Please find below the meeting minutes from the October 2025 AES PAC meeting.
Meeting info
October 28, 2025
5:30 pm | AES Library
1. Call to order, acknowledgment, and welcome
Call to order @ 5:38 pm.
We respectfully acknowledge that we are grateful to live, work, and play within the beautiful ancestral, traditional, and unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan people, Secwepemc Nation and acknowledges the Métis people who reside here.
Attendance: Aislinn Harmston, Megan Weir, Jordi Fraser, Roxanne Landry, Heather Beattie, Kaitlin Fulljames, Nadine Zakoski, Michelle Reinhart, Nicole Shore
2. Approve September meeting minutes
(All in favor)
1st Nadine Zakoski
2nd Jordi Fraser
3. Additions to October agenda
Grad 5 graduation
4. Adopt October agenda
(Approve amendments, all in favor)
1st Roxanne Landry
2nd Nicole Shore
5. Reports
Principal: Megan Weir
- Class Review Meetings: were meaningful. It was a great opportunity to be brought up to speed and plan for each student; very productive.
- School Learning Plan goals: continued focus on Writing and Math word problems, subtraction (and computation skills in general) and fractions/proportional reasoning. There has been a growth in math but the target hasn’t been hit yet. Big focus on Writing this year.Poster reflecting on writing level goals per grade have been posted in all 3 stair wells; students are stopping to read them.Students are encouraged to elaborate on giving the ‘why’ to a thought.
- Foundational Skills Assessments (gr. 4s). Also looks at closing the gaps in learning for 1st nations students.
- Communicating Student Learning:a. Conferences; lots of families showed up over the 2 days.b. Individual Education Plan meetings are starting to be planned and scheduled over the next couple of months.
- Pro-D day on October 24: Teachers will focus on Writing, technology; some Social-Emotional Learning, Science/STEM; Early Years Conference, Math Thinking Classrooms.On November 10th pro-d day: District-wide focus on Numeracy, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and AssessmentUDL gives teachers strategies to give the curriculum to a more diverse group of kids and flexibility to teaching style.
AES is currently holding a waitlist for uncategorized/not assessed yet kids who need to be supported regardless. AES is not contributing any numbers or assessments to the SD anymore as it hasn’t been requested.
- Special events/extra-curricular:a. Terry Fox funds raised: $810.74b. Mr. Weeks – lunchtime football (gr. 4/5s). *The students requestedc. Wheelchairs in the gym (4 weeks)
- Upcoming events:a. Celebration of learning & October Problem Solvers Assembly Oct. 29 @ 12:05b. Halloween events: pumpkin display in the morning; drop-off in the gym, costume parade (9:00am) and pumpkin rolling (12noon) Oct. 31c. Photo retakes Nov. 5d. Remembrance Day Assembly: November 7th at 12:30pm: there will be a Knowledge Keeper at the assembly who will be sharing their perspective.e. Skating schedule will be released soon. Aislinn will collected skates that need to be sharpened after Megan collects number of students needing to borrow skates.f. Come Read With Me (Literacy Alliance of the Shuswap Society, LASS) for gr. 1 families: Nov. 27th. Megan collected feedback from parents regarding which day works better; she went with the majority.g. Winter concert schedule will be released in the next newsletter
- Teacher wishlist:a. Willing 2 Ninja (Trial & Double classes = $2,747.50; Trial & Single classes = $4,551.25; Single classes = $4,301.25). Trials need to happen to see how the class will run; preference is to run the Trial & singles class.b. Decodable books; $4000-$5000 *Highest priority but can be split up over 2 years.c. $100 for LRT to purchase items to restock the 5 self-regulation binsd. Cuisenaire rods (math manipulatives) $42.92 per sete. Educational board games $200f. K pinnies (x50) = $312.50g. Inclusive furniture: Rocking chair $436.13 3 different sizes.h. Clipboards for outdoor ed (x28) $6.20 each = $173.60i. Stop sign (small hand held), $79.93j. Art drying racks (x2) $422.06 eachk. Plasma car (x2) $89.99 each or $139.99 incl shipping eachl. Electric pencil sharpener div 2, $84.99m. Magnetic cookie sheets for literacy letter magnets (x24) div 9, $117.05
Discussion will be held in the near future to determine which requests PAC can approve based on budget.
Teacher: Heather Beattie (LRT)
Heather reports AES completed an application requesting the SD to approve 1 more CEA; which was approved; Miss Kelly was re-hired.
Discussion was had around how many CEA’s would be ideal for AES. 12 would be ideal; 1 per classroom. We currently have 8 with 1 more newly hired.
