Email: st.ursulainfo@dpcdsb.org
Website: www.dpcdsb.org/URSUL
Location: 11 Dwellers Road, Brampton, ON, Canada
Phone: (905) 454-5213
Twitter: @StUrsulaDPCDSB

The mission of St. Ursula School community is to ensure that home, Church, and school are collaborative partners in the building of an environment that reflects the Catholic faith and values by celebrating each person as a member of the Body of Christ, and by challenging all to achieve excellence spiritually, socially and academically.

Principal: J. Daly

Head Secretary: A. Vitorino

Superintendant of Education, Brampton West: T.L. Peel

Trustee: Darryl D'Souza, Brampton Ward 5

St. Anne Parish Pastor: Rev. Joel Pabilona Jr.

Associate Pastor: Rev. Jobby Muppathiyil Joseph

April 1 - Easter Monday

April 2-5 - Austism Awareness Week

April 2 - Wear Rainbow/ Tie-Dye clothing (Autism awareness Week)

April 2 - Tonino's Sandwich Lunch

April 3 - Wear your favourite shirt (Autism awareness Week)

April 3 - Mr. Sub Lunch

April 4 - Wear a Fun or Fancy Hat (Autism awareness Week)

April 5 - Comfy Clothes/ Pyjama Day (Autism awareness Week)

April 5 - Primary/ Junior/ Intermediate Chess Tournament @ Guardian Angels

April 5 - Pizza Day!

April 8 - PA Day (no school for students)

April 9 - St. Ursula 'Big Gulp' (promoting re-fillable water bottle drinks)

April 9 - Tonino's Sandwich Lunch

April 10 - Int. Boys Basketball Tournament @ St. Bonaventure

April 10 - Catholic School Council Meeting 6:30pm (virtual)

April 10 - Mr. Sub Lunch

April 11 - Int. Girls Basketball Tournament @ St. Ursula

April 12 - Pizza Day!

April 16 - Tonino's Sandwich Lunch

April 17- Gr. 7/8 Vaccination clinic

April 17 - Graduation Pictures (SK and Grade 8)

April 17 - Mr. Sub Lunch

April 19 - Pizza Day!

April 23 - Tonino's Sandwich Lunch

April 24 - St. Ursula Showcase of Talent (in-school performance)

April 24 - Mr. Sub Lunch

April 25 - St. Ursula Showcase of Talent (evening performance)

April 26 - Virtue of LOVE Celebration 11:15am

April 26 - Pizza Day!

April 30 - Class Placement Input Letter due

This month we will celebrate the virtue of love. Jesus made one lesson clear above all other lessons: the lesson to love. Love is not about us. It is about forgetting ourselves and looking out for the good of the other. That’s what Jesus did. He forgot about himself on purpose. He chose to give up his life for the good of others…for us! Becoming a truly loving person is challenging. It takes prayer and concentration to make a habit of making little sacrifices for the good of others.

A person showing the virtue of love:

 Wants the best for others;

 Is willing to make sacrifices for the good of others;

 Learns from the heroic lives of saints & holy people;

 Knows that we are all lovable;

 Prays for others.

Thank you to Ms. Di Felice's class for a beautiful Virtue Assembly for the Virtue of Kindness (March).

Prior to Easter, our Lenten season was marked by traditional prayer, fasting and almsgiving. The ashes we received on Ash Wednesday marked the beginning of a new season, a time of self-sacrifice and reflection as we began our journey to Easter.

The staff and students at St. Ursula came together as a community supporting each other in each of our Lenten promises. Symbols, crafts and prayers were visible in the hallways, and students were given many opportunities to demonstrate ways to develop better habits when resolving conflicts.

For Catholics, Easter is far more than just a one-day celebration. Easter is actually a seven-week season that begins at sundown the evening before Easter Sunday and lasts for six more Sundays until Pentecost. Signs of Christ’s new life fill the Church during this season, such as the colour white, representing Christ’s victory over death; and a large Easter candle reminding us that Christ is the light of the world.

At St. Ursula we continue to talk about kindness and forgiveness. We turn to the Gospels to reflect on the teachings of Jesus. The Gospels help us make good decisions on a daily basis and to keep God at the centre of all that we do and say.

The Easter season is a time of new promise, new life and new energy. If we look around at the beauty of nature in spring, we arereminded again of the glorious resurrection of Jesus. The dark, cold, days of winter are (finally!) giving way to green grass and eventually; flowers. More so than ever, Easter is truly a time of newness in our Church and in our world.

April 1-5, 2025 was Autism Awareness Week and thanks to Mrs. Rodrigues, Mrs. St. Louis, Ms. De Lorenzo, Ms. Da Cruz for making all of our staff and students contribute to the Autism Rainbow. This year, we say "We See Your True Colours and That's Why We Love You". Thank you to all classrooms for your contributions to the Rainbow.

