The Cornell Village Public School Advisory Council Constitution was last amended on February 19, 2007.

Table of Contents

Cornell Village Public School
School Advisory Council Constitution

Article 1: Name and Address
The name of the organization is Cornell Village Public School Advisory Council (herein referred to as the “Council”).  The address is

Cornell Village Public School
186 Country Glen Road
Markham, ON  L6B 1B5

The phone number is (905) 471-1694.

The website address is www.cvpsac.ca.

Article 2: Mission Statement
Cornell Village Public School Advisory Council supports collaboration between the students, their families, the school, and the community in order to establish and maintain an open, trusting environment that promotes learning in our diverse community.


Article 3: Purpose and Objectives
The purpose and objectives of the Council are to

• provide positive and innovative advice to the school
• participate actively and support the annual school improvement planning process
• provide input into decisions made by the school administration, the Board, and the Ministry
• encourage shared responsibility for student learning among students, parents, and teachers
• develop an increased sense of shared accountability for public education
• support school, family, and community partnerships that assist parents in the education of their children
• encourage effective parental involvement in the education of their children
• present educational and informative material to the school community
• provide a means of regular communication and dialogue between all partners in education
• fundraise to enhance the educational life of our students
• coordinate the services of social, health, safety, recreational and nutritional programs that assist in the education and well-being of our children
• promote anda maintain contact with other School Advisory Councils

Article 4: Procedures and Operating Guidelines
School Advisory Councils are advisory bodies. A School Advisory Council will provide advice to the school principal and, where appropriate, to the Board on any matter that relates to student learning. Notwithstanding the above, confidential personnel matters may not be addressed by School Advisory Councils. Nor are School Advisory Councils to discuss confidential information on individual students.

If confidential information is divulged at a meeting, the chair will instruct Council members to keep the information confidential, request that members of the public keep the information confidential, ensure that the minutes do not refer to the indiscretion, and determine if further action needs to be taken.

The operational procedures of this School Advisory Council comply with the procedures outlined in York Region District School Board (YRDSB) Procedure #262.  All recommendations and activities of the School Advisory Council shall comply with all Ministry of Education Acts, YRDSB Policies and Procedures and Staff Collective Agreements.


Article 5: Definitions
When we use the term “parent” in this document, we mean it to include any person who is the parent and/or legal guardian of a student attending Cornell Village Public School.

Article 6: Membership
There shall be no more than one parent member on the school advisory council from any one household.

6.1:  Parent Members
The number of parent members on the Council shall be a minimum of twelve (12) and a maximum of seventeen (17) elected parents of children enrolled in Cornell Village Public School.

6.2:  Community Representatives
The number of community representatives shall be a maximum of two.

6.3:  Student Representative
The principal may appoint a student representative from the group of students elected to the Student School Council.

6.4:  Teaching Staff Representative
Teaching staff representatives will attend Council meetings on a rotating basis.

6.5:  General (Non-Voting) Membership
All parent of students who attend Cornell Village Public School, all staff of Cornell Village Public School and all public school ratepayers within the area serviced by the school boundaries have the right to be recognized as members of the Cornell Village Public School community and are welcome to attend Council meetings.

6.6:  Other Members
Other members such as teacher representative, support staff representative and principal shall be elected/appointed in accordance with YRDSB Policy #262.

6.7:  Conflict of Interest
If individual Council members perceive themselves to be in conflict of interest, they are honour bound to declare their conflict at the earliest possible opportunity and at the time of the meeting. The minutes of the meeting will reflect this declaration. As a result, the Council member is ineligible to vote on the issue(s) relating to their conflict of interest.

6.8:  Remuneration
Council members cannot receive remuneration for their work as a member of council.

School Advisory Council members

• are accountable to the constituents they serve
• maintain a school-wide perspective on issues
• participate regularly in Council meetings
• participate in meetings and information and training programs
• act as a link between the Council and the community
• encourage the participation of parents from all groups and of other people within the school community
• are willing to be an equal member and share in the duties and initiatives undertaken by the Council

The Principal

• supports and promotes the Council’s operations and activities as an equal member of the Council
• seeks input from the Council in areas which it has identified as priorities and is prepared to provide a rationale for decisions made
• provides or gathers resources on laws, regulations, Board policies and collective agreements required by the Council to enable it to make informed decisions
• ensures that copies of the Council constitution and by-laws, financial reports, and minutes of meetings are kept at the school and available for everyone to see
• ensures all contacts and information are forwarded to the chair
• assists the Council in communicating with the school community
• encourages the participation of parents from all groups and of other people within the community
• lends support to school community organizations which operate separately from the Council, and serves as an effective liaison between the Council and such organizations

Article 7: Elections

7.1:  Election Subcommittee
At the first meeting of the year, the Council shall appoint an election subcommittee to plan the election process, gather nominations, and run the election.  No one standing for election or the spouse of anyone standing for election shall be a member of the election committee.

