Despite having to navigate some “very uncharted waters” arising from government decisions, the Pembina Hills school board largely managed to accomplish all four of the goals that trustees set out for the 2019-2020 school year.
That’s according to the Annual Board Evaluation Summary Report for 2019-2020, which trustees accepted as presented during the Aug. 26 meeting.
Board chair Jennifer Tuininga said the annual report was based on the compilation of responses from a 72-question survey filled out by trustees. As well, they also receive feedback from the superintendent and senior administration regarding their working relationship with the board.
Tuininga added this summary report is put together following board policy around the different roles of the trustees.
One goal that the board set for itself this year was to undertake a review of the electoral wards within the division.
After eight months of consultation through meetings with school councils, an online survey and presentations by members of the public, the board finally concluded that review at the Aug. 26 meeting.
Another goal for this year was to align policies and procedures with the new Education Act and to build relationships with the new government.
The report states the board has approved all of its reworked policies, but acknowledged there had been issues with short timelines and data requests, which increased workload and frustration.
As for building a relationship with the government, all efforts have been made by the board to contact and/or meet with local representatives, MLAs, neighbouring school divisions and provincial government organizations associated with education.
For instance, trustees have strongly advocated for eliminating the current requirement for school buses to travel either 90 kilometres per hour or the posted speed limit, which ever is less.
Despite their efforts, sometimes this advocacy has not been successful such as when the board lobbied the province to reverse its decision to cease funding the operations of the Alberta Distance Learning Centre in two years.
Another major goal of the board was to work within the provincial budget and the reality of shrinking reserves and enrolment. The report details a number of cost-cutting measures that the board introduced this year, such as conducting the annual satisfaction survey electronically.
The report also acknowledges that none of this was easy in its final statement. “The board has been ‘forced’ to tread some very uncharted waters due to government decisions and directives that directly affect the quality and substance of the educational programs that are offered to its students,” it reads.
“Through these difficult times, the board has made a consistent effort to uphold the statement that defines the school division — Together We Learn.”
Finally, the report discusses its three major areas of focus for the 2020-2021 school year, the first of which is preparing for the next election in October 2021.
“The board will develop support material that communicates the importance of the role of local school trustees and distribute these resources in our communitiy as well as actively recruiting suitable candidates,” it states.
The board will also work with Alberta Education to defund the operations of the Alberta Distance Learning Centre for Aug. 31, 2021, and will strive to balance the learning needs of students, staffing levels and health and safety measures that will no doubt change during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tuininga noted this summary report is available on the Pembina Hills website (www.pembinahills.ca).