Thank you to Ms. Lucic and Ms. Caroleo for leading the P.A.L.S (Playground Activity Leaders in Schools) is a student-led peer leadership program in which grade 4-6 students are trained to plan and lead fun and safe activities on the playground during lunch or at recess. The objectives of the program are to: Provide opportunities for student leadership. Increase students' sense of belonging and inclusion.

On March 6, St. Ursula attended the Mississauga Steelheads School-Day OHL Hockey game at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga against the Brantford Bulldogs. A wonderful time was had by all!!

A huge thank you to all the parent volunteers who have graciously offered to assist with supervision at the game!

On Friday, April 5th, the St. Ursula Primary, Junior and Intermediate Chess Teams participated in the BW Chess Tournament at Guardian Angels. Our Junior Chess team was victorious against the home team and beat out Guardian Angels for the banner. A huge congratulations to all chess players and a heartfelt thank you to the coaches, Mr. Briganti, Ms. Stokoe and Mr. Merino for all their hardwork and dedication to the team. Way to go Royals!

April 5th, St. Ursula recognized the hardwork and dedication of our Educational Resource Workers (ERWs). We thank Mrs. St. Louis, Mrs. Baptista, Ms. De Lorenzo, Ms. Da Cruz and Mr. Shillingford for all of their love and dedication to our Royals. We appreciate and are thankful for you!

This year’s 2023-2024 Catholic School Council members are:

Chair: Christina Calabrese

Treasurer: Alana McIntosh-Jacobs

Secretary: Anya Bruney- Francis

Parish Rep: Patti Rodrigues

OAPCE Rep: Dawn Cook

Parent Reps: Don Ouellette, Regina Ukwuoma

Teacher Rep: Ms. Fairclough/ Ms. Yousif

Non-Teaching Rep: Ms. Vitorino

Upcoming Meetings:

Wednesday, April 10, 2024 @ 6:30PM (Virtual)

Wednesday, May 29, 2024 @ 6:30PM (In-Person)

The next Catholic School Council Meeting will take place virtually on Wednesday, April 10, 2024 at 6:30. As always, all parents are welcomed to attend this open meeting. Please use the following link to join:

Click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 243 708 905 538
Passcode: FWZXLV

Download Teams | Join on the web

As part of DPCDSB’s safety protocol, every school is required to hold three fire drills and one lockdown drill each term in order to familiarize students with procedures to follow in the case of emergency. We will schedule 2 fire drills and one lockdown drill in the upcoming weeks. To date, our students have demonstrated excellent skill during these practices.

We will soon begin the process of developing class lists and staffing for the 2024/2025 school year. Parents may provide input by submitting a letter/email in before Tuesday, April 30, 2024.

Please include information regarding factors in a learning environment that are relevant to your child’s class placement i.e.; teacher’s instructional style, peer relationships, child’s learning style, etc.

Please do not specify specific teachers. The goal of the extensive process we employ at St. Ursula is to maximize the groupings of students to ensure we create the best possible educational environment for all. In each class we strive for a balance of learning styles, gender, learning needs and a cross section of abilities.

We are in the process of planning staffing and organizing classes for the 2024-2025 school year. If you are planning on leaving St. Ursula School, please give the office a call to make arrangements for a student transfer form to be prepared and sent home. The transfer form will serve as an introduction to your new school and will enable the receiving school to request student records from us. Please inform the office at your earliest convenience.

A gentle reminder to parents that supervision begins at 8:45 a.m. Parents should not drop off their children prior to 8:45 a.m. For your child’s safety, we request that he/she not be on school property until scheduled supervised times. Also, dismissal of students takes place at 3:30 p.m. For your child’s safety, we request that he/she not be on school property beyond 3:45 p.m., unless on occasions when they are participating in a school event. No child should be unsupervised before or after school. The St. Ursula Office is not able to supervise your children, and as such, no students are to be found waiting for parents after school.

The PA Day originally scheduled for Friday, May 17, 2024 has been rescheduled to Monday, April 8, 2024.

This change has been made due to a total solar eclipse occurring on Monday, April 8. The eclipse is expected to begin at approximately 2:00 p.m. and end around 4:30 p.m., coinciding with student dismissal times.

As always, Catholic Education Week begins on Sunday to highlight the parish-home-school partnership that remains the foundation of Catholic education.

We are pleased to announce the theme for 2024 is:

"We Are Called To Love"

The five sub-themes for Catholic Education Week are:

Monday: As people of hope / Dans l’espérance

Tuesday: As people of faith / Dans la foi

Wednesday: As people of mercy / Avec compassion

Thursday: As people of justice / Dans la justice

Friday: As people of joy / Dans la joie

Catholic Education Week Prayer:

God who is love,

Love is our calling, and the goal for which you have made us.

