Seneca College Seneca @ York

1
Seneca CollegeSeneca _at_ York
Toronto District School BoardEmery/Westview/Jeffe
rys
York UniversityFaculty of Education
2
History
The Westview Partnership

• York Faculty of Education and Westview Centennial
  Secondary School Family
• 5 schools 1991-92
• 11 schools by 1994-95

3
Current Scope
The Westview Partnership

• Partnership initiatives impact 23 schools,
• directly engage approximately 3000 students
• from the neighbourhood, involve 9 faculties at
• York, Seneca_at_York, the Office of the
• Ombudsperson, the Y.U. Art Galleries, 12
  community
• groups and constitute over 20 different programs

4
Partners 2007-2008
The Westview Partnership

• York University
• Toronto District School Board
• Toronto Catholic District School Board
• Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology
• Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities
• York University Faculty Association
• Jane-Finchs Caring Village
• Community Organizations
• Four private donors

5
Mandate
The Westview Partnership

• To enhance academic opportunities and access to
  post-secondary education and training for
  students living in the Jane Finch community
• To provide opportunities for teacher candidates
  and practising teachers to increase their skills
  and knowledge in urban education

6
Partnership Paths
The Westview Partnership

• Pre-Service Bachelor of Education Path
• Post-Secondary Path for elementary and secondary
  school students

7
Opening the Doors to Post Secondary Education
The Westview Partnership

• To make intentional the aim of
  post secondary
  education
• To engage students from JK to grade12 and their
  parents
• To make York campus a familiar part of the
  community
• To afford a taste of post secondary in high
  school
• To help young people identify strengths set
  goals

My goal has always been to attend university but
I was a bit nervous. After being part of this
experience I have greater confidence university
is the right place for me.
8
Post-Secondary Path Programs
The Westview Partnership

• A variety of programs which will assist students
  to overcome systemic barriers
• Race
• Ethnicity
• Gender
• Economic Means
• Social Class
• Postal Code
• Status or length of time in Canada

9
Our Schools/Our Students 1
The Westview Partnership

• More than 160,590 children are growing up in
  high
• poverty neighbourhoods
• 400 increase in immigrant families living in
  poverty
• between 1999 and 2001
• More than 311,500 immigrant families are
  living in high poverty neighbourhoods
• Poverty by Postal Code (2004)
• The United Way of Greater Toronto and
• the Canadian Council on Social Development

10
Our Schools/Our Students TDSB 2
The Westview Partnership

• Approximately 280,000 elementary and secondary
  students
• Over 150 nationalities and 80 languages
• 25 of elementary students were born outside
  Canada
• 43 of secondary students were born outside
  Canada
• Approximately 50 ESL
• Donna Quan, System Superintendent, TDSB
• Intergovernmental Committee for Economic and
  Labour Force Development,
• 9th Annual Meeting, May 2006

11
Our Schools/Our Students TDSB 3
The Westview Partnership

• 109 TDSB schools fall within the 13 priority
• neighbourhoods 20 of those schools fall
  within the
• Jane-Finch community
• Students in low income neighbourhoods are less
  likely to
• achieve provincial standards in reading and
  writing
• Students in low income neighbourhoods are less
  likely to
• receive the extra curricular, nutritional and
  cultural
• supports students in more advantaged
  neighbourhoods
• marginalization
• Quan, 2006

12
TDSB Learning Opportunities Index
The Westview Partnership

• The LOI is
• A measure of cultural capital in a school
  population based on 10 statistically valid and
  reliable measures
• Ranks each school from most needy to least needy
  (Elementary1-473 Secondary 1-107)

13
Programs for Parents/Caregivers
The Westview Partnership

• Home and School Learning at
• Firgrove Model School

14

Programs for students in Post Secondary
The Westview Partnership

• Westview Alumni _at_ York
• (WAY) Mentoring

15
Programs for Elementary
The Westview Partnership

• Summer Arts
• Higher 5
• After School programs
• Triangle of Hope
• Festival of the Arts

16
Programs for Middle School
The Westview Partnership

• Promoting Excellence
• Math Experience Camp
• Summer Arts

17
Programs for Grades 9 10
The Westview Partnership

• Readers to Leaders
• Mentoring
• School of Nursing
• Schulich School of Business
• School of Kinesiology
• Justice Department
• Promoting Excellence

18
Programs for Grades 11 12
The Westview Partnership

• Advanced Credit Experience
• York/Seneca Summer Science Technology

19
The Westview Partnership
Impact
I used to think about going to
university, but I never actually understood what
it meant, financially or academically. ACE
Participant, 2003
20
The Westview Partnership
Impact Promoting Excellence

• The program made me feel like I had a
  chance...that maybe I could pass high school,
  maybe I might be able to go to college, maybe I
  could have a different life.
  Promoting
  Excellence, 2006

21
ACE - Impact
The Westview Partnership

• 2003/04 -15 students contacted
• All enrolled in PSE
• All intend to continue beyond present
  level
• Most are at least one semester behind
  but had the confidence to return

22
Impact - ACE
The Westview Partnership

• ACE (Advanced Credit Experience) has
• taught me some of lifes great lessons self-
• reliance, independence, taking initiative and
• overcoming barriers.
• ACE Student, 2003

23
Impact - YSSSTP 1
The Westview Partnership

• Through the Summer Science and Technology
• Program, I found my strengths and weaknesses. The
  
• impact of the program on my life has been
• immeasurable and has allowed me to gain
• confidence and motivation to pursue my
• dream and to overcome any challenges
• that I encounter in both my academic and
• personal life.
• YSSSTP Student, 2004

24
The Westview Partnership
Impact YSSSTP 2

• ...I got excited. Excited to become who and what
  I want to become. For the first time in my life I
  got excited to go back to school and excel
  ....YSSSTP gave me the inspiration I never
  possessed, for school, for my career, for my
  life. YSSSTP Student, 2006

25
The Westview Partnership

• Jackie Robinson
• Westview Partnership Coordinator
• Faculty of Education, York University
• 4700 Keele St.
• Toronto, ON M3J 1P3
• [phone] x70323
• jrobinson_at_edu.yorku.ca