So Liz Watson, the special adviser appointed to review the board governance for School District #83, spent time over the last two weeks in the region, talking to various people, asking questions and presumably forming opinions on how things run.
Watson was appointed by the education minister to do this work after revelations that board trustees were unaware that $10.5 million was transferred from the district’s operating budget to capital budget to help pay for the $9 million administration offices. Three trustees have also resigned, citing board dysfunction and a lack of public trust in the board.
But I really wish Watson had been at last Tuesday’s school board meeting to get a flavour of what’s been going on around the board table.
There was a point at the meeting where I felt like slapping my forehead and saying, “seriously?”
More than once, the board flailed around on issues of procedure, arguing about when to make an amendment or table the motion or reconsider or just vote.
Three of these trustees have been on the board for more than 15 years and they still don’t know?
I’m not a special adviser, but I’d say a course in Robert’s Rules of Order would be a bare minimum, as was pointed out at the meeting by trustee Jenn Wilchuk.
Another area where the school board could improve transparency is advocacy. A number of parents are calling for the school district to draw a line in the sand regarding provincial underfunding of the public education system. They would like to see the school district submit a “needs budget” to the ministry, outlining what it would cost to properly fund services for students in the region. While some call for this to be the only budget the school district submits – which could lead to a ministry firing of the board – other parents suggested it could be included along with the legally required balanced budget.
Board chair Bobbi Johnson pointed out trustees swear an oath to produce a balanced budget, and said she wouldn’t be breaking it. Instead she told the crowd the board writes letters of concern to the ministry.
But let’s face it. Letters sound like a namby-pamby effort.
Parents in this district are upset, unhappy, but also motivated to create change for their children.
They want more than just nebulous letters sent to a even more nebulous bureaucrat in Victoria. Noah Ralston, a school district teacher and parent advisory council member, then asked to see the letters sent by the school district to the government, ostensibly so parents could become more empowered and use the same language as the school board in their protests to the provincial government.
At the very least, parents want to see that the board has been sending the protest letters they claim to have been sending.
If the public trust in this school board has any chance of being rebuilt, it’s going to take a show of action, rather than words.
