Image Credit: Shutterstock

A recent slate of right-wing candidates vying for seats on Kelowna and Vernon's school boards may find themselves without any power if they are elected.

They imagine they will be able to make major changes to how the board functions and schools teach.

"They seem to think they can go in and totally change the curriculum and decide which courses they want ditched," Central Okanagan board chair Moyra Baxter told iNFOnews.ca. "Well they can't."

The group ParentsVoice B.C. is running four candidates in the Central Okanagan school district and three in the Vernon school district but has been very quiet either refusing interviews or answering questions.

However, the emergence of the group with far right-wing sentiments does lead to a bigger question:

So what does a school district trustee actually do, and how much power do they hold?

"The school trustees don't have the power and authority that often people think they have," Former District Parents’ Advisory Councils president Gladys Fraser told iNFOnews.ca. "Their role is primary setting strategic goals and... financial responsibility."

Just like city councillors, individual school trustees don't have any power themselves and all decisions have to be made by the board. School districts co-govern the schools with the provincial government.

It's also worth highlighting what school boards can't do.

They don't set the educational curriculum, as that's done by the province, nor do they hire and fire teachers, that's done by the superintendent and other staff working for the school district.

However, they do set salary levels for the superintendent and other non-union staff, although the vast majority of wages within the school district come under collective agreements which they can’t touch.

School trustees are, however, responsible for the school district's budget.

And those budgets are big.

The Central Okanagan school district has 24,000 pupils and 4,000 members of staff and has a budget of $304 million.

Even a mid-sized school district like Vernon has a budget of over $100 million.

But again, close to 90 per cent of the money is earmarked for unionized staff wages and the school district can't touch it.

The remaining money in the pot though is theirs to manage.

"They're ultimately responsible for ensuring that the budget that is recommended by the superintendent and staff team actually is aligned with the goals and objectives of the district," Fraser said. "In essence, their job is to make sure that their vision and strategic goals are properly funded through the budget process.

"They have to know their (strategic) plan and hold the district to account for its implementation," she said.

While what school district trustees do is often subtle, it can and does have a long-lasting effect on pupils.

In one example, school districts are charged with implementing French immersion education, which will vary from school board to school board.

Vernon School District No. 22 now has a lottery system for those wanting to get into French immersion. It had done it on a first-come, first-served registration system that saw parents camping out overnight in winter to get their children registered.

The Central Okanagan school district doesn't have that system and its French immersion program is dispersed over several schools.

It's a small example of how trustee decisions have long-lasting effects.

School districts do take charge of transporting kids to school, and set walk limits – the distance it says a child can walk to school before a bus is provided.

School districts also decide on catchment areas and whether children can enrol in an out-of-catchment school.

While the curriculum is set by the province, school districts do have the power to create localized courses.

The Central Okanagan school district has hockey and Indigenous academies, and the North Okanagan has programs about forestry and outdoor education.

The school district also allocates money to special needs support.

If schools are at capacity, school districts buy and manage mobile classrooms, deciding which school gets what.

"They ultimately have responsibility for how resources are allocated and we have limited resources, so making the first and best use of the resources we have is really important," Fraser says.

Baxter reiterates the point.

She says over her 26 years at the school district she's often been told she should run for city hall, however, she never has.

"It's much more important than being a member of council," she said. "It's more important to give our children a good education."

Fraser also highlights why it's important to vote for school trustees.

"Trustees are there to serve the community and to inform that process and... do actively play a role... in the education system," she said. "It's not as far-reaching as a lot of people think, but it's a very specific part and how resources are allocated (and) does make a difference."

Elections for School Trustees are being held around the province Oct. 15.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Ben Bulmer or call (250) 309-5230 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. 

News from © iNFOnews, 2022