A motion calling for an even distribution of information from a first-term school trustee who claimed that not all board of education members are treated equally was passed at Tuesday night's board of education meeting.
Trustee MaryAnn Mortensen told The Record that even as an elected school trustee she sometimes feels like an outsider looking in, and she said there were "trust" issues on the board between Voice and labour-endorsed trustees. Still, her motion calling for staff to consult with trustees and to consult with all trustees about board-hosted public meetings passed with only trustee Jonina Campbell opposing.
"I agree with MaryAnn, that it's nice to get info in a timely manner, and I support that element of it," Campbell said, but added that the motion may mean the board is "micro-managing" district staff.
"It may impact senior administration's ability to do its work," Campbell said.
Mortensen raised the motion after an Oct.16 public budget workshop meeting. She said trustees were not informed, nor were they consulted on the format and finalized content of the meeting.
"The first time I saw that presentation was . as I walked in the door," Mortensen told The Record last week.
Trustee Lisa Graham agreed, saying the format was also a "surprise" to her.
"I couldn't participate in the workshop to the degree I wanted," she said. "This would be very, very helpful I think to all trustees to have the information before-hand."
Superintendent John Woudzia explained to the board that a letter had been sent home to parents before the meeting. He also said the format of the public meeting was one that had been used many times before.
He also asked for clarification around what level of detail the board wanted.
Trustee Casey Cook said any meetings of the board should be "owned" by the board.
"It's the board's meeting," he said, adding he would be more comfortable consulting with staff on how a meeting should be run.
"In the end, we are going to be held accountable," he said. "To me, this goes to the issue of accountability. "
Trustee Michael Ewen said he agreed with Cook.
Mortensen said her motion wasn't meant to hamper the work of district administrators.
In a previous Record article, Mortensen said that union representatives and the district parent advisory council were given an update on the Oct. 16 presentation before the public and trustees. But at Tuesday's board meeting, secretary treasurer Brain Sommerfeldt clarified that, explaining that those groups only had access to the same budget information that trustees had already seen.
The school district is dealing with a $2.8 million deficit from last year, which includes $521,000 left over from a previous deficit. By law, school districts must present a balanced budget, and the shortfall will have to be recovered over time.
