"There be dragons" this year for local school boards, chair warns trustees

CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Amid rumours that the trustee-system will soon become a thing of the past, trustee Michael Bannerman, chair of the Avon Maitland District School Board (AMDSB)’s board of trustees, warned that uncharted territory is before them.

“Mapmakers, when they created maps, they would have unchartered territory and they put all the design in the mountains and they would get out there and they usually draw a picture of a dragon and write ‘There be dragons,’” Bannerman said. “… Who knows, right? Unchartered territory. And I feel like, as we go into this school year, there be dragons.

“We’re heading into some unchartered territory. And it is an interesting climate to be a school board trustee.”

Days after the return to school for students and teachers across the province, Minister of Education Paul Calandra teased through various media channels the end of the trustee system – spurned by recent scrutiny into spending at the Thames Valley District School Board, the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, the Toronto Catholic District School Board and the Toronto District School Board.

In a statement posted to his Facebook page on Sept. 5, Calandra said that he has been clear: “The current school board governance structure is based on an outdated system that needs to be modernized. Our focus is to provide students with better outcomes and certainty, and we are looking to finalize governance changes as soon as possible.”

At the AMDSB board of trustees meeting on Sept. 9, much of the conversation surrounded the fate of the trustee system, with many around the conference table wondering where that left them. Trustee Robert Hunking wanted to have a meeting before the next one scheduled on Oct. 28 so that trustees could discuss the matter at length.

“It’s a provincial thing,” trustee Sheila Armstrong-Marshall replied. “I don’t understand what our role is to get involved with that … Our hands are tied.”

“I think the danger of a meeting like that is we’re crossing over from our role which is public interest and discussing our personal interests,” trustee Jospeh Cohen agreed.

Vice chair Patricia Smith argued that it was in the public interest.

“Having spoken to a number of parents who are very upset about it – and to the point where they're considering writing letters and protesting it, because they want their voices to be heard and that is one way trustees work is to ensure that the public's voices are heard,” Smith said. “So if the trustees are not here, that is a loss. And so if the people who were supposed to represent the parents are expressing that concern, to me, that automatically becomes a trustee interest.”

Ultimately, the board passed a motion to allow the chair, vice-chair and director of education Graham Shantz to schedule a special meeting should the need arise. Until then, Bannerman urged the trustees to focus on their responsibilities.

“We are in our boat,” Bannerman said. “We can’t control the wind but we can adjust our sails. …My challenge to us this year as trustees would be that we would focus on things we have control over. Let’s be great trustees, let’s remind our communities, the schools that we work with, that we represent, why trustees are important, why we are essential, why we do play an important role … I think its going to be an interesting year.”

“You think it’ll be a year? Three months,” joked Cohen.