The Prince Albert Catholic School Division has some familiar faces as chair and vice chair for this year. At their annual organizational meeting on Monday the board acclaimed Suzanne Stubbs as chair and Albert Provost as vice chair as they return to those positions.
‘It was also very nice that the board elected a chair and a vice chair with some continuity during the pandemic and I think that’s really important that we have some form of continuity but we have the nice balance of those board members that are returning and a nice balance of those who are new and I think that is going to be starting off on the right foot with all the right pieces in place,” director of education Lorel Trumier said.
In the election on Nov. 9 Stubbs, Provost and Patrick Hordyski were all returned to the board along with rural subdivision trustee Maurice Chalifour. New additions to the board for this term are Andrea Ring, Chrissy Halliday and Darryl Sande.
The board also assigned trustees to committees as required by the Education Act.
“That’s exciting because we have new members and very active participants in the meeting. It was really nice to see that we have people who want to be engaged in the process. It looks like our board will start off on the right foot,” Trumier said.
Committees include the Audit Committee, Facilities Committee and Transportation Committee as well as some ad hoc committees. Ring was selected to be the liaison for the Saskatchewan High School Athletics Association (SHSAA).
The board also returns to a full complement of six trustees in the city. Two seats were vacant after the passing of former chair George Bolduc in March 2019 and the resignation of Bruce McKinnon.
“With the recent death of our former board chair and a resignation we have been operating with five people. Now having a full-fledged election with a good democratic process we have a very strong and active board. Now the work begins,” Trumier said.
With a full board, the meeting was held at Ecole Holy Cross gymnasium to meet physical distancing requirements.
“With the recent announcement we are always going to be looking at managing the meetings in a way that meets the public health recommendations of the day. So we are just going to continue monitoring that. We are looking at different strategies to do the work whether it is virtually or by conference call,” Trumier said.
“And it was important that we gather for the first time. The gym provided large space with large areas of circulation and be able to physically distance,” she added.
“We are going to be continuing to evaluate the procedure for this as we go this year because we want to meet the standards that are approved and recommended. So if social gatherings or gatherings is reduced to a lower number we will have to look at different strategies but we are in the background looking at all different kinds of strategies to see what we can do to make it safe for everyone,” Trumier said.
Board to participate in reconciliation course
A previous matter discussed in June that would have seen board members participate in a fall 4 Seasons of Reconciliation online development program for trustees was brought to the new board now that elections have been completed.
The previous board adjourned the discussion so the new group could determine if the training was something that interested them.
“The board members have indicated that they really feel that participating in that truth and reconciliation professional development would be appropriate and so we are just looking into the how, where, when and why and get that set up,” Trumier said.
According to Trumier, there was very little deliberation in deciding to take the course.
“These elected officials understand the value of truth and reconciliation and they are prepared to lead from the top and take on the professional development that they need to support them in their role and to support our community here towards truth and reconciliation,” Trumier said.
