Join the parent council
The Catholic School Parent Council — CSPC — is the group of parents and guardians who work with the principal on how Blessed Trinity runs. By law, parents have to be the majority of it: the whole point of a council is the parent perspective, so nobody else can outvote it.
Right now, it needs more parents in the room.
What a year on the council actually involves
What the council actually does
It is two jobs wearing one name, and parents usually only picture the second one.
The advisory half
The council is consulted on school policy, on how the school's budget priorities are set, and on the school improvement plan. It gives a parent perspective when senior staff are selected.
This is the part that surprises people: the council exists in Ontario regulation precisely so that decisions about a school are not made without the parents of the children in it.
The hands half
Pizza lunch. The BBQ at Curriculum Night — the school runs the evening, the council feeds everyone. The year-end BBQ.
And the fundraising behind all of it: the council raises money in order to fund school activities, and it does not sit in an account waiting for a rainy day.
Both halves matter. The second one is how most parents first meet the council; the first one is why it exists.
Why parents say it was worth it
You find out what is actually going on
Not the version that reaches you in an email six weeks later. One meeting is the fastest way to understand how the school year is put together.
Your child benefits, measurably
Parent engagement is one of the most consistent findings in education research: children whose parents are involved in school life do better. Not because of anything you say at a meeting — because of what being involved changes at home.
You end up knowing people
Teachers, the office, other parents in your child's grade. That network is worth something on the ordinary days and worth a great deal on the difficult ones.
It keeps the Catholic part real
Faith formation at Blessed Trinity is not only what happens in class. What the community chooses to celebrate, mark and support is decided by people who show up — and right now that is a small number of people.
The honest answers
The reasons parents give for not joining, and what is actually true.
"I don't have time."
Six meetings across ten months. If that is genuinely impossible this year, come to one, or volunteer for a single shift instead — that is a real contribution and nobody keeps score.
"I don't know how any of this works."
Neither did anyone else on their first night. There is no test, no reading, and no jargon you are expected to already know.
"My English isn't strong."
Blessed Trinity families speak a lot of languages between them, and a council that only hears from confident English speakers is not hearing from the school. Come anyway. Bring a friend if that is easier.
"Someone more qualified should do it."
There is no qualification. The council needs parents of the actual children in the actual school, which is a category you are already in.
"Do I have to take a title?"
No. Members outnumber officers. You can be on the council for a year without ever running for a position.
How you actually get on it
Elections are held within the first thirty days of the school year — that is set by regulation, not by the school. The date is announced by the school in September; watch for it in the school's messages.
- 1
Say you are interested
Email the council at cspc.blessedtrinity@tcdsb.org. One line is enough.
- 2
Put your name forward
When nominations open in September. You nominate yourself — nobody needs to put you up.
- 3
Come to the first meeting
That is it. You are on the council.
If more people put their names forward than there are seats, parents vote. If not — which is usually the case — everyone who stepped up is in.
Not ready to join?
That is fine, and it is not a lesser option.
Come to one meeting
Meetings are open to every parent and guardian at the school, whether you are a member or not. You do not have to speak.
Give one shift
Pizza lunch distribution, the BBQ at Curriculum Night, the year-end BBQ. Most of what happens needs a few extra hands for a few hours on one day.
Tell us what is on your mind
Email the council. Parent questions are what put things on the agenda in the first place.