Megan reflected on having too many adults and eyes on the kids and the need for kids to be given the opportunity to figure things out on their own. Megan later clarified that CEA supports are important and valued and as a team they are working to help kids build their independence, which is different for each child.
Heather reports the LRT’s support the teachers as well as many students they can but they have less interventions available due to the restrictions in time/hours per LRT this year.
Ashley (LRT) is running a reading intervention 2 days a week and Heather is running a writing intervention in one class plus the Kindergarten.
LRT’s are helping to support the teachers to run these interventions in the classroom themselves; expressive writing being the current goal.
LRT’s prioritize the kids at risk and then having the teachers supporting the rest of the classroom.
President: Nadine Zakoski
No report at this time.
Treasurer: Alex Crowie (not in attendance)
Nadine Zakoski read account balances.
As of October 24th 2025
Operating Account: $27,522.60
Gaming Account: $5,445.00
PAC’s previous treasurer inquired about how this years budget was created. When she was treasurer the budget was created based on the last years fundraising numbers, not the balance in the accounts as this years budget reflects. Discussion reflecting the need to spend money as it’s been raised to spend, not save (we no longer have the playground to save for). Discussion around limits and potential challenges this may create for this years budget as larger items were cut from this year because they were not used/needed last year.
6. Old business
• AES Apparel: The website is up and running. Good selection of colours and styles. Orders can be placed all year long. This is not a fundraiser.
• Grad 5 graduation: Hoodies have been ordered!
• Teachers wish-list (see principal report)
• DPAC and SD83 advocacy update: Michelle is in ongoing contact with SD. She has received numbers for the last year but would like to obtain a longer history of numbers to compile and reflect on. SD hasn’t been able to produce/release that yet.
At the recent SD meeting, it was reported that there is a net increase in CEAs in the District this year, from 165 last year to a total of 179 this year (including 3 “regional” CEAs).
Michelle asked why AES saw a decrease and why our administration indicated they were worried that asking for more than one additional CEA at the beginning of the year would lead to our request being ignored.
Michelle asked how they are determining which school get how many CEAs – they indicated there is a formula they follow using a spreadsheet to assess the number of students with designations in a school, the number of students without designations but with additional needs, and requests from schools directly.
Michelle also received a vague answer about students with designations aging out of or leaving schools which may lead to a decrease. It was said at the meeting that Superintendent Kriger would follow up with AES directly on this issue.
Michelle attended SD meeting; Tenille (current trustee) voted in favor of adding two more trustees to the Armstrong/Enderby area; but majority voted against. It was also mentioned that a pay raise to the current trustees is likely for future approval.
Michelle reports the SD has also been discussing to no longer live streaming their meetings due to risk of breech in privacy. This is NOT favorable as it does not give transparency and restricts many from attending as they can not attend physically.
Discussion around other supports that have been cut in recent years can be added to the data she is collecting regarding supports being cut in Armstrong.
Michelle is in contact with DPAC who reports they are creating a letter to the ministry regarding promise to provide an increase in CEA’s.
7. New business
Fundraisers
• Davison Orchard Apples: 42 boxes were sold; resulting in $610 raised. Honeycrisp were most popular. Only 8 boxes haven’t been picked up yet; they will be donated on Friday if not picked up. Jordi has contacted the parents.
• Bake Sale during Winter Concert; Jordi will apply for 50/50 licence and will re-do last years Canva poster. Jordi brought Megan up to speed on how the Bake Sale runs.
• Pub Night: November 8th 2025. Tickets still for sale through Munchalunch. There will be a silence action and 50/50. Aislinn will send advertisement poster to Megan to send to all AES parents.
• Food Boxes: Fundraiser offered through Demilles; we will not be participating this year as there is too much man power needed when food boxes are delivered. All food is delivered and needs to be shorted into separate boxes. If we had more volunteers available we can re-look at this in the future.
• Wrapping Paper fundraiser: Nicole will connect with Maddison regarding running the fundraiser.
Parent Connect
1 parent attended; this parented needed support so they benefited from the group. On the PAC Facebook group, 5 parents were marked as attending and 3 parents were marked as interested. There is a want for the group so we will keep offering it.
Next Parent Connect is November 5th at 4:30–6:00pm.
*Suggestions to run a group outside the school during the day was offered.
Update PAC info on AES website
Aislinn will connect directly with Megan to request PAC meeting dates get posted on AES website, as well as updating the Executive Board members list.
Next meeting
Wednesday November 19th @ 5:30 pm
Adjournment
Motion to adjourn @ 7:47pm
Respectfully submitted by Aislinn Harmston, Secretary