Section 1: Accountability
1. In your opinion, what is the role of parents in the Board’s decision-making process?Parents have vested interests in the schools their children attend and the schools in their communities. They know their neighbourhoods and they know their children and their children’s needs. Parents often have expertise that can help trustees make better decisions. The lines of communication must be open, transparent, and accessible. And in return, trustees have an obligation to inform their constituents, including parents, of the opportunities to provide input, advice and criticism, and of upcoming events in a timely fashion and to assist parents in any consultation process
Parents have a number of formal and informal roles in the Board’s decision making process, acting individually, acting in groups, and acting through their associations. Parents constitute the majority membership on every school council and many school councils are involved in the umbrella organization Ottawa-Carleton Association of School Councils (OCASC). As a school trustees I will frequently attend meetings of the school councils in my zone and of OCASC and thus become informed on issues as they arise. Parents participate on school accommodation studies and related activities – for example, parents typically choose the name for new schools, which the board usually ratifies.
Through these organizations parents can influence school-based decisions and, through trustees, board decisions. Parents sit on board advisory committees (e.g., alternative schools, arts), and attend board and board standing committees including SEAC, the legislated Special Education Advisory Committee. Public questions and delegations are permanent items on board agendas. Staff reports are to include a summary of the consultation which took place in the preparation of the reports.
2. If you are elected, how do you see your role as a trustee in the decision-making process?
Trustees are elected to make decisions. These decisions must be fiscally responsible, promote excellence in the education of our children, and fair. I will be responsible to my constituents and will give priority to hearing their concerns and advocating on their behalf at the board table. Given the professional advice of staff, and having been pro-active in seeking the advice of constituents, trustees acting in concert as the Board then make formal decisions within their jurisdiction, in open session, and these decisions are binding. Trustees should not make all of their decisions based on pre-fixed philosophical or political agenda, but must be sufficiently flexible to adapt to changed circumstances or new information.
3. Do you believe that trustees should serve as intermediaries between parents and the Board and/or their school (when all other avenues have been exhausted)?
O Yes
O No
Please explain
Trustees can be useful in solving disputes. Acting as an intermediary can be helpful, depending on whether there is a board policy or procedure to be followed, whether there is a personality conflict, whether what is being asked by the parents will harm other students, and so on. If there is a policy or procedure that requires change, as a trustee I will be in a position to move such a change. Although individual trustees do not have authority in the schools, they do have knowledge, they do have skills, and they do have influence. It is these latter which can help solve disputes.
My first questions to parents will be: have you approached the individual, often a teacher or principal, directly with your concerns? That being said, I believe that, having exhausted the chain of command in the bureaucracy, as a trustee I will intervene where justice can be served.
4. Do you believe the Board’s decision-making process could be more transparent?
X Yes
O No
If yes, what measures would you propose to improve the Board’s transparency and accountability?
There is always room for improvement. For example, turn around times for decisions are sometimes too short for proper consultation – by proper I mean alerting parents to the need for a decision and the deadline for the decision, informing parents of the implications of the decision, and providing opportunities for input. Another consideration is to include in staff reports options that were considered, including the recommended one, and pros and cons for each with a conclusion that explains the rationale for the chosen option.
5. What do you believe should have greater weight in the decisions made by trustees: the advice of educational professionals or the input of parents and communities?
O Advice of professionals
O Input of parents and communities
Trustees are elected to make decisions. I will always put the needs and concerns of my constituents as my priority. Both professional advice (by which I mean hard data and reasoned analysis) and constituent input are important to trustee decision making and each has its place. There are some matters for which professional advice is not required, or options which are equally supported by professional advice, and in such situations parent and community input should be the deciding factor.
6. This past year has seen an increase in in-camera (closed-door) committee and Board meetings. As a trustee, would you undertake to ensure that in-camera meetings are held only when necessary to protect the privacy of individuals?
O Yes
O No
Additional comments
There are other reasons for holding meetings in camera including contract negotiations and sale and purchase of property. In my experience, in camera meetings have been limited to personnel, property, and contract negotiations in accordance with the law, and, as a trustee, I will ensure that is always the case.
7. Last year, the Board reviewed its Alternative Schools program and its Secondary Gifted program. Despite strong stakeholder support for these programs, Board staff recommended that they either be closed or eventually phased out. As a trustee, what kind of information would you seek and what kind of questions would you ask in order to come to a decision when staff recommendations are opposed to the views of the community?
I want to know the reasons why the stakeholders are opposed to the staff recommendations and why the staff is making those recommendations. The staff reports should report on the consultation which took place, options considered, pros and cons for each option, and a rationale for the option chose to be recommended. I would also like to know the implications if the staff recommendations were turned down.
