The race is on. Squamish's two incumbents Rick Price and Andrea Beaubien have announced their intention to run for re-election to the Sea to Sky School District board of trustees in the Nov. 19 election.
A third person, non-incumbent Bianca Peters, also threw her hat into the ring on Monday (Oct. 3) as a candidate for one of the community's two seats on the seven-member board, which administers public schools in Squamish, Whistler, Pemberton and Devine.
Price, a retired former teacher and school administrator who has serves as the District 48 board chair for the past two years, said that while his six years on the board have been fraught with challenges, he's excited to continue the work of building on past successes and pursuing the best possible learning outcomes for students in the Sea to Sky Corridor.
"I am a keen supporter of public education and, I hope, a reasonably articulate advocate for public education," said Price, who wound up his career as an educator in 2000 and was first elected to the board in 2005.
Price said budgetary challenges have certainly led to some difficult decisions over the past six years, but that he believes the board has risen to those challenges and helped teachers and administrators deliver first-rate learning outcomes for students.
In Squamish, he said the recent reconfiguration of grades between Don Ross and Howe Sound secondary schools certainly came with benefits and trade-offs but has ultimately been successful.
"We reconfigured secondary schools, which was certainly not unanimously approved but the really important decisions seldom are because there are almost always positives and negatives," he said. "With those sorts of decisions it's important to take all views, all pros and cons into account, the views of staff, and then arrive at a decision that's best for all involved."
Price touted his experience in public education as beneficial to his position with the board, but he added that it's important to have board members with diverse backgrounds come to the table to facilitate sound decision-making.
Before she was elected to the board, Beaubien was a stay-at-home mom with kids in the school system who became involved in school decision-making through her involvement with school parent advisory councils (PACs).
Beaubien said the recent hiring of Lisa McCullough, the former Central Okanagan School District director of instruction, to fill the superintendent's role beginning next month makes her excited about the direction the Sea to Sky district is taking.
A year ago, with all the budget challenges the board was facing, Beaubien was leaning toward not seeking a third term on the board, she said. But during the past few months she said she has been re-energized and feels strongly that she has something meaningful to contribute.
"I was looking at the budget challenges and thinking, 'This is too difficult and challenging,' but now with new blood coming in, I'm seeing it as a positive challenge and something we should and can rise to.
"I think in general, we're a very proactive board and I think most of us are hoping to come back again. There are places where the boards are boards in name only, where they don't actually get along, but we really get along and really want to work toward the best outcome for all of our students."
Peters touted her experience as founder and president of the Squamish Historical Society, as programming chair of the Squamish Rotary Club's and her 18 months on the board of Boardwalk Gaming as evidence of her deftness at decision-making in a board situation.
"I'm familiar with how the board process that each member of the board has a voice but once a decision it's made, that's the will of the board at the end of the day," she said.
Peters' first experience with the school board was dealing with a situation in which her son was being bullied at school. The situation contributed to the hiring of a school liaison officer to help work through those sorts of circumstances, she said.
"It went on for three years and it got to the point where it got to the school board. What I learned was that ultimately there was a process, and I advocated that we go the police because I believe that when it gets to a point where it's a regular occurrence, you need to go to the police," Peters said. "Fortunately, in my circumstance, once we did that, things started to get resolved."
Peters said she thinks she can offer a fresh perspective to the board. "I've got my experience talking to teachers, talking to other parents and talking to kids, and when you get involved to that level you can't help but want to give back," she said.
Peters said she thinks the district could do more to attract more international students not only to bring in much-needed cash for local programming but also as a way to diversify the district's offerings.
Laura Godfrey, who represents Area D Britannia Beach, Furry Creek, Ring Creek, Pinecrest/Black Tusk, the Upper Squamish and Paradise valleys on the board, told The Chief of her intention to seek re-election in an email sent on Monday.
"I have found the last three years very rewarding and would love to continue in my role as trustee for Area D," Godfrey wrote. "I am excited to follow up with the schools after several changes over the last three years French immersion at Signal Hill in Pemberton, the middle school at Don Ross and the graduation focus at Howe Sound.
"These were all big changes and I would love to be part of the board and see the success unfold."
The nomination period runs from Tuesday (Oct. 4) to next Friday (Oct. 14).
