FAQ

The individual Parent Advisory Councils are the voting members of COPACS. Each PAC elects a delegate to represent them at COPACS meetings. Parents/Guardians of students at SD63 schools are non-voting members of COPACS. Learn more from our Constitution and Bylaws here.

Every school has a parents' advisory council - a PAC - and per BC law (specifically, the School Act S8), every parent/guardian of a child attending school in BC is entitled to be part of a PAC. PACs represent the voice of parents of students at their school; parents/guardians comprise a PAC's members. The School Act legally empowers PACs to "advise the board and the principal and staff of the school or the Provincial school respecting any matter relating to the school or the Provincial school". Learn more about PACs here.

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It's COPACS: Confederation Of Parents' Advisory Councils of Saanich.

Thank you for asking! There are lots of ways you can help. For example, you could organize a parent education event; representing your PAC at our meetings; assisting one of our committees; represent COPACS at a Saanich School District Policy meeting; join our Executive team; help us maintain this website; or via myriad ways we haven't even thought of yet! Take a look at our Sign-up Genius volunteer form, or reach out to us directly.

District PACs, which are also formally recognized in the School Act (Section 8.4), advise the School District and Board of Trustees on matters relating to education in their district. DPAC voting members are the PACs within its district. Those PACs elect individuals to vote on their behalf. COPACS is the District PAC for the Saanich School District, SD63. At COPACS we also serve to connect PACs within our district. You can learn more about DPACs here.  

BCCPAC represents parents from across BC to the Ministry of Education. From their website: As the provincial voice of parents in public schools, we engage, empower and support parents for the success of all learners through collaboration, partnership and education, in a culture of acceptance, inclusion and equity. BCCPAC advocates directly to the Ministry of Education. BCCPAC's voting members are DPACs and PACs, while parents are associate members. 

Sidenote: BCCPAC's website has a ton of great resources for parents and PACs as is well worth checking out!

We hold hybrid meetings: you can join us in person at the Individual Learning Centre on Mount Newton X Road in Saanichton or via MS Teams. See Meetings for more info.