These are highlights of the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board public meeting held January 26, 2026.
Affirmation of Traditional Lands
Trustee Kandis Hambly, Trenton/CFB Trenton, offered a Land Affirmation.
Presentation: 25+ years of international education at HPEDSB
The International Student Program has been in existence for just over 25 years having been established in 2000. This presentation highlighted the ISP’s programming, events and activities during that time.
One homestay family said this about hosting an international student: What made the experience so meaningful was the exchange of culture. We had the chance to
share Canadian traditions and daily life, while also learning about another country through her stories, customs, and perspective. It was eye-opening and enriching for everyone in our household.
Thank you to guests pictured with school board officials. L to R: Katherine MacIver, Director of Education; Tanya Mehrkens, homestay parent; Elisa Ostlaender, ISP student from Germany; Max Schmid, ISP student from Germany; Tawnya Smith, ISP Administrator; and Dr. Kari Kramp, Chair of the Board.
Ontario Public School Boards' Association update
Highlights from this report included the following:
- The 2026 Public Education Symposium (PES) was well attended with over 200 registrants, including some from supervised boards, who paid out of pocket to join. A running message throughout this gathering was that trustees are vital links between school and community and that we must continue to fight for democracy because democracy matters.
- PES participants heard from keynote speaker Catherine McKenna, former Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, who provided an engaging personal reflection on how to make change when facing adversity, as captured in her book Run Like a Girl.
- Participants learned about First Nations education structures and priorities from Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict. He also spoke to the pushback by the Chiefs of Ontario to the Federal government regarding Jordan’s Principal funding.
- Afternoon sessions centred on Bill 33 and its legal implications, as well as speculation for what the future may hold with regard to supervision and the elimination of trustees.
- A session about a polling study on Gen Z (born between 1996 and 2010) and Gen Alpha (the first generation born entirely in the 21st century) was well attended and analyzed the groups’ views on technology, social media, mental health, and their futures and the potential impacts on education, including financial literacy, post secondary education and career choices.
- On Saturday, the International Day of Education, participants heard from keynote speaker and Ontario Ombudsman Paul Dube on the institution’s role in promoting fairness, accountability and best practice suggestions to promote good governance. Of note, while the ombudsman can make recommendations, they lack the authority to compel a Board to act on them. With regard to the Ombudsman’s role with Bill 33 and supervised board concerns, Dube shared there is no question of the value of trustees and that the ministry control is a ballot box issue. He relayed there is potential to look into cases of unfairness and discrimination in order to facilitate a dialogue but cannot address issues directly and Ombudsman do not get involved in personal conflicts.
- Trustee Binder also attended a session on youth vaping solutions in schools, specifically the Physical and Health Education Canada program STOMP Students Together Moving to Prevent Substance Abuse a student led social innovation for reducing alcohol, nicotine and drug use and the Lung Association’s QUASH program, a youth-centred smoking and vaping cessation program. Funding is currently available if we’d like to incorporate a cessation program within HPEDSB.
- Trustee Binder co-chaired the Eastern Regional Meeting where central bargaining and the regional council structure were discussed.
Governance and Policy Committee: November 18, 2025
Board members approved a motion that Director
MacIver speak to the meeting minute takers and create a detailed standard
operating procedure for minute taking at every committee meeting for
clarity and consistency.
Find out more on page 32 of the agenda.
Student Voice
Highlights from this report included the following:
- in mid-December, student trustees participated in a Words Matter Day at the Education Centre; Prince Edward CI is doing Words Matter Wednesdays;
- during the Winter Break, the three student trustees brainstormed about how to connect with students at all schools; and
- the student trustees are also considering how to involve other students in climate change actions.
Chair's report and trustee sharing
Highlights from this report included the following:
- welcome back to school after the Winter Break; and
- a significant number of inclement weather events have affected students, families and staff since school resumed at the beginning of January; trustees have heard the concerns from families and commit to an uncompromising focus on student safety and academic achievement.
Director's report
Highlights from this report included the following:
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Thank you to families, staff and students for their patience today when schools in Belleville, Prince Edward County and Quinte West were closed due to significant snowfall.
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Welcome to Tarra Girard, Executive Assistant in the Director’s Office.
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Met with Mark Kirkpatrick, Loyalist College President about OYAP, staff training, school leavers/engagement, key programs including health and technical skills/trades.
