The North East School Division (NESD) will be holding a by-election after the resignation of Town of Nipawin Trustee Logan Campbell.
Campbell sent a letter of resignation dated Aug. 20 and the board of education discussed the resignation at their regular meeting on Sept. 16.
“In our last meeting (the board) reviewed the resignation and accepted it in their September board meeting and they have done their work to find their election dates,” Stacey Lair director of education for the NESD said.
She said the vacancy in the subdivision would only last a few board meetings.
The election is slated for Dec. 17. The Nomination Day is Nov. 12 with a withdrawal date of Nov. 13. If a second call for nominations is required, the date is Nov. 26. The earliest date for an advanced pole is Dec. 2 and the latest date is Dec. 13. The election is scheduled for Dec. 17 between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.
Lair said they want to fill the vacancy by their January meeting.
“In terms of an absence for a short period of time, there’s not really a concern with that because we can still communicate with the vacant area … and do our best to cover that off in that way,” she said. “(We’ll) still definitely represent them as a whole board when we meet.”
As an elected trustee, you can still advocate for your area but it must not take precedence over other areas.
“You can advocate, but you can’t represent and put your area ahead of the entire school division,” Lair explained.
The function of communication makes it so the trustee would make the board clear on the context coming from that subdivision.
“Board members do their best to know those things by attending school community council meetings, by being in the community, by hearing from parents and community members to bring those voices forward and the lived experiences of our families,” Lair said. “That’s a strength that’s extremely important and board members take very seriously.”
Lair said Campbell resigned due to a shift in her commitments. Campbell was elected in the 2024 school board election so the resignation occurred early in the board’s term in office.
Lair said the by-election cost is “quite expensive” for the division. However, she said they wanted to hold one since the resignation happened so early in the board’s term.
Lair said doing research about a trustee position can be beneficial to someone who wants to run.
“I think when anyone is interested in a board position, it’s important to do a bit of checking and homework to find out what it means to be a board member and what that time commitment is like, what are some of the unknown things that are generally not understood or to the depths of the board would know,” Lair said.
She said this can be done by reaching out to the NESD Office where they would be willing to pair that candidate with an existing trustee.
“To help them understand what that commitment looks like, time-wise, it’s probably about four to six hours a week of time, and then there’s certain specific commitments and days, but I think it’s a little bit more intensive, perhaps, than if folks have sat on a local rec board or a community board of some other nature. It can be a little bit more of a time commitment,” Lair said.
“It’s just important that everyone who might be interested takes a peek at that, and we can definitely help provide some background so that they know what the role is about,” she said.
Lair said Marla Walton, who was defeated by Campbell in the 2024 election after representing Nipawin for several terms, is an example of someone local who may be willing to assist.
“I know the folks in Nipawin know who that is. If they would like to reach out, absolutely,” Lair said.
“I would say she did a great job in terms of preparation and attention to the detail of that task and would really have a clear picture of that,” Lair added.
Lair said that there is a common misconception about how school boards operate. She said that they are different than other bodies for representing electorates.
She explained that in this case, trustees are elected to a subdivision but after the election they represent the entire division.
“You have both the responsibility of the finances and the duty of care of employees and students for the entire school division,” Lair said.
She gave the examples of MLAs or municipal officials who do carry the voice of advocates for the area.
“School boards carry the voice and represent information from the area, but then they represent the entire school division after election,” she said.
SUBHEADLINE: NESD approved for food infrastructure funding
Funds have been awarded to 15 eligible organizations across Saskatchewan to expand school food infrastructure as part of a project led by the Saskatchewan School Boards Association (SSBA).
Among the divisions awarded was the NESD and Wagner School in Nipawin.
“Wagner School in Nipawin was one of the recipients provincially of that funding and successful in that,” Lair said.
Earlier this year, the SSBA was approved to receive $1 million in one-time federal government funding from the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) School Food Infrastructure Fund (SFIF) under the banner of Expanding school food infrastructure in Saskatchewan: Ensuring equitable reach.
The NESD’s partner is Nipawin Nutrition for Kids. They have received $28,000 for Wagner to purchase new appliances and kitchen equipment to increase ability to serve breakfast and increase access for students.
“I think one of the things that we know across the school division is just the increase in needs of school nutrition and so we’re excited to benefit from that,” Lair said.
Specifically, the costs of the equipment are designated to that particular SSBA fund.
“It’s restricted to the purchase of helping to improve our equipment in that area and so Wagner School is going to be the beneficiary of those dollars,” she explained.
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
