Crisis averted? We'll find out at 7pm.
Hello Nelson families,
Some of you may be aware that a school board trustee recently called parent e-mails “spam“. They then made an emergency motion, for tonight’s 7pm meeting, to restrict all communication to a single point of contact, potentially preventing parents from contacting the school board trustees that they elected.
Why would they do this? Because the district parent advisory committee (DPAC) encouraged parents to write letters to school board trustees regarding the need for the VSB to spend more on inclusive education. They described how the VSB is spending less per student each year despite budgeting, and receiving, more money each year (5min YouTube video). The unspent amount, which mostly comes from provincial support for students with learning disabilities, goes back into the general budget which pays things like administrative salaries. Apparently a lot of people thought this was worth writing to their elected representative about.
What does this motion accomplish? It basically insulates elected trustees from public outcry and limits all of our abilities to reach elected trustees.
The school board trustee in question has since apologized and said that they will vote against their own motion, but it is still on the agenda.
You can submit respectful questions for the meeting here.
You can watch the meeting here.
If you feel the need to contact any trustees with respectful feedback, their contact info is on the VSB website.
Thanks for reading! As your PAC representatives, we try to take care of what we can without bombarding you with e-mails but sometimes we feel the need to bring things to your attention.
All the best,
Your PAC Co-Chairs