The St. Clair Catholic District School Board held its first-ever exclusively electronic Board meeting on March 31, 2020.

Members of the public were able to attend the electronic meeting as “observers” with audio access to the public session.  Links have been posted to the Board website under “Board Meetings” which take stakeholders and interested members of the public to a site with audio access to the meeting.  Closed captioning is also available.

The new reality that has been thrust upon the global community by the COVID-19 pandemic has altered every aspect of our society.  At St. Clair Catholic, this has not only meant a complete re-envisioning of our core business – leading and supporting the education of our students – it has also required the Board to overcome monumental challenges on the business side.  That includes how we will meet as a Board for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previously, Ontario regulation and the Board’s Procedural By-Laws required that electronic Board meetings be conducted with the Chair, the Director of Education and at least one other Board member physically present in the room.  However, on March 19, 2020 the Ministry of Education announced changes to O. Reg. 463/97, which permit school board meetings to be conducted exclusively via electronic means.

At the March 31, 2020 Board meeting, Trustees also temporarily suspended Sec. 8.8.1 and 8.8.2 of the Board’s Procedural By-Laws to allow the changes.  The new measures will remain in place for up to 60 calendar days following an order made under provincial law directing that the school closure has expired.