Upcoming Agenda:
Board of Trustees’ Board Meeting: Monday, December 8, 2025 @ 6:00 p.m. – Agenda: 2025-12-08_Board-of-Trustee Agenda
Location: 1st floor Board Room, Catholic Education Centre, 35 Weber Street, Kitchener
Last week, St. Daniel Catholic Elementary School opened its doors and hearts to a group of visiting students from Kangirsuk, Nunavik, as part of a meaningful cultural exchange rooted in learning, friendship, and discovery.
The Journey North program brings together St. Daniel CES in Kitchener and the northern Inuit community of Kangirsuk, located along the Payne River in the Arctic tundra of Quebec. With a population of roughly 550 residents and access primarily by air, the community is part of the Kativik School Board that serves 14 Inuit villages across Northern Quebec. Kangirsuk is known for its strong ties to tradition, close family networks, and a deep relationship with the land.
The roots of this partnership trace back to a conversation between teachers. When Joseph-mina Louka moved north to teach in Kangirsuk, he reached out to his former teacher, Carlos Roque, to imagine what learning could look like when two communities meet with curiosity and respect. Along with colleague Brenna Ianni, he helped shape the idea of an exchange that would allow students in both communities to learn side by side. Teachers noticed increases in engagement and attendance as the project grew. With Carlos and WCDSB Indigenous Learning Consultant, Jennifer Statts, they hope to continue nurturing this relationship for years to come.
Journey North reflects the WCDSB’s commitment to experiential learning, inclusion, and reconciliation. It invites students to step into each other’s worlds and learn through shared experiences. It also encourages curiosity, empathy, and respect, qualities that help young people grow into kind and informed citizens.
During their stay, our visitors joined students in classrooms, created arts and crafts, and built new friendships with the St. Daniel students who will travel north in April. They also visited Laurel Creek for a full day of outdoor exploration. Students birdwatched, fed the gentle chickadees, and marvelled at pine trees they had never seen before. The day closed with a barbecue lunch that brought everyone together in a simple and joyful moment of community.
The next chapter of the exchange takes place in April, when St. Daniel students will journey to Northern Quebec. They will observe how geography, climate, and isolation shape daily life in Kangirsuk, from food systems and housing to recreation, communication, and environmental stewardship. The local school is a central gathering place for education and community life, offering a window into the strength and resilience of northern communities.
We were truly grateful to welcome our special guests and to learn alongside them. These moments remind us of the power of community, of listening, and of walking together in the spirit of truth and reconciliation. As the Journey North project continues, we look forward to strengthening these connections and offering students unique opportunities that honour culture, land, and the shared stories that bring us closer.
Today marks a proud and powerful moment for Team DAVE, the award-winning robotics team from St. David Catholic Secondary School. Their journey, passion and perseverance are being showcased on the silver screen in a new documentary by local filmmaker and Team DAVE alumnus Jake Durrer. The Drive Never Ends premieres today and tomorrow at Princess Cinemas in Waterloo. Tickets are available at eventbrite.com.
The feature-length film follows the team’s 2025 season and captures the thrill of competitive robotics through the eyes of its students. Ranked among the top 10 teams in the world, Team DAVE is a source of pride for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board and a shining example of the values rooted in Catholic education. Curiosity, community and character are at the heart of this story.
“It really helped me grow into the person I am today,” said Thomas Bader, a 2024 graduate featured in the documentary. “Team DAVE was my favourite and most rewarding high school experience. It helped me grow my passion for coding and engineering, and I would say it helped with getting into the Mechatronics program at the University of Waterloo where I study now.”
The documentary captures the adrenaline of match day, the long hours of design and build, and the bonds that form along the way. For Eden Dietz, one moment stands out above the rest.
“At the Ontario Provincial Championship, we entered the finals of our division undefeated but lost our first match. It took one of the most stressful games of the year to tie the record,” she said. “The pure relief and energy I felt when we won and advanced to the provincial finals is something I will never forget.”
The film highlights mentorship, friendship and the sense of purpose that grows when students discover what they are capable of. Behind the lens is a director who knows the heart of the story well.
