TORONTO - Not many 11 year olds are encouraged to dangle from a rope down the side of their school. But being a member of the De La Salle College Cadets means Aidan McCarthy is not your average school kid.He is one of 12 students — 11 boys and one girl — who are part of the De La Salle (Oaklands) Cadet Corps program. Now in its 100th year, the program is one of the few remaining — if not the only — Catholic cadet corps in Canada. It is part of a century-old tradition of training leaders at the private Catholic school for Grade 5-to-12 students run by the De La Salle Brothers.
TORONTO - After two months of cutting tiles for a mosaic honouring the school’s patron saint, St. Francis of Assisi, James Cardinal McGuigan High School teacher Patrizia Montefiore and three students who contributed to the project stand proudly beside the new mosaic.The St. Francis mosaic has become an instrument to spread the saint’s message of peace, charity and environmental stewardship at the school.
{mosimage}TORONTO - Students from Toronto’s Don Bosco High School are helping to commemorate the historical bond between Canadians and the Dutch people in a new monument celebrating the 65th anniversary of Holland’s liberation from the Nazis.
Don Bosco Catholic High School teacher Tim Stewart wrote the English and Dutch text accompanying a 1.2-metre tall, 900-kg black granite memorial that will be unveiled April 13 at Queen Wilhelmina Park in Meppel, Holland. The text speaks of the Toronto Scottish Regiment’s contribution to the liberation of Holland as the Second World War ground to an end.
Don Bosco Catholic High School teacher Tim Stewart wrote the English and Dutch text accompanying a 1.2-metre tall, 900-kg black granite memorial that will be unveiled April 13 at Queen Wilhelmina Park in Meppel, Holland. The text speaks of the Toronto Scottish Regiment’s contribution to the liberation of Holland as the Second World War ground to an end.
{mosimage}TORONTO - Putting to rest rumours that Loretto Abbey is going to close, the Toronto Catholic District School Board says it plans to buy the Catholic high school property from the Loretto Sisters.
Angelo Sangiorgio, the board’s associate director of planning and facilities, told The Catholic Register that the board’s lease with the Loretto Sisters, also known as the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, expires in 2013.
Angelo Sangiorgio, the board’s associate director of planning and facilities, told The Catholic Register that the board’s lease with the Loretto Sisters, also known as the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, expires in 2013.
{mosimage}TORONTO - The 12th annual Catholic Principals’ Council of Ontario conference will highlight the vocation of Catholic school principals across the province.
The theme of this year’s conference is “Embracing Our Catholic Vocation.” The conference runs from April 22 to 24 in Windsor, Ont.
Council president Paul Lacalamita said principals are “invested” in the faith formation of their community.
The theme of this year’s conference is “Embracing Our Catholic Vocation.” The conference runs from April 22 to 24 in Windsor, Ont.
Council president Paul Lacalamita said principals are “invested” in the faith formation of their community.
Ontario bishops pleased with McGuinty's about-face on sex ed curriculum
By Sheila Dabu Nonato, The Catholic Register
TORONTO - The Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario has welcomed Premier Dalton McGuinty''s decision to rethink a controversial sex ed curriculum for elementary school students.“We certainly welcome this new round of consultations and the Catholic community will offer its input. We will continue working with the Ministry of Education as we always have,” Lou Piovesan, the Assembly's general secretary, told The Catholic Register.
TORONTO - One hundred curious alumni and parents of St. Michael's College School gathered for an information meeting Nov. 26 at the school to discuss plans to open an all girls' private Catholic school.
TORONTO - Continuity is the name of the game at the Toronto Catholic District School Board, where all 12 incumbent trustees were re-elected. Now those same 12 trustees have opted to continue under the leadership of Ward 8 trustee Oliver Carroll.
Opening the world to students in his little part of Canada
By Sheila Dabu Nonato, The Catholic Register
After Pope John Paul II’s death in 2005, students in Joe Tersigni’s Grade 10 history class reminisced via webcam with teens from the Pope’s former high school in Poland about his legacy.It’s this kind of interactive teaching style that has left an impact on students, earning the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic High School teacher in Guelph, Ont., a Premier’s Award for Teaching Excellence as one of the province’s “teachers of the year” in 2008-2009.
Durham Catholic District School Board teacher Catherine MacDonald didn’t expect to bump into anyone she knew, particularly one of her students, while visiting a Viking exhibit in Ireland.But a few years ago, the archeology and history teacher at Fr. Leo J. Austin Catholic High School in Whitby, Ont., heard someone call out for “Ms. MacDonald” and turned around to see a former student on a graduation trip.
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TORONTO - The saying "out with the old, in with the new" did not seem to apply to Catholic school board trustee elections on Nov. 13, since almost all "the old" were re-elected, while "the new" were reluctantly given a chance.
The Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic School Board received the Marsha Forest Centre Rose Quartz Warrior Award on Oct. 30 for being the first school board in the world to include special needs students in its regular classrooms. The last program which separated special needs students closed down in 1969. 
TORONTO - A new project aimed at reducing the gap in reading and writing test scores for aboriginal students is producing impressive results, according to Mary-Catherine Kelly.Kelly, Northwestern Catholic District School Board Director of Education, facilitated a presentation on the Oral Language Project at the 80th annual general meeting of the Ontario Catholic School Trustees’ Association from April 29 to May 1 in Thunder Bay, Ont.
{mosimage}As the Halton Catholic District School Board prepares to launch into the second year of its mandate, trustees are still huddling with private consultants in hopes of articulating a common vision and priorities.