News Release
October 16, 2009
For Immediate Release
Dufferin-Peel Catholic trustees meet with MPPs, Minister of Education
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board trustees held their annual meeting with local MPPs at the board’s Catholic Education Centre on Tuesday, October 13.
The trustee-initiated meeting was called to bring a number of board concerns to the attention of local MPPs for discussion. Four of the nine local MPPs attended the meeting, along with Minister of Education, The Hon. Kathleen Wynne. The MPPs in attendance were: Charles Sousa (Mississauga South), The Hon. Peter Fonseca (Mississauga East-Cooksville, Minister of Labour), Amrit Mangat (Mississauga-Brampton South), and Bob Delaney (Mississauga-Streetsville).
The issues highlighted for discussion were: Continued Support for Catholic Education, Bill 177, Special Education Funding Framework, Full Day Implementation of Early Learning, Transportation and Primary Class Cap. A summary of these issues is posted on the Dufferin-Peel website at www.dpcdsb.org.
“We are blessed to have good relations with our local MPPs and the Minister and appreciate the opportunity to engage in frank, open and honest dialogue on issues of importance to us,” said Mario Pascucci, chair of the board of trustees. “We will continue to keep in close contact and engage in the political process at all levels of government, to promote the best interests of Dufferin-Peel students,” added Pascucci.
“This was a productive session,” said Anna Abbruscato, vice chair of the board. “We have met with the Minister on a number of occasions and she has been well apprised of our concerns and issues. Trustees and MPPs maintain ongoing communications and we appreciated the opportunity to sit down as a group on Tuesday to discuss our concerns.”
“Dialogue sessions such as this help promote a greater understanding of our issues and perspectives and allow for our elected MPPs to better represent us at the provincial table,” said John Kostoff, director of education.
The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board is one of the largest and most diverse school boards in Ontario. It serves approximately 87,000 students in 145 schools located throughout Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon and Orangeville. With over 10,000 employees, the board is also one of the largest employers in the region. The board is celebrating its 40th anniversary as a consolidated Catholic school board. For more information about the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, visit our website at www.dpcdsb.org.
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Contact:
Bruce Campbell, General Manager, Communications & Community Relations
(905) 890-0708, ext. 24466 or (905) 609-1480