For this campaign I have been using as my mantra, "We know how to listen, and we know how to lead." This sums up much of what a trustee does.

To whom do we listen?

Obviously the families of the children of the district. They are ultimately responsible for their children's education. It is not a small thing that they entrust much of this responsibility to the public school system. Therefore, if some families are having a similar challenge, it is our responsibility to ensure that the issue is dealt with satisfactorily. Normally our professional educators do a fine job with such matters.

But once in a while the Board of Education has to get directly involved. This could happen if a dissatisfied family or group of families, having taken their problem through the normal channels, appeals to the board. This does not happen very often.

On infrequent and unhappy occasions, trustees have to consider whether a local school is still viable or if closure is necessary. This requires public hearings, and the acceptance of briefs. I've been through this three times I believe. Way back in the dark ages of the 1980s we considered closing four schools: Barrowtown, King Rd., Mt. Lehman, and the Matsqui primary annex (Ridgedale). The only way we could have kept King Rd. open, with its declining attendance, was to go with two- and even three-way splits in all classes. Hearing this, the parents opted to relocate to Aberdeen. Therefore, King Rd. and the Matsqui annex were closed, with King later being resurrected, initially as an adult training centre, and then as the first of our traditional schools.

Mt. Lehman and Barrowtown mounted very effective campaigns at that time to keep their schools open. The Barrowtown parents more or less went on a major enrollment campaign and doubled the size of the student body, which had fallen to under 50 students. Mt. Lehman also approached other families about enrolling at their school. In addition, at the public hearing they had a number of expert speakers, and even a choir that sang a song written for the purpose.

On another occasion, when South Poplar was teetering on the brink, the families approached us about becoming a traditional school. Now it is bursting at the seams.

Most recently we had to deal with Dunach Elementary, which had excellent programs and high student satisfaction, but was housed in a school that was not fit to use in the long run. In addition, virtually all of the students were from other catchment areas. This latter reality precluded receiving any funds from the Ministry of Education to repair the school. This was one of the few times that we had to go against family wishes and shut the school down.

A second important example is the alteration of the standard school calendar from one week of spring break to two. That deserve a post of its own.