As we celebrate Catholic Education Week,

may our love in action reveal to our world

that we are people of justice and mercy.

May our daily words and example show clearly

that we are people of faith and hope.

In the ways we reflect you daily,

may everyone recognize us as people of joy.

Help us to never forget how much you love us,

and to cherish your life within us,

which gives energy and direction to our loving.

May we hear your call to love generously and inclusively,

and may we call our world to be more loving also.

All of this we ask in the name of Jesus, our Friend and our Lord.

Amen.

As part of DPCDSB’s safety protocol, every school is required to hold three fire drills and one lockdown drill each term in order to familiarize students with procedures to follow in the case of emergency. We will schedule these drills in the upcoming weeks. To date, our students have demonstrated excellent skill during these practices.

Starting Wednesday, October 2023, Catholic School Council ishappy to collaborate with Mr. Sub to offer a healthy andaffordable lunch option.

Students can enjoy a classic 6" sub with your choice of drink and a snack of Welch’s fruitsnacks or a classic 12" sub every Wednesday. Each month, you will be able to place your order for that month.

If your child is absent on Sub Day, please make arrangements for your order to be picked up by a sibling or parent by the end of the school day.

Refunds will not be given for those students who are absent.

** Order on school cash online only

Starring March 2024, we have changed our vendor and have now partnered with Family Pizza and the cost is $2.75/slice. Money raised will be used to pay for Guest speakers, and school/classroom presentations to supplement classroom programming.

In February we will be introducing the ability for those students who have not purchased pizza to purchase pizza on a first come first serve basis at the office for the price of $2.75/slice. This will be cash only and first come first serve basis as we will have limited quantity available to sell.

Please Note: During the lenten season, the month of March, our pizza orders will be cheese pizza only in order to recognize the Lenten Season.

Tonino's Sandwich Tuesdays are returning starting November 2023. We will be offering sandwiches (breaded chicken, breaded veal or steak) with or without cheese every Tuesday. Please check School CashOnline for ordering details. Money raised will be used to pay for Guest speakers, and school/classroom presentations to suppliment classroom programming.

Please ensure that your child arrives at school with all the items they need for the day. We realize that there will be occasions where students forget something at home There will be a table located at the front doors for parents/guardians who are dropping off items for theirchildren. Please label the item clearly with the CHILD’S NAME AND TEACHER.

If you plan on bringing your child’s lunch in the morning, let your children know that you will beleaving the lunch on the table at the front doors.

St. Ursula Grade 8 students will continue to sell popcorn in efforts to raise funds to go towards their graduation. Purchases can be made on SchoolCashOnline monthly. Popcorn will be delivered to classrooms for those who purchase every Tuesday and Thursday for last snack break. Thank you to all who purchase.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 4 - FR. SURESH INSTALLATION

Welcome our New Priest Fr. Xavier Suresh to St. Anne Parish! Following 12 noon Mass, their will be light refreshments and coffee to honour The Installation of Father Suresh to St. Anne's Parish. Let's celebrate!

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18 - FAMILY DAY PANCAKE DAY

Pancakes, syrup and cereal for kids!!! Following 10am Mass hosted by Catholic Women's League and Children's Liturgy Volunteers. Cost is $2 per person, coffee and juice included.

Catholic education views human life as an integration of body, mind, and spirit. Rooted in thisvision, Catholic education fosters the search for knowledge as a lifelong spiritual andacademic quest. The expectations of Catholic graduates, therefore, are described not only interms of knowledge and skills, but in terms of values, attitudes and actions. The OntarioCatholic School Graduate is expected to be:

1. A discerning believer formed in the Catholic Faith community who celebrates the signs andsacred mystery of God’s presence through word, sacrament, prayer, forgiveness, refl ection andmoral living.

2. An effective communicator who speaks, writes and listens honestly and sensitively,responding critically in light of gospel values

3. A reflective, creative and holistic thinker who solves problems and makes responsibledecisions with an informed moral conscience for the common good.

4. A self- directed,responsible, lifelong learner who develops and demonstrates their God -given potential.

5. A collaborative contributor who fi nds meaning, dignity and vocation in work which respectsthe rights of all and contributes to the common good.

6. A caring family member who attends to family, school, parish, and the wider community

7. A responsible citizen who gives witness to Catholic social teaching by promoting peace, justice and the sacredness of human life.

