The seven Howe Sound School District trustee candidates came together during an intimate all-candidates meeting at the Eagle Eye Theatre Monday (Nov. 14) to face an audience mostly made up of school district employees. Approximately 30 staff, parents and concerned residents sat through the five Squamish trustee candidates and two SLRD Area D candidates' opening remarks, and then the audience spoke of their own frustrations and concerns.
Howe Sound Secondary School staff representative Paul Demers launched the public question period with a preamble detailing the dissatisfaction teachers felt with the board during the recent strike action.
"We wrote a letter of displeasure with the board's lack of support and I understand Brackendale Elementary and another school did the same," he said.
All candidates said that one of their top priorities would be to rebuild strained employee-management relations. But a few of the candidates had different answers when asked if they would support teachers in future bargaining actions.
SLRD candidate Lyle Fenton and Squamish candidates Rick Price, Michele Mulholland, Andrea Beaubien and Kerry Wallace answered an unequivocal "Yes" to the question of support. But the remaining candidates' answers weren't so simple.
"Yes," said current board chair and SLRD candidate Doug Hackett. "I fully support collective bargaining within the law."
"There are rules of law," said Squamish candidate Terrill Patterson. "I'm not going to tell anybody that if I don't like the decision I'm going to break it."
The candidates also agreed that the strain on funding created a serious dilemma. When asked if they could come up with solutions, Mulholland suggested the board look at its own office and "get rid of the dead wood." Price said he favoured consultation with parents, teachers and students before making decisions as to where to make cuts. Hackett said inefficiencies have been wrung out as much as possible and the board must simply continue to advocate at the provincial level for more funding. Beaubien supported the system of allowing individual schools to allocate their own funds. Patterson said that given the $1 million surplus in the district, better budgeting is necessary. Fenton said the board must create a political will for public pressure on the province. Wallace said all segments of the population must unite.
"At some point if society says it's not good enough persistently in one voice and the whole system starts to make an effort, change can happen," said Wallace.
Inclusiveness and openness in governance became a key issue during the discussions and all candidates agreed that more public consultation and presence is necessary. Demers pointed to this issue and thanked Patterson for attending his grade 10 English class. Mulholland's suggestion that school trustee liaisons be introduced to the district was widely applauded. Price said the board should open its debates to public scrutiny instead of conducting its most sensitive business behind closed doors.
"It does a disservice to the board itself," he said. "It gives the impression the board comes to its decisions easily."
Candidates described their to-do lists during closing remarks and Beaubien asked that voters be patient once trustees take their elected positions.
"We need to learn our jobs to work together," she said. "So please be patient and collaborative."[email protected]
