you can donate a book to the library/classroom or software to the Computer Lab/classroom as a way to honour your child’s birthday. Let your child choose the book/software of their liking.
Note: in addition to PAC fundraisers,
- the school administration sometimes hold one fundraiser a year for the school.
- the school student council sometimes hold a fundraiser, usually for a global charity (as PAC supports a local charity).
VSB PAC information http://www.vsb.bc.ca/parentsfamilies/DPAC/parentadvisorycouncils.htm
VSB ‘get involved’ information http://www.vsb.bc.ca/involved/default.htm
If you would like to sign up for the PAC’s list of Quilchena families with e-mail, which is sometimes used to send information, click here.
On April 15, 2002, the provincial government introduced a vast array of changes in the School Act through Bill 34. The Bill includes changes to Parent Advisory Councils, District Parent Advisory Councils, to ‘catchment areas’ and where you can send your child to school, plus appoints Ministry "special advisors" to school boards, permits boards to be replaced (i.e. fired) for unspecified reasons, and introduces ‘accountability contracts’ for schools/boards. The Bill creates a new 5-person "school planning council" for each school: principal, one teacher and three parents (to be elected from parents once a year). The Parent Advisory Council’s role has been changed. Wheras under the current Act a school’s whole PAC has the right to advise the school and board ‘respecting any matter relating to the school’, under the proposed Bill, this PAC role has been changed to advising only on those matters not assigned to the school planning council. The Bill says the school planning council’s role is to advise on: ‘(a) the allocation of staff and resources in the school; and (b) matters contained in the board’s accountability contract relating to the school; and (c) educational services and education programs in the school.’ Under the new Bill, the school planning council may (or may not) request PAC input; PAC input is not required.
Source of this information: May 2002 Kitsilano Secondary School Newsletter, PAC news.
School Planning Councils http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/spc