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Spiritual Care in Secondary Schools History from late 1990s to present  From Carleton Board of Education to Ottawa Carleton District School Board. At the time of the amalgamation of the Carleton Board of Education and the Ottawa Board of Education, consideration was given to the existing programs that might be continued in the newly formed  Ottawa Carleton District School Board.  To determine this, the new Board asked for information on the history and work of what was originally known as Pastoral Care in Secondary Schools (PCSS).  

A survey of the PCSS program and the schools in which it operated was undertaken.  Administrators, staff, students and parents were asked to respond. The volunteers were included in the gathering of information about the program, its use and value for the school community. PCSS volunteer work and operation was documented in minutes and reports to the Coordinating Committee which, at that time, was comprised of representatives of Anglican, United, Presbyterian, Baptist and Roman Catholic churches.  Much of the information about its activity and value to the school communities was anecdotal in nature, reflecting the request for questions posed. A report of the findings was submitted to the OCDSB. 

The concept of the program was well received by the Board. One Board Administrator called the PCSS a “value added” program that would benefit school communities.  Consultations with OCDSB administrators requested that the PCSS program expand to include contacts and representation with the faith communities recognized by the Board. To that end contacts were made with the faith communities and, as they were interested and able to participate, the PCSS developed  communication and supportive links with representatives of the Jewish, Muslim, Indigenous, Baha'i, Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist faiths.  While time and personnel involvement was sometimes limited for some of the faith communities, the contacts, consultation and information sharing was beneficial to the overall work of the PCSS program.  Pastoral Care in the Ottawa Board schools could now count on the core support of not only different Christian denominations but also the broader faith communities of Ottawa-Carleton.  The Program and Coordinating Committee were incredibly enriched by this expansion. 

In time, the OCDSB moved to provide specific support for Indigenous students. Appropriately, the Indigenous representation in the PCSS moved into its own program. (See 

Indigenous Education - Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (ocdsb.ca)  

With Board support and principals' assistance, Alternate Schools were invited to consider including the program.  This became a regular role for  some of the Spiritual Care volunteers. With the opening into the greater area of the region there came an  increased amount of work to introduce the program to the faith communities, to the increased number of schools, and to encourage suitable volunteers to consider this way of offering their time and experience. (See Volunteers | Spiritual Care in Secondary Schools ) A part-time coordinator was taken on in order to support the expanded work of the Coordinating Committee. This role has been continued almost continuously to the present We are curring looking for a new part-time coordinator.  

As the profile of the PCSS program began to reflect wider faith community inclusion and identity, the program became more suitably named “Spiritual Care in Secondary Schools”. This also indicated a broader societal awareness of spirituality as a significant part of living, and connected with the wider spiritual role already being named in other settings of society, notably in health, and medical institutions as well as universities and colleges.     

The conversations and consultations with OCDSB administrators  has been increasingly useful for the Spiritual Care program.  The Board support has been significant in the changes and growth.