St. Ursula School staff would appreciate the co-operation of the entire school community in NOT sending any lunches or snacks that contain peanuts, nuts or any other life threatening allergens, which could potentially harm a child. We would like to keep all classrooms allergen-aware. In an effort to do so, any child that brings a lunch into the classroom that contains any life threatening allergens will eat their lunch in another location in the school designated for that specific purpose. Please make sure that all of your children’s caregivers are aware of this request. We understand that students enjoy celebrating special occasions with others in the classroom; however, to ensure everyone’s safety, the policy at St. Ursula School is that non-edible treats only will be permitted to be shared. There are many alternatives to bringing in food for birthdays and special occasions. Some suggestions are: stickers, gift certificates, erasers, dollar store Some suggestions are: stickers, gift certificates, erasers, pensils etc. If you would like to discuss any other ideas, please talk to your child’s teacher or the school administration. We look forward to your understanding and co-operation in making our school safe for all students.

All students who have been formally diagnosed with asthma, anaphylaxis, diabetes, or epilepsy must have a plan of care completed. This only needs to be completed once and it will be kept in your child's OSR file.

• If your child has a new diagnosis or is new to St. Ursula, please email the school and we will send you the forms that need to be completed.
• Each year a GF35-Storage and Administration of Medication must be completed and returned to school. You would have received a GF 35 form recently, if not, please contact the office if one is needed.
• Epipens and puffers should be carried by your child and a second one can be stored in the main office.
• Nut free/ Scent Free School : We have a number of children in our school who have severe life threatening allergic reactions to nuts therefore please do not send any food items to school that may contain nuts or nut products. If there are other allergies specific to your child's class you will be notified. We need your cooperation in ensuring that no snacks or lunches be brought into the school that can put children at risk.

Daily attendance and puncutality are important. If your child will be absent, please the School Messenger application (School Messneger) or visit the website at go.schoolmessenger.ca or call the attendance line at 1-844-435-3440 to report your child's absence.

We are happy to bring SUISH (St. Ursula In School Happiness) and Feel Good Fridays back to St. Ursula and we are proud to have our new Grade 8 Leaders join us this year! Each Friday our SUISH leaders will continue to roll out our monthly initiatives to motivate and inspire their peer group. We love seeing our students and staff the first Friday of each month for our dance party and monthly goal roll out!

All school personnel are obligated to report concerns about children who may be “in need of protection”. PLEASE SEE INFORMATION REGARDING 'Duty to Report'.

Kindergarten registration for the 2024-25 school year at Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board (DPCDSB) schools is now open. The DPCDSB offers the Kindergarten program in 125 Catholic elementary schools in Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon, Bolton and Orangeville.

Parents/guardians can register online at dpcdsb.org.

Registration is open to Catholic children and children of Catholic parents. Kindergarten students must be at least four (4) years of age by December 31, 2024.

The following documents are required to complete the registration process:

• Proof of age of the child
• Original Roman Catholic baptismal certificate (for child and/or parent/guardian) or original baptismal certificate from a church in full communion with the Holy See of Rome or an Eastern Catholic Church.
• Immunization Reference #’s from the local Public Health Unit
• Proof of Canadian citizenship or permanent resident status
• Proof of home address
• Proof of English Separate School Support
• 
  

Please refer to the Register for School webpage for accepted forms of documentation.

Inquiries about home school locations/boundary areas should be directed to the DPCDSB Planning Department at 905-890-0708 ext. 24440.

For more information, parents/guardians should contact their local Catholic school, visit the DPCDSB website at dpcdsb.org, or call DPCDSB’s Admissions Department at 905-890-1221.

Students are encouraged to bring their own reusable waterbottle to school for water consumption. Although waterfountains are open, the water fi lling stations are also open andstudents will be able to refi ll their water bottles throughout theday. Please clearly label your child's water bottle.

We have a limited stock of reusable St. Ursula water bottlesfor sale. Please use the link below to get yours today.

Dufferin- Peel Catholic District School Board policies and procedures support the use of personal electronic devices for educational purposes. This agreement will be signed when your child registers to attend St Ursula. In compliance with the Catholic Code of Conduct and other board policies and procedures, any student opting to use a PED while on school premises for educational purposes must adhere to the policies in the agreement. Please check your inbox for a copy of the document.

Three highlighted policies are:

· Follow board and school policies and procedures regarding appropriate use of technology.

· Be a responsible digital citizen by adhering to guidelines regarding content, security, safety and ethical use through appropriate use of technology.

· Use PED during instructional time and instructional space only with the permission of the classroom teacher and/or staff and only in a manner that supports the teaching learning process.

Compliance with the agreement is mandatory.

We are pleased to share the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board’s 2022-23 Director’s Annual Report with you. This report outlines the goals of the Board of Trustees’ Multi-Year Strategic Plan and how we, as a system, strived to meet the goals of that plan.

Our profound gratitude goes out to our faculty and staff, administrators, senior management, trustees, parish priests, parents/guardians, and the many other community partners for all you do in helping us deliver a quality Catholic education to the thousands of students in our care.

Blessings to you all.

Marianne Mazzorato, Ed.D.

Director of Education

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