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We are midway through the 2025-2026 school year. We continue to focus on the foundational skills of literacy and numeracy, and are refining and building on the priorities identified by the Board of Trustees in the 2025-2030 strategic plan. We are proud of the progress we have made while being focused on continuous improvement for the future.
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A public budget consultation wrapped up last week. This budget will have some constraints, most notably our ability to match transportation funding to costs and our ability to continue increasing spending in special education without a change in the funding model. Our need certainly outweighs our funding. This may mean some tough decisions to maintain our current level of service and supports.
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Words Matter student workshops have been held throughout the district.
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The Canadian Cancer Society Relay for Life at Central Hastings School raised $28,905.69. Once again this is a great example of students and schools giving back to the community.
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Working through a continued refinement of the HPEDSB Leadership Framework with a diverse group of leaders from across the system.
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Once again, HPEDSB has been recognized by Forbes Magazine as a 2026 Canada’s Best Employers. We are ranked 129 of top 300 employers. This recognition reflects the survey responses of more than 37,000 Canada-based employees working for businesses that have at least 500 workers in Canada.
International Student Program
HPEDSB has 56 international students from 10 countries: Brazil, Czech Republic,
Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico, People’s Republic of China, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey. For Semester 2, nine students are coming to HPEDSB from Germany, Italy and Vietnam.
As of now, 40 students are already enrolled for September 2026, seven of whom will be returning from this school year.
The ISP team has established 15 new agency partnerships during the past two years. These agencies connect international students
and families with school board international student
programs.
HPEDSB runs its own homestay program and currently has 43 active host families. The ISP team is recruiting more homestay families as the program grows.
Find out more on page 33 of the agenda.
Artificial intelligence update
The Artificial Intelligence Implementation Plan is a strategic plan to integrate AI into existing
academic and business practices. The core objectives are to address identified system needs
and establish a robust model for continuous support, monitoring and accountability.
Gemini, the
approved HPEDSB AI tool, is a core Google service developed with pedagogical research and
principles, supporting digital literacy and citizenship to foster "future-readiness." Implementation
has focused on supporting professional judgment through thoughtful, purposeful and meaningful
engagement, described as "Collective Intelligence for Artificial Intelligence."
Professional learning
actions include a four-day partnership with Advanced Learning Partnerships (ALP), various staff
meetings, a November PA Day focused on AI awareness, action and micro-learning
sessions.
Find out more on page 35 of the agenda.
EQAO update
The 2024-2025 EQAO results show significant progress, with improved performance
in 7 of 8 measures. These results represent the highest overall achievement to date, with minor exceptions in
Grade 3 Writing and Grade 10 OSSLT.
This success reflects our commitment to high expectations.
Aligning with the HPEDSB strategic plan, staff are focusing on equity by analyzing achievement data for
students with Special Education Needs and those who self-identify as Indigenous to ensure equitable outcomes.
Find out more on page 39 of the agenda.
Math Achievement Action Plan and students with Special Education needs
Curriculum Services and Student Services are collaborating to ensure that improving outcomes for students
with special education needs is embedded in the Math Achievement Action Plan through leveraging data literacy, knowledge
building and commitment to action.
Find out more on page 46 of the agenda.
Staffing and recruiting update
Recruiting remains a priority as the HR team works to meet evolving staffing demands. With student enrolment stabilizing and a steady rate of annual
retirements, filling essential vacancies is critical to our operations. To streamline this process,
Human Resources Support Services has optimized the applicant tracking system, successfully
reducing barriers for prospective employees.
The HR team continues to collaborate with
school administrators to manage daily staffing pressures, including increasing the strategic dispatch
of daily occasional workers using the Substitute Employee Management System (SEMS) and
emergency workers, when necessary, ensuring learning continuity and lessening leadership time
and effort addressing shortages.
Find out more on page 48 of the agenda.
Calendar of events
The dates for upcoming school events, committee and Board meetings are listed on page 50 of the agenda.
Trustee motion for consideration
A notice of motion was brought forward at the November 24, 2025 Organization and Regular Public Board Meeting, moved by Trustee Parsons and seconded by Trustee Prinzen: That the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board immediately and voluntarily implement Item 4(b) of the Minister of Education's Directive to the Near North District School Board.
This motion was carried.
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