St. Clare Volunteer Orientation Meeting

Wednesday, October 5, 20119:30am

1. Registration & Coffee 9:30am•Sign attendance•Reading buddy & book fair schedules•Pick up forms if required

2. Welcome & Opening Prayer - L.Del Fatti & D.Bialy 9:45am

3. Role of Volunteer - Mr. Garofalo 9:50am•YCDSB ‘Volunteers in Schools’ Policy•Policy Highlights•School specific policies

4. Health & Safety Issues - Mr. Garofalo 10:00am•Vulnerable Sector Screening &Volunteer Offence Declaration•Emergency response plans•Allergy Alert and Epipen use•YCDSB Health & Safety Policy Highlights

• Reading Buddy Volunteer Training - Mrs.Fazari/Mrs.Genova/Mrs.Pecchia 10:20am **for reading buddy volunteers only**

St. Clare Volunteer Orientation AgendaWednesday, October 5, 2011

The Greatest of all Volunteers

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;

Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;

Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;

Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;

Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;

It was never between you and them -Mother Teresa

ROLE OF VOLUNTEER

YCDSB ‘Volunteers in School’ Policy Statement

*NOTE: The complete YCDSB Volunteer Policy can be downloaded from their website at http://www.ycdsb.ca/trustees/policies.htm. Select “Volunteers in Schools” from the policies drop down menu.

“ The York Catholic District Board recognizes…

…volunteers are valued partners in assisting staff to enrich the learning experience in a dynamic and diverse Christ-centred community

…volunteers enhance the programs services and educational opportunities for students

…its intent to promote a safe and secure school and working environment for students, staff and volunteers while providing an inviting educational environment

…a volunteer is a person who serves without renumeration and shall not be used to perform the duties of any York Catholic District School Board employee”

YCDSB Volunteer Policy Highlights

Volunteers assist teachers/staff in achieving their goals and creating a safe and nurturing environment by acting in a professional and ethical manner

Volunteers must respect the confidentiality and privacy of staff and students

In no case will knowledge about student progress or behaviour be shared in the community. Care must be taken to refrain from expressing comments harmful to the reputation of students and staff members

Volunteers are not expected to discipline students. Issues should be reported to the classroom teacher for resolution

School Specific Policies:Signing in/out & Volunteer Tags

When entering the school: Please stop by the office first Sign the visitor’s log Obtain a volunteer sticker to be worn while in the school

Staff members are directed to stop and question anyone in the school without a sticker

As a volunteer, you can also stop anyone who does not have a sticker and seems out of place

School Specific Policies: Classroom Assignments

Long term volunteer activites (ie. Reading Buddies):

Parents/guardians are not permitted to volunteer in their own child’s classroom

This can be distracting for the child and disruptive to the class

We want to promote students’ independence with their teachers while in school

Special Day activities For activities such as field trips, scientists in the school, etc., we welcome parents/guardians to participate in their own child’s classroom

HEALTH & SAFETY ISSUES

Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS)

A search performed by the York Regional Police to check for any past criminal offences

Required for those volunteers who are in close and regular contact with students (ie. reading buddies, hot lunch)

Volunteers required to fill out a VSS form (YRP149) and bring it to one of the offices listed on the form with a $20 fee

Please keep your receipt and submit to the office and you will be reimbursed

We ask volunteers to only do this ONCE, if you have already submitted a VSS in prior years, you do not need to do it again

VULNERABLE SECTOR SCREENING

Agency:

Position Sought:

Driver’s Licence Number:

Last Name:

First Na me :

Middle Nam e:

Maide n Name or o ther n ame s us e d:

Addre ss : Unit/Apt # - Number and Str e et Name:

Sex : M F

City:

Provinc e:

Pos tal Code:

Provi nce or Co untry of Birth:

Date Of Birth (DDMMYY):

Telep hone Number:

FIVE YEAR HISTO RY – INCLUDING CURRENT ADDRESS Unit # - Number

Stree t Nam e

City

Provinc e

Pos tal Code

How Lo ng?

Unit # - Number

Stree t Nam e

City

Provinc e

Pos tal Code

How Lo ng?

Unit # - Number

Stree t Nam e

City

Provinc e

Pos tal Code

How Lo ng?

CONSEN T TO DISCLOSE P ERSONA L INFORMATION

1. I he reby con se nt to a sea rch being made in the autom a ted Criminal Record s Re trieval Sys tem ma intained by the R.C.M.P to

as ce rtain if I have bee n con victed of a nd bee n granted a pardon for an y of the sexual o ffences that a re lis ted in the s che du le to the Criminal Records Act .