You mention specifically the alternative schools review. I have been involved with the alternative schools almost since their inception, and for some time was the superintendent responsible for all of them, so I have deep knowledge and understanding of the philosophy and practice in the schools. A child-centred, team-teaching, multi-age grouping, non-competitive, parental involvement approach was not the norm in elementary schools in the early 1980s, and the approach that Lady Evelyn and then Churchill took was refreshing and innovative. It is reasonable to review the program from time to time, since circumstances change, including the amalgamation of the Ottawa Board of Education and Carleton Board of Education and capping of class size in the primary grades. Alternative schools must continue to innovative teaching practices that serve children’s learning needs.
With respect to the secondary gifted program, I believe that some children have learning needs, talents, or abilities that are so exceptional that they cannot benefit fully from a regular classroom placement, and for these children we must continue to provide special classes. I believe in a continuum of special education service from full integration with support, through partial withdrawal, to congregate classrooms, with integration to the extent the child can benefit, training and resources for the teacher, and without disruption to the learning of the other children.
8. Good decision-making requires good and comprehensive data which is shared with all public education stakeholders. What will you do as a trustee to ensure that board reports are released to the public in a timely fashion and contain accurate information?
With my fellow trustees, I will hold the director of education accountable for timely release of information and for accuracy of information. Many board agendas contain items related to cycles of reporting and of decision making. These should be announced well in advance, perhaps an annual calendar for such events, so that reports are published in a timely manner, allowing for public consideration and input.
9. Teachers and support staff who work in the classroom every day with students are well-acquainted with student needs, yet are not permitted to contribute to the public discussion when changes to programs and service are under consideration. Do you believe that the experience and knowledge of the professionals in the classroom should be better represented in the Board’s decision-making process?
As staff, the input of classroom workers should be reflected in the staff reports. Not every teacher, office staff person or custodian can be consulted on every matter going before the Board. Their union representatives and line supervisors do provide input to staff reports often based on those first hand concerns and suggestions. This is valuable because it provides a frontline view from the direct service providers.
Section 2: Educational issues
10. Given the chronic under-funding of education, what new ideas would you bring to the table to address the Board’s ongoing financial challenges?
First I would urge the Board to continue its attempts to get fair funding from the provincial government. Secondly I would look for administrative economies. For example, there is one city government and four publicly funded school boards operating in Ottawa, each with its own planning department, each with its own adult general interest classes, each with its own adult ESL classes, each with its own gyms being used by the community for recreational purposes, each with its own payroll department, and each with its own transportation policy (thousands of students in grades 7 and up use OC Transpo). There is already one transportation authority for the two English boards so cooperation is in place on a small scale. I would ask for reports on what economies could be made by merging some of these functions. Thirdly I would look for school economies. Textbooks are becoming outrageously expensive. Would our students and the Board’s budget be better served by providing laptop or notebook computers for intermediate and senior students?
11. It can be a challenge to meet the demand for French Immersion while maintaining a strong, viable English program. How important do you think it is for the Board to respond to the ever-increasing demand for French Immersion in this region?
O Very important
O Important
O Less important than other needs
O Not important
Additional comments
It is always important to listen to parents and to other stakeholders. I have heard the concern that schools with French Immersion (FI) programs are becoming overcrowded (First Avenue, an FI-only school has been overcrowded for some time and has not reached the breaking point), while shrinking English programs seem to be given second class status. Over half of the children leaving 5-year old (Senior) Kindergarten take Early French Immersion (EFI) in grade 1, and half of them drop out by the end of grade 8. This needs analysis and remediation.
I am very sympathetic to parents who want their children to have every advantage that the school system can offer, and being bilingual is an advantage necessary to succeed in business locally and in government federally. The recent review of FI programming in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board accepted that EFI would remain in place and that Late French Immersion (LFI) would be phased out and the locations for Middle French Immersion (MFI) increased.
12. Do you favour the Board’s revised student transfer policy that restricts student’s abilities to transfer from their neighbourhood school to the school of their choice?
O Yes
X No
Please explain
My priority in decision making is the best interests of children. I am opposed to the cookie cutter approach to schooling in which each school resembles all of the others. In which case it doesn’t matter which school a child attends, so it might as well be the nearest one, which saves busing costs. Rules work most of the time. But there are times when exceptions must be made, usually based on compassionate grounds and special circumstances, and these must not be so onerous as to discourage following the best interests of children.
13. While the Ontario Ministry of Education is encouraging school boards to integrate students with special learning needs into the regular classroom whenever appropriate, it recognizes specialized classes as one of a range of options for exceptional students. At present, the OCDSB provides specialized classes for students with autism, Asperger’s syndrome, developmental disabilities, giftedness, and a number of other exceptionalities. Do you support the continued provision of specialized classes for students with these and other special educational needs?