The election subcommittee shall

• provide nomination forms
• ensure that the school community is notified of election procedures and election date(s), location, and time, at least fourteen days in advance of election
• conduct the elections by secret ballot
• count the ballots
• help the principal notify all candidates of the results
• keep all the results and related information confidential
• release only the names of successful candidates
• notify all individuals standing for election of the results before the results are released to the school community

A list of candidates and the vote results will be kept on file for use in the event of vacancy on the council.

7.2:  Date
Elections for Council membership shall take place annually, no later than the October Council meeting.  At least fourteen (14) days notice shall be give to the general school population that the election process will take place on the designated date.

7.3:  Election Procedures for Parent Members
Each parent seeking election must be nominated or self-nominated in writing, must have a child registered at Cornell Village Public School, and must declare if he or she is employed by the Board.

Each family of a student enrolled in Cornell Village Public School shall be entitled to one vote for each vacant parent member position on the Council.

7.4:  Acclamation
Parent elections shall be by acclamation when the number of candidates is equal to or less than the number of parent member positions on the Council.

7.5:  Election of the Executive
Once the parent members are elected, the newly elected Council votes on its Executive for the year. (See Article 8 for list of positions.)

7.6:  Terms of Office
Council members serve a one-year term of office.  There are no restrictions to the number of times a member can be re-elected.

7.7:  Resignations
Anyone who is a Council member, except the principal, may resign his or her position by writing a letter of resignation to the chair.  If someone resigns, the Council will fill the position according to Article 7.8:  Vacancies.

7.8:  Removal
The Council may choose to remove from the Council any member who misses three (3) consecutive meetings and shall undertake to replace that person according to Article 7.8:  Vacancies.

7.9:  Vacancies
A vacancy in the membership of Council does not prevent the Council from exercising its authority.

The Council should fill positions that become vacant due to resignation or removal as soon as possible by

• offering the person with the next largest number of votes who was not elected the opportunity to accept the position,
• notifying all parents of the vacancies and requesting application by interested volunteers,
• calling an election if there are more applications than positions, or
• appointing a parent member when no more candidates are available.

The Council will fill vacancies only until May of the current year, after which time Council will fill the vacant positions through the annual October election.


Article 8: The Executive

• Chair (customarily filled by the vice chair when he/she is re-elected to the Council)
• Vice chair
• Past chair (customarily filled by retiring chair when he/she is re-elected to the Council)
• Secretary
• Treasurer

In the event that the retiring chair and vice chair cannot fulfill their duties as past chair and chair respectively, the council membership shall elect a new past chair and chair.

The chair shall

• call and chair Council meetings
• prepare an agenda for meetings, in consultation with other Council members and the principal
• ensure that the minutes of the meetings are recorded and maintained
• coordinate the activities of the Council and subcommittees of the Council
• communicate with the principal
• ensure that there is communication with the community
• sign any contracts, minutes of meetings, this constitution and other documents which the Council has authorized
• prepare the Council Annual Report as required by the Board
• liaise with the Trustees and Board as required
• ensure that the Council constitution and by-laws are reviewed each year

• provide support for the Chair as required
• act as Chair in the absence of the Chair

• act as a resource to the Chair on past activities of the Council
• advise the Chair on proper procedure for the Council
• act as advisor to the Council

• record attendance and the minutes of the meetings of the Council
• post the minutes in the Council book available in the school office and on the website within 14 days of the meeting
• distribute the minutes by email to all Council members
• distribute reminders by email to the Council members about upcoming meetings along with the agendas for that meeting
• ensure that all records are kept in a safe place

• prepare a Treasurer’s report and distribute copies to attendees at Council meetings
• prepare the Annual Council Treasurer’s Report as required by the Board
• keep full and accurate accounts, receipts, disbursements and books belonging to the Council
• deposit all money and other valuable effects in the name and to the credit of the Council
• distribute the funds of the Council as instructed by the Council

• School Plan
• Fundraising
• Health and Wellness
• Communications
• Staff Appreciation
• Constitution Review
• Election

As the need arises, Council will form ad hoc subcommittees—subcommittees appointed to deal with a specific issue, report on it and disband.