2. I he reby re lease and disch a rge York Region al Po lice and all memb ers and emp loyees of the sai d Se rvice from any and all a ction s ,

claims and demand s for damages, loss or injury how soeve r a rising which m ay he rea fte r be sus tained by myse lf as a res ult of the disclosure of information by York Region a l Po lice. I he reby author ize York Region al Po lice to inqu ire into and disclose the res ults of any po lice record s ind ica ting criminal con viction s , cond ition al a nd absolute disch a rges and rela ted information, out s tand ing criminal ch a rges , or de ta ils of po lice inves tiga ted inc idents that York Re gion al Po lice believes may as sis t an a genc y in making an informed decision, and to conduct loc al po lice informa tion sea rch es with ANY police s e rvice in Canada .

3. I ce rtify tha t the information provided by me in th is app lica tion is true and correct to the bes t of my know ledg e and belie f. I have

rea d this con se nt, th e s cree ning inst ruct ion s (see back), und e rs tand it and agree to it in its en tire ty. I und e rs tand th a t making a false s ta tement on this app lica tion m ay disqu alify me from ob taining a Vulne rable S ector lette r, and m ay sub ject me to criminal ch a rges or othe r legal liability.

Signature o f App licant Date (DDMMYYYY)

Employ e e Vo lunte er Studen t (mus t s ho w val id stu den t ca rd)

FOR POLICE US E ONLY – DO NOT WRITE BELOW THIS LINE THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT NO NOTABLE CRIMINAL RECORDS WERE FOUND IN THE NATIONAL REPOSITORY FOR CRIMINAL RECORDS IN CANADA.

THIS INFORMATION CAN ONLY BE CONFIRMED BY FINGERPRINTS. THIS ALSO CONFIRMS THAT NO PERTINENT NEGATIVE INFORMATION HAS BEEN

FOUND.

THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT THE ABOVE NOTED PERSON DOES APPEAR IN THE NATIONAL REPOSITORY FOR CRIMINAL RECORDS IN CANADA AND / OR

THE LOCAL RECORDS OF YORK REGIONAL POLICE. Date Comp leted: S ign ed: DD/MM/YY Representative o f Police Service - Signature must be embosse

This search is intended for individuals seeking employment and/or a volunteer position with children or vulnerable person(s).

Information is collected and disclosed according to section 29(1) and 32 of the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) and the Privacy Act (FEDERAL).

For those volunteers who have obtained a VSS in prior years

An annual declaration that there have been no further offences to report since your original screening

A YCDSB form (Policy #708) to be filled out, signed and returned to the office

Volunteer Offence Declaration (VOD)

Emergency Response Plans

There are ‘Emergency Codes and Responses’ and yellow ‘Closest Exits’ posters displayed in every classroom

All students are trained in these procedures Make yourself aware of these codes and your closest

exits while working in the school If you are in the school at the time of an alarm, your

job is to help direct students and to reassure them In the event of a code green (school needs to be

evacuated), and you are with students, proceed to the closest exit, not back to the classroom

Once outside, communicate to a staff member that you have students that are separated from their class, this will be relayed to the affected teacher

A teacher will hold up a red card if they have missing students

Allergy Alert & Epipen Use

All classes have red “Allergy Awareness” posters (list class specific allergies) and “Think FAST” posters (describe how to look for symptoms of anaphylaxis)

Board policy requires students with severe allergies to wear an EpiPen with them at all times, with a second EpiPen stored in the office

St.Clare also part of “No Child Without” where students with severe allergies provided with a free medic alert bracelet

Remember, ANY student can have an unexpected allergic reaction at any time, learn the signs!

We ask volunteers to refrain from wearing fragrances as there is an increase in allergies to scents

You can look for help in the early stages but you can act in an emergency. You cannot hurt anyone by administering adrenalin found in an EpiPen.

YCDSB Health & Safety Policy Highlights

Please report any incident, accident or unsafe condition to the principal even if there seems to be no injury to yourself or others, or damage to equipment, etc.

If you are working with a group of students and an accident occurs resulting in a lawsuit, the Board’s Liability insurance would cover the volunteer as well as the Board

St. Clare does not ask volunteers to drive students to off school property activities, school buses and taxicabs are hired for all student transportation

A student may show increasing trust in a volunteer and disclose a case of abuse. Although no one feels comfortable about reporting suspected abuse, you cannot “promise not to tell” since it is a legal obligation of every Ontario resident to report it. Please relay any suspicions to the principal.

THANK-YOU!!

“Service to others is the payment you make for your space here on earth.” Mohammed Ali

“We make a living by what we do, but we make a life by what we give.” Winston Churchill

“Volunteers aren't paid, not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless.”Anonymous

“To show great love for God and our neighbor we need not do great things. It is how much love we put in the doing that makes our offering something beautiful for God.”

Mother Teresa

A copy of this presentation can be found on St. Clare’s website http://sce.ycdsb.ca. From the CSC dropdown menu, click on Comm. and Volunteer.

STAY TUNED FOR READING BUDDY PRESENTATION…

Mrs. Fazari, Mrs. Genova & Mrs. Pecchia