Following its Oct. 3 meeting, the Cariboo-Chilcotin Teachers' Association (CCTA) executive committee voted unanimously in support of a motion of non-confidence in the School District #27 (SD27) school board.
"After careful consideration of the events that have unfolded in the last two months, we felt it was necessary to speak out against recent decisions we believe are creating chaos and uncertainty for staff and students in our district," says CCTA president Murray Helmer.
Since the resignation of the superintendent in August, Helmer says the trustees have failed to provide a seamless transition of leadership and instead indicated their desire to have a series of three interim superintendents appointed over the course of the year before interviewing candidates for the permanent position next spring.
"We are also critical of the board for failing to provide reasonable set of conditions in which the current assistant superintendent, the most logical and experienced choice for the successor, could have assumed the duties and provided much-needed stability and continuity in the district."
The CCTA president claims the board is violating its own policies as it restructures the district, Helmer charges.
"Board Policy 2100 deals with the roles of administration and management, and clearly states the secretary treasurer shall be directly responsible to the superintendent, but the board has changed its current leadership model to a dual leadership model with the interim superintendent and the secretary treasurer equally reporting directly to the school board.
The final event that triggered this response was the release of the district's Audited Financial Statement last week, indicating that School District #27's Operating Fund surplus increased to $3.7 million.
(See budgeting story on A3.)
Unnecessary cuts to services in special education, counselling, library, career programs and Aboriginal education contributed to a saving of $1.7 million – money that would have addressed needs that schools had identified throughout the year, Helmer says, at the same time, trustees voted to close Bridge Lake Elementary School when there was clearly enough funding to keep it open.
"This is clearly not responsible management."
Trustees' position
"The board has communication protocols in place for all public, parents, students, employees and employee groups to address concerns and issues with the board," school board chair Tanya Guenther states in an e-mail.
"As of today the concerns expressed by the CCTA president in his Oct. 4 press release have not been communicated with the board other than through the media.
"We hope that the CCTA opts to bring these concerns to the board through its regularly scheduled liaison meetings, so the board can address them and any other concerns that affect our teachers."
Meanwhile, Helmer noted a meeting was set up with Cariboo-Chilcotin MLA Donna Barnett on the following afternoon (Oct. 5).
He planned to discuss the possibility of the education ministry "taking an interest in what is going on" in SD27, and the potential for "providing some oversight" to the school district.