Why do I want to be a trustee?

As a parent who followed and participated in the consultations around school closures in 2010, it became quite clear that the processes used by our school district were brutal. Trustees were put in a position of listening but not responding, taking in incredibly intelligent and professional proposals from the public (parents, teachers, students, neighbours...) and simply saying thanks, "we'll make our decision on March 30."  The Sustainability Committee, made up solely of board office staff (no teachers, parents, or trustees), had created a jigsaw puzzle plan with very little flexibility. It was a recipe for conflict and exclusion. Other districts, like Kamloops, adjusted their plan during consultations in response to input. As a result the final Kamloops plan satisfied the "partner groups" while meeting educational and financial goals. In our district, parent groups had to fight to get basic information about their schools, teachers felt like their needs were being ignored, communities were told that "bigger is better" when it comes to schools, and principals were told to stay quiet.  Now, it is not every year that the district needs to close schools and make cuts, but we need a new culture at the board office if we don't want to repeat the past. So, I'd like to see the trustees & board office become more accessible, transparent, inclusive, and responsive. This has impacts for safe schools, rural education, effective technology, improving the role parents can play in supporting their children's learning, reducing politics and double-speak, and building much-needed bridges between management and teachers. These are the issues I am passionate about, and will work for if elected. Some of what happens inside classrooms and schools is unaffected by the board office or the trustees, but I think we can have a real impact on these issues if we address the overall climate in which trustees and the board office engage their "partner groups."  I'll blog in more detail about theses issues, and I'd like to hear from you on this blog or by email. You can also come to the all-candidates meeting at the Playhouse Nov 9th, 7pm I think.