WHO ARE WE? THE CONFERENCE OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS OF ONTARIO

BETTER KNOWN AS…

CIS ONTARIO CIS Ontario is a collegial group of 47 member schools working together to advance educational excellence in Ontario Independent schools Of the 47 Schools… 3 are associate schools out-of-province 8 are single-gendered girls’ schools 6 are single-gendered boys’ schools The remainder are co-educational 16 have a boarding complement

PRIVATE SCHOOL OR INDEPENDENT SCHOOL? In Ontario, any school not receiving public funding are all grouped under the one umbrella of “private schools”. There are currently 941 schools that fit that definition! CIS Ontario prefers to use the term “Independent Schools” to distinguish themselves from the larger group. The key differentiator is the requirement that all CIS Ontario Schools have gone through a vigorous membership criteria process that includes a mandatory governance structure with a Board of Governors that operates at arms-length from the administration of the school.

OUR STUDENTS ARE…

PUBLIC SCHOOLS OR PRIVATE SCHOOLS - WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES? Public Schools  Accountable to ‘central board office’  Operational policies set by central office  Budget set centrally  Staffing limited by central office  Management of staff impacted by labor contracts  Parents’ role – Parent Advisory Council  Alumnae role minima l Private Schools  Accountable to independent board of governors  Operational policies set by management team  ‘School-based’ budgeting  Staffing limited by approved budget  Management of staff requires finely honed HR skill set  Parents as ‘clients’. Parents’ Guilds  Alumnae as a significant stakeholder group

OUR SCHOOLS HAVE EXCELLENT COMPENSATION PACKAGES THAT MATCH OR EXCEED THAT OF THE LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD. ALMOST ALL SCHOOLS ARE MEMBERS OF THE ONTARIO TEACHERS’ PENSION PLAN.

CIS ONTARIO MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA Vigorous Membership Criteria for Schools Academic Standards – programming must qualify students for university Governance – arms-length Governance structure must be in place Financial Considerations – proven long-term financial stability Reputation – reputation of excellence must be achieved by the school over a period of years and recognized by CIS Ontario and the public at large

OUR TEACHERS ARE OFFERED EXTENSIVE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THAT ENSURES ….

CIS ONTARIO BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP Professional Network Groups Professional Network Groups - Heads of School, Business Officers, Human Resources, Health Services, Librarians, IT Directors, Facilities Managers, Curriculum Leaders Marketing Marketing - Teacher Recruitment, Faculty of Education Presentations, Career Opportunity Day Professional Development Professional Development - Cohort 21, New Teacher Day, subject-specific/division specific programs Student Programs – Student Programs – CISAA, CIS Ontario Music Festival, CIS Ontario Drama Festival, CIS Ontario Dance Festival, Techno Cup

OUR SCHOOLS ARE ….

COME VISIT US AND LEARN MORE!