X Yes
O No
13. a) If yes, what would you do to reduce waiting lists and improve student access to these classes.
When students are first noted as potentially exceptional, there should be some service provided until a final determination is made, which could include testing, referrals, some classroom modification by the teacher. Once an IPRC determination has been made that the student is exceptional, service must be expanded to assist the student. I would rely heavily on the advice of SEAC and of the Support Services department to ensure sufficient attention and resources are made available.
13. b) If you answered no, how would you ensure that both exceptional students and their peers without special learning needs receive the support they need in order to learn and thrive in the regular classroom?
n/a
13. c) When changes are proposed to special programs, would you agree that any proposed changes should first be evaluated through pilot programs, with well-defined, measurable outcomes?
O Yes
O No
Piloting and proper research protocols are needed. Phasing-in is one way of determining unintended consequences and adjusting the program to meet local needs.
14. Recent changes to program delivery at this Board have reduced access to specialist teachers in the arts, science, physical education, and other subjects, especially at the intermediate level. Do you believe that students are receiving enough subject specialist education in the elementary/intermediate years?
O Yes
O No
Please explain
I believe that instruction in the arts, science, and physical education in the early elementary years needs to be better integrated into the 3 Rs curriculum. One way is to encourage teachers to upgrade their credentials by offering to pay part or all of their tuition in specified subject specialties. Another is to congregate students of grade 7 and 8 in sufficient numbers to allow the staff to have specialists who teach in their specialty.
15. At the same time as students have less access to outdoor education centres, research is showing that children need experiences in the natural world for improved learning, for their well-being, and to be informed citizens about the environment. Would you increase the role of outdoor education centres in our students’ education?
X Yes
O No
If yes, how?
The Board currently has two outdoor education centres of its own, Bill Mason in the west end and MacSkimming in the east end near Rockland, Ontario. If these are not easily accessible, there are other outdoor centres available to our students. I would like to see more curriculum integration. We currently have great emphasis on the 3Rs in the early school years, and while these are essential tools for all further learning, they cannot and should not be taught in isolation; they should not be taught as subjects with an end in themselves.
16. The Alternative Schools program was reviewed this past year and found by the Board to have many benefits for students. As a trustee, would you ensure this program is continued and is extended to zones where it’s not currently running?
X Yes
O No
If yes, what are your ideas to make this happen?
The existing alternative schools were established in response to parental demands. I would support efforts to inform parents in areas of the district not currently served by an alternative school of the practices and value of these schools for some students and their parents. Bearing the label of alternative carries with it responsibility to be alternative and the parents can help define that for their community. I am in favor, for example, of an alternative school associating with the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa as a lab school, as is the case in Toronto.
17. Ottawa receives more refugees than any other city in Ontario, has the second largest immigrant population in the province, and the first language of approximately one third of Ottawa residents is neither English nor French. Do you believe that the OCDSB is doing as well as it could to serve the needs of students and families that are new to Canada?
O Yes
X No
If no, what changes would you propose?
There is always room for improvement. With limited revenue, the Board must always set its spending priorities because there is always more identified need than there is money to meet it. In which case, the Board must continue to seek economies both within the schools but especially outside the schools to free up existing revenue to serve students. Another route is to pursue more formal and inform partnerships and to extend existing ones. One which is working well but needs consideration for expansion, not for cutting, is the Multicultural Liaison Officer (MLO) program co-sponsored with the Ottawa Community Immigrant Services Organization (OCISO)
As trustee, I will work to involve our recent immigrant communities in school concerns, for example, working with MLOs to recruit them onto school councils and meeting with local community groups on their turf. Since school boards cannot accept direct funding from the federal government, we should be doing more with OCISO to expand their federal funding. We must also lobby more strongly with the provincial government to increase our ESL and any other newcomer funding based on the demographics referenced in your question.
Section 3: Philosophy
18. Current trustees: Please give an example of something you did last year to further promote public education. Other candidates: Please name a specific effort you would promote if you were elected.
As a first-time candidate, once elected I will continue my efforts begun in the campaign to interest the media in school board decision-making and to help inform the general public on what trustees and the school board do that affects them directly. I commit to being an ambassador for public education, speaking well of the things we do well, and working with staff and at the board table to improve those things that need work.
19. What is your vision of education and its role in our community?
I want every student to feel welcome in her or his school. This is where our young people will learn about each other, to see each other as human beings with feelings and ambitions. This is where our future is being built. Public education is our best investment for our children’s future and their children’s future.
Most children attend a publicly funded school; our school system provides equal opportunity for each of them to learn and grow into responsible, contributing citizens. School boards provide local control and local accountability to many aspects of schooling. School boards are responsible for the academic achievement of the students in their schools.