• conduct the detailed, in-depth work that is not possible during Council meetings,
• make recommendations to the Council, and
• keep the Council informed of issues and developments in its particular area.

9.4:  Chair
Each subcommittee will appoint its own chair. The subcommittee chair does not have to be a member of the Council.

9.5:  Meetings
Subcommittees, except Constitution Review and Election, will meet regularly between Council meetings to ensure they conduct their business in a timely manner.

9.6:  Updates and Recommendations
All subcommittee chairs are required to provide updates at the Council meeting when indicated on the agenda. If they cannot attend the Council meeting, they will submit a written update.

All subcommittees shall report to the Council to obtain final approval of the subcommittee’s recommendations. 


Article 10: Meetings

10.1:  Timetable
At the first meeting of the new school year, the Council will create a timetable of meeting dates for the current school year.  The Council will publicize these dates to the families of the school.  It is recognized that the timetable may change at any time.  The Council will publicize changes to the meeting timetable to the families of the school.

The principal or chair will send a copy of the meeting timetable to the local trustee.

10.2:  Attendance
Members of the Council must either send regrets to the chair directly or via another Council member if they are going to be absent from a Council meeting.

10.3:  Quorum
A meeting will have quorum if

• the majority of council members are present and
• the majority of those present are parents.

The Council can meet if there is no quorum, but will defer all voting.

10.4:  Decision-making
The preferred method to resolve issues on Council is through consensus.  Consensus is a collective opinion or general agreement by all the members present.  Comments and opinions from all meeting attendees are welcome, regardless of membership status,

In the case where a decision cannot be reached through consensus, the chair may decide to

• call for a vote by way of a show of hands or a ballot by those present in which a 51% majority shall carry the vote
• defer the issue to the next meeting
• defer the issue to a special meeting, established subcommittee or ad hoc subcommittee for continued deliberation

A Council member may request a ballot vote on any issue.

10.5:  Notice of Motion
Notice is a means of showing an intention to discuss and/or vote on something at a particular meeting. An advantage of giving notice is that Council members and other interested community members become aware of the motion and have time to consider its implications.

Any Council member may submit a Notice of Motion for consideration at any meeting of the Council. Such Notice shall be in writing and delivered to the chair at a Council meeting at least one month prior to the Council meeting at which the motion is to be considered. This ensures that the Notice can be distributed to all Council members (via the meeting minutes) and community members (via publication in the Student Newsletter).  The chair will print the motion in the agenda of the Council meeting at which it will be considered.

Notice is not mandatory and need not be given on every issue discussed and/or voted on by the Council. Rather, it is intended to ensure adequate input and attendance on important issues such as constitutional amendments and major funding decisions.

10.6:   Communication
The Council will publish a timetable of current school year Council meetings in the student newsletter and on the Council website at the beginning of the school year.

The Council shall announce its meetings on the school sign, in the student newsletter and on the Council website two weeks in advance of the meeting date.

10.7:  Agenda
Agenda items should be submitted to the chair two weeks prior to the Council’s next meeting.

The chair sets the agenda with the principal at least one week ahead of the meeting.  Time limits are set for each agenda item.  The agenda is distributed to Council members and interested parents by email no later than one week prior to the upcoming meeting and is available in the Council book available in the school office.  It is also published on the Council website. This affords Council members and interested parents and community members the chance to come to the meeting prepared for meaningful discussion.

The Executive may consider additional items for the final agenda up to the day before the meeting.  Attendees may not add agenda items at the meeting

Next meeting draft agenda items are noted at the end of the meeting. 

10.8:  Structure
When necessary, the Council will use Robert’s Rule of Order.

Council meetings will adhere to the following structure:

• Welcome and Introductions
• Review of minutes of preceding meeting and acceptance by motion and vote
• Acceptance of current agenda by motion and vote
• Principal’s Report
• Treasurer’s Report and acceptance by motion and vote
• Old business items
• New business items
• Subcommittee updates, including next meeting date, time and location
• Meeting adjourned

10.9:  Minutes
The Council book, maintained in the school office, will contain a copy of all Council meeting minutes.  Minutes will be posted in the Council book and on the Council website within 14 days of the meeting.  The secretary will distribute the minutes by email to all Council members and interested attendees and parents.

Minutes shall include attendance, a synopsis of discussions, motions, decisions and actions to be taken.

10.10:  Conflict Resolution
The Council will undertake to resolve all internal conflicts within its mandate in a timely manner.  The Council will abide by any conflict resolution policy issued by the Board.


Article 11:  Financial Management