Great Staff, many whom give it their all each day. Lot of teachers that honestly want the best for their students. Amazing support staff (EAs, ECEs, Secretaries, and Custodians). They are the most important and vital part of the success of the students. Definitely not enough support staff (Secretaries, EAs and Custodians). Those staff members are constantly running around trying to facilitate 25 tasks at once. Worried about what will happen as this school grows to over 1000 students. With the right funding levels, this school could provide the best support, but with reductions in funding, not sure what the future will hold.

My child had a confidentiality breach from an EA at this school. My child's location and attendance to this trip was released by an EA to a family member that had zero contact for the last 4 years. He was then left unattended on the trip where the family member approached my special needs child and then was taken away from the group. I had shown up at that point for the field trip and found my child left unattended with this individual. At that point no one would own up to why my child was released to this person. *** the principal who is out of tenants at this field trip showed very little care about the incident and even after the fact that this was brought to the board still showed very little care. This isn't the first time I've experienced this with *** when in regards to my child's safety (As my child had been attacked by another child in the school prior). *** then protected this EA and refused to have any disciplinary actions happen other than re-educating on confidentiality. My child's information continued to be leaked by the EA after the fact and still nothing was done about it. It came to the point where I had to remove my child from the school due to ***'s negligence.

I have been an EA for 20 years. This job is not the same job it was 20 years ago. Over the last 5 years or so it has taken a downward turn. My stress level has skyrocketed! Just going into work is stressful because I never know what the day will hold. Less and less, I am helping students with academic needs. More and more I am facing students with extreme violent behaviors. Behaviors that not only impede their ability to learn, but also impede other students' ability to learn. Every day I go into work I hope I can leave the same way I came in, but it has gotten to the point that leaving with "only" a scratch or bruise that will heal quickly is a good day, in what other job do you say that. Since 2019 I have had 3 concussions and 1 count of whiplash at the hands of students I work with, before 2019 I had never had a concussion or been seriously injured on the job. I am currently off work recovering from a concussion and now am facing seeing a neurologist to ensure there hasn't been any brain damage from all the trauma to my brain. This violent behavior not only takes a physical toll on my body, but also a toll on my mental health. Daily my co- workers and I are faced with being spat at and on, sworn at, kicked, punched, and bit. You can only endure so much of that. I am in tears and I see them in tears too. I feel these incidents are not taken seriously enough; every child has a right to an education, I would never argue that, but I have the right to feel safe coming to work. I have the right to have something left in the tank at the end of the day so my own kids get some of me too. So often I have nothing left to give after being at work. I struggle constantly to reconcile loving this job and being so passionate about it, but also legitimately wondering how much longer I can do this for.

My children were students at St. Marguerite D'youville for 10 years. They had excellent teachers in FDK, Gr 1 - 6, and 8 and were in a positive, healthy learning environment from FDK until the end of Grade 3.
We had zero issues with staff and students up until that time. One of my daughters started to experience bullying at the school in grade 4. The school started to fall apart after the school re-opened after the pandemic and the old Principal was re-assigned to a different school within the DCDSB. The staff turnover rate has significantly increased since the old Principal left. The school has lost 2 Program Support department heads, 5 EA's, a secretary, and custodians over the past 3 years. I have heard that the behaviour of students at the school has been terrible since the old Principal was re-assigned to a different school 3 years ago. I can only hope that the new school administrator and the school board will be able to restore the school to the positive, healthy learning environment that it once was.

Chronic lice problems with students. Very little done about it!!!

My son has been spit on twice by a student that is not in his class or grade. Both times no one from the school contacted me and I had to hear about it from my 11 year old. Unacceptable.