The Howe Sound School District chairperson was voted off the board Saturday (Nov. 19) in a decisive defeat. Former Squamish councilor Lyle Fenton took the Squamish Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) Area D trustee position with 49 votes, well above the 29 votes cast for chairperson Doug Hackett. And both candidates expressed dismay that the voter turnout was no more than 78.
Hackett offered congratulations to Fenton in an interview with The Chief and also had words of regret, but he quickly turned his attention to the work the new board has ahead of it.
"I will probably miss it a bit, it's been very exciting," he said. "I think it'll be important for that group to work as quickly as possible to get to know each other and to get to know each other as a team. It's critical to do that, particularly in the school board level."
Fenton said he's pleased to have been elected and knows he has a learning curve ahead of him. He also spoke of teamwork, but approached the concept in a broader sense than Hackett did.
"I'm hoping that it would more of a team throughout the whole system rather than just a board of trustees delivering stuff to those working within the system," said Fenton.
Hackett leaves the board after serving as trustee since November of 2002 and as chairperson for 2004. Hackett's board received criticism from teachers recently for not supporting them during the failed teacher negotiations, strike action and the province's Bill 12 attempting to force teachers back to work.
Fenton brings to the board experience with Squamish municipal council from 1996 to 1999.
School Trustee - Squamish (2 elected)
Rick Price 2,786
Andrea Beaubien 1,677
Terrill Patterson 1,017
Michele Mulholland 945
Kerry Wallace 815
School Trustee - SLRD Area D (1 elected)
Lyle Fenton 49
x-Doug Hackett 29
