Chairperson’s Report to Council for March 2024
The message of peace, referenced in the land acknowledgement just read this evening, is one which I trust and hope the entire LBPSB community embraces.
On April 8th, a total solar eclipse will take place at the Moon’s ascending node (I have learned) when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the image of the Sun. The Moon will block all direct sunlight turning day into darkness. The time frame will be between 2:14pm and 4:36pm with the maximum Magnitude at 3:27 pm. There will be a board-wide pedagogical day at the LBPSB on the 8th; however, the learning about this incredible event, the experiencing of it, and the remembering it for years to come will be part of our collective conversation and memory. Even if it is a cloudy day on the 8th, our appreciation of the power of nature and the universe we are a part of, and what we have come to better understand about the solar eclipse, is what experiential learning is about. Plus, if we can also think of this event as symbolizing the significance of hope and peace, as we gather in awe, this would be amazing, too.
I would like to take a moment at this point to acknowledge the Trottier Foundation and the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets which have donated at least 289,000 pairs of eclipse glasses to schools, libraries and CEGEPs on the island of Montreal. The Foundation specifically supports projects that promote innovative scientific discovery, mitigate climate change and protect the environment, enhance education, improve patient and health care and provide assistance to select community and international initiatives. To add, the Trottiers are a humble West Island family who care deeply about our community and our planet. The Trottier Foundation is a supporter of the Pearson Educational Foundation, as well.
Other extraordinary initiatives, among the many across the Board, are connected to the Arts in Education. There have and will be, as the school year continues, fantastic concerts, plays, art displays and celebrations of literacy and literature, for example. On Thursday evening, March 21st, the school board hosted, thanks to the wonderfully dedicated librarians and library documentation technicians and coaches, the semi-finals of a reading competition where participating high school teams all read twelve pre-selected books and then are quizzed on their in-depth knowledge of the books. (It was here where I was reminded, thank you Mat Canavan, Director of Educational Services, of the connection between the Solar Eclipse and the Haudenosaunee.) This is a friendly but serious competition where the audience of supporters cheer on all the participants for their investment in preparing for and being engaged in this fantastic initiative, and for celebrating books. To quote from the Battle of the Books flyer and Toni Morrison, “Books are a form of political action. Books are knowledge. Books are reflection. Books change your mind.” I congratulate Macdonald High School for its team’s win in the semi-finals and the other participants, LaSalle Community Comprehensive, Beaconsfield and John Rennie High Schools. The final competition, which includes schools outside of the LBPSB, is on April 18th at 7pm at the EMSB.
As the month of March wraps up and we move into the month of April when many of us will be celebrating spring and recognizing important cultural and religious days, and when our schools and centres are vigorously planning and thinking ahead to the last few months of the school year (already!), I would like to extend great thanks and gratitude from the LBPSB Council of Commissioners to our communities, for all you do for the students of the LBPSB. Your kindness, civility and dedication never goes unnoticed, even when it might not always feel that way.
“Hope springs eternal.” (a phrase extracted from Alexander Pope’s poem, An Essay on Man 1734)
