I hold our government fully accountable for this strike and how it was handled. They stood by and watched when they could have settled this mess months ago.
The people of B.C. need to ask, “What has this government done for our children’s education and their future?”
“What have they done for the seniors and health care?”
I fully support our local teachers and all of the teachers in B.C. During the strike, I spent time talking to teachers on the picket line to get their feedback.
Many felt they could have had more support from the trustees on the picket lines. They also said they would like to see trustees visit them in the classrooms.
If the trustees took a more active roll in this way, they would see how teachers handle issues that come up in the classrooms on a daily basis. By the way, I did see one trustee up on the picket line.
I’m also concerned about the number of school trustees sitting on the board. You can easily understand this issue when we compare our school district to others.
For example; Kelowna has a population of approximately 120,000 and have seven trustees. Surrey has a population of approximately 165,000 and has seven trustees.
Our School District 20, which includes Trail, Rossland, Warfield, Montrose, Fruitvale and Castlegar has a combined population of approximately 25,000 and nine trustees. Perhaps it’s time to downsize.
I am running for school trustee. I ran three years ago and lost by only 17 votes. I have six grandchildren in the public education system and I care about the future of schooling in this province.
I intend to support public education. I will create a positive dialogue among teachers, administrators, parents and students. I will listen and make decisions in the best interest of our wider community.
Hopefully, we can have a respectful and positive interaction between everyone. We will be able to improve our climate in our schools and the education of our children.
Terry Hanik
Trail