Glossary

Asking for a different decision to be made.

A group of all of the school board Trustees from all of the different neighbourhoods.

When something with the government/social services takes a long time or is more complicated and harder to use than it needs to be.

Something that has to do with prisons, jail, or punishing people.

A group of people who listen to appeals. When someone is trying to change the decision about an expulsion, they have to talk to the Child and Family Services Review Board.

A list of rules about behaviour that students are supposed to follow.

An expulsion (or ”being expelled”) is when the people who run a school board decide that a student has to leave a school or all the schools in that board. It’s different from a suspension because it lasts for an unlimited amount of time and students or parents have to apply to see if the student can go back to school. 

When a person is put in jail or prison.

A plan specific to a student that says what accommodations, programs and services the school should give them.

A folder with information that schools keep to know about a student’s history, like report cards, health information, schools a student has gone to and other important information. You can ask to see the OSR if you’re a student or a parent.

When the police are watching, talking to. or interacting with a person more often or more intensely than normal.

The organization that controls and runs all of the schools that they are responsible for (usually all of the schools of that type in a town or city, e.g. Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board).

A person who is in charge of the school board for your Ward (area). We vote for the school board Trustee we want during an election.

The person who is in charge of all of the schools and principals in one area. 

When a person is being watched, usually by the government/public services or people who work for the government/public services. 

A suspension (or “being suspended”) is when a principal decides that a student has to leave school or class for a specific amount of time, but they can come back after the time is up.

A Ward is how different neighbourhoods in a city or town are split up and labelled by the government. When you vote in an election for your school board trustee, you’re choosing someone to represent your Ward. You can find out your ward here: https://www.hamilton.ca/city-council/municipal-election/find-my-ward