Humbercrest School Advisory Council

Your Humbercrest School Advisory Council (SAC) would like to take this opportunity to welcome you back, or welcome you for the first time, to the Humbercrest PS community! We’ve had a great couple of weeks, and it’s been so nice to see students connecting with friends and getting back into their routines.     

Thank you to our Principal, Krista Keirstead, and V.P, Mara De Palma-Terpstra, for a smooth start to the school year. We appreciate all the time and effort you have put into a positive start!

Committee Updates

Some returning members of our SoFun committee are already working on plans for the upcoming year, including revisiting the popular “Parent Social” event in October again. More details will follow soon!

We appreciate Amy Parker Green for managing the Council’s instagram page this year - and appreciate all the updates she’s been sharing there. If you aren’t already, please follow us at @humbercrestparentcouncil. 

And thank you to Yvonne Chan for helping get athletics off the ground by providing Humbercrest t-shirts for purchase and working with staff to find teacher and community coaches to support all our teams.

Meetings

Our first SAC meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 6th at 6:00pm in the school library. Meetings will aim to run for 90 minutes. There will be a space for children at the back of the library if you are without childcare and want to attend in person. Virtual participation is being explored for the upcoming year.

What We Do

Since many of our parents/guardians are new, we want to revisit what the SAC does.

The purpose of the SAC is to improve student achievement and enhance the accountability of the education system to parents. We act as a liaison between the parent community, and provide advice to the Principal and the Board on a variety of issues and activities relating to student achievement, curriculum goals/priorities, school budget priorities, school safety, renovation plans, after school activities and criteria for the selection of new principals and vice principals. We meet regularly to receive updates from our Admin team, teachers, and parent volunteers.

Lastly, we act as a forum for concerned parents to bring forward any issues they would like to discuss openly with the council. The council will meet at least four times during the year, and parents/guardians can find information about events and meeting minutes right here on this website.

Nominations

All parents/guardians of a student at Humbercrest P.S. can self-nominate to become a Member-At-Large of the council, which provides you with voting rights. If you wish to join the council, we ask that you attend at least four of the five meetings, so the council is able to conduct business. If you would like to be a Member-at-Large for the 2026-2027 council term, you must complete the on-line form by the deadline of Monday, October 5th at midnight, and attend our first meeting in person. 

On the form you will see there is an opportunity to volunteer to take on a role within one of our Committees. You can also tell us if you want to return to a role, or if you’re new and want to get involved! These positions are filled based on interest and do not require a separate nomination form or vote. These committees meet separately from the council and report back during the school year.

Executives

The bylaws identify four (4) executive officer positions that must be voted on each term. This year, the SAC executive is seeing a turnover, with the departure of several long-standing executive officers. We would like to thank past Co-Chairs, Heather Sinclair & Shay Benedict, for their years of guidance, as well as long-time Secretary, Tammy Cruji, and past Treasurer, Jay Kantarevic. We wish all of our past executives (and their high-school age kids!) a great year at their new schools.

In terms of new Executives, we’re happy to share that three individuals have confirmed they are seeking election and will be self-nominating for these roles: Charing Wong is seeking re-election as Treasurer; Sara Medeiros is seeking election as Co-Chair, and Olivia Tice as Secretary. We are looking for a second Co-Chair nomination, and continuing conversations with potential candidates over the coming week.

If you wish to self-nominate for one of the four executive officer positions, please complete this online form. Self-nomination forms MUST be received by the school principal by Thursday, October 1st (5 days prior to our vote / first SAC meeting), so that profiles can be circulated to the full school parent/guardian audience. A vote will be held for positions not acclaimed at the first council meeting as outlined in the bylaws.

We look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, October 6th in the library. 

Your School Advisory Council

Email: humbercrestpsparentcouncil@gmail.com (please use this email address for all SAC questions/feedback)