Back when he was a student, the now-superintendent of Squamish's school district could never have pictured himself as being the person in charge.
"I can tell you that growing up, as a closeted, pretty fearful teenager, no way would I have seen myself as a district leader," Chris Nicholson told The Chief.
"I didn't have...any role model. We all know the media depictions of the LGBTQ+ community in the past. It's great to represent. It's a small part of who I am, but it's also a part that I'm not afraid to share."
Indeed, Nicholson, who identifies as cisgender and gay, said he hopes to continue his work advocating for inclusion.
Recently, he celebrated 20 years of marriage with his partner, David. On the professional front, he marked a new milestone — as of Nov. 1, he's risen to the position of superintendent for the Sea to Sky School District.
It's a job offer that's left him thrilled and humbled, he said.
Nicholson is replacing outgoing superintendent Lisa McCullough, who has left the school district to work in the Ministry of Education's governance and analytics division.
"I feel that I'm honoured to be a representative, to be a part of [the LGBTQ] community and I hope whether it's a student, a staff member, member of the community, partner group, whichever, can see themselves represented in positions of...authority I hope that gives people some assurance that that voice will be at the table," said Nicholson, who previously served as SD48's assistant superintendent for over two years.
"I wouldn't claim to represent or to know everybody's experience in the LGBTQ+ community. I can only speak to my own, but I certainly have some knowledge of what it means to be from a group that's been marginalized."
He said equity is one of his big priorities for the school district, as evidenced by his work.
Previously, Nicholson, along with the school board and staff, was one of the drivers of SD48's SOGI, or Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity policy, which was passed back in 2018.
Equity is necessary across all groups, but is also especially important with respect to reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, he said.
Nicholson noted that while on the surface, Indigenous students appeared to be well-supported in SD48, the school district is taking part in an "equity scan" that's intended to see where things can be improved.
He said the school district hasn't been graduating students of Indigenous ancestry with the same life chances as non-Indigenous students, and that's a problem.
Another priority is COVID-19 and ensuring that schools remain a safe place for students and staff.
He said the school district has and will continue to follow the guidance of public health when it comes to informing parents about potential exposures.
"We're not medical experts at the school level, and we need to continue to follow the guidelines of public health — that's what we're all doing in our sector," said Nicholson.
"We understand, of course, that folks and families are anxious and just continue to encourage them to continue to check our website…[and] have the links to all the resources from public health."
Nicholson also added that he's excited to share that SD48 has been chosen as a place to pilot the province's before and after-school care program.
More information on the program, called 'Seamless Day,' will be available soon, he said.
The pilot program will employ certified early childhood educators to provide before- and after-school care in kindergarten classrooms and to support learning alongside the classroom teacher.
The program makes use of existing classrooms outside of school hours and does not require new rooms or buildings.