“Team DAVE has a culture and dynamic that operate differently from many other teams,” said Jake Durrer. “Most of the mentors are university students or recent graduates. Because the age gap is small, they learn from each other and form bonds that feel different from what you might find with older mentors. I wanted to show the impact of that connection.”
Durrer filmed the documentary on his own while managing a full schedule. He followed two students across an entire season and shaped the story afterward through hundreds of hours of footage. The result is a warm and compelling portrait of what happens when students are trusted, supported and invited to grow.
“When the credits roll,” he said, “I hope the audience feels how important this team is to these students. It may be a high school robotics program, but it becomes their world. They build friendships that last a lifetime and walk away changed.”
Team DAVE continues to inspire across Waterloo Region and beyond. With this latest chapter, their story invites us to reflect on what it means to learn, to lead and to belong. The drive, truly, never ends.
November 28, 2025 – The weather forecast is improving, and all permits and programs will continue as scheduled this evening and tomorrow. This includes our classes, International Language classes, and all events planned for tomorrow.
Upcoming Agenda:
Board of Trustees’s Board Meeting: Monday, November 24 , 2025 @ 6:00 p.m. – Agenda: 2025-11-24_Board-of-Trustee Agenda
Location: 1st floor Board Room, Catholic Education Centre, 35 Weber Street, Kitchener
On a chilly November evening, students from all five Waterloo Catholic District School Board secondary schools came together at St. Mary’s High School to launch this year’s Homes for Hope fundraiser. They zipped up coats, rolled out sleeping bags and settled into a student-built “tent city.” It was a simple but powerful act of solidarity, rooted in compassion and a shared commitment to care for others.
Homes for Hope runs from November 20 to December 20 and invites our community to support neighbours who are experiencing chronic homelessness. Donations will once again support A Better Tent City and The Bridges, two organizations that provide care, stability and essential services. This year, OneROOF has also joined the campaign. Their work focuses on youth facing homelessness, adding a meaningful new dimension to the effort: youth helping youth.
To help students understand the full landscape of homelessness in our region, guest speakers from across the community shared stories, insight and lived experience. Representatives joined from the Region of Waterloo, A Better Tent City, The Bridges, St. Mary’s Church, the Food Bank of Waterloo Region, St. Mary’s Hospital, OneROOF, The Working Centre and the Waterloo Regional Police Service. Their presence reminded students that this issue touches every corner of our community and that hope grows fastest when we take action together.
Throughout the night, students reflected, learned and leaned on one another. They listened to residents who have navigated the harsh realities of homelessness. They heard from front-line workers who show up every day with care and conviction. They were guided by staff who reminded them, through words and quiet leadership, that this was not just an event. It was a movement.
Making this event possible took weeks of planning and collaboration from staff across the WCDSB. From organizing logistics and building partnerships to supporting student learning and well-being throughout the night, staff played a key role in shaping a meaningful experience, one rooted in dignity, empathy and action.
This growing tradition is more than a fundraiser. It is a lesson in dignity, a call to community and a reflection of the care that lives at the heart of our Catholic schools, both in our students and in the staff who support them.
As we move through another year of Homes for Hope, we invite our community to give generously, share widely and help bring warmth, dignity and shelter to those who need it most.
Thank you to every speaker, partner, staff member and student who made the night possible. Thank you to our wider community for continuing to show what is possible when we choose hope and choose one another.
Kitchener, Ontario – On November 17, 2025, the Board of Trustees of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board re-elected Kitchener/Wilmot Trustee Renée Kraft as Chair of the Board and Kitchener/Wilmot Trustee Tracey Weiler as Vice-Chair of the Board. The Board of Trustees is comprised of the following representatives:
Cambridge / North Dumfries
David Guerin
Marisa Phillips
Robert Sikora
Kitchener / Wilmot
Kathy Doherty-Masters
Winston Francis
Renée Kraft
Tracey Weiler
Waterloo / Wellesley / Woolwich
Linda Cuff
Conrad Stanley
Student Trustees
Rebecca Girolametto
Jace Krysko
Upcoming Agenda:
Inaugural Meeting of the Board of Trustees: Monday, November 17, 2025 @ 6:00 p.m. – Agenda: 2025-11-17_Inaugural Board-of-Trustee Agenda
Location: 1st floor Board Room, Catholic Education Centre, 35 Weber Street, Kitchener
