Minister announces successful candidate for new school council liaison position

Education Minister Joan Burke announced today that the department has been successful in filling the newly-created position of school council liaison officer.

�Budget 2006 allocated $125,000 to support this position, in order to strengthen partnerships between school councils, school boards and the Department of Education,� Minister Burke said. �It was important to find a person with a unique set of skills and experience to ensure the success of this initiative. I am therefore pleased to announce that the department has engaged Carolann Pollett to fill the position of school council liaison officer.�

Ms. Pollett is a graduate of Memorial University and Dalhousie University. For the past 10 years, she has been involved with economic and business development both with the provincial government and the private sector. Throughout her career she has been involved in community and economic development, adult training, as well as helping individuals and groups gain the knowledge and skills they need to move their work forward.

The minister noted that the position is provincial in nature and the issues to be addressed will be of a provincial scope. She also stressed that school councils� point of contact on local, school-based issues is still the school administration or the school board.

�We anticipate that Ms. Pollett will work closely with school districts and school councils to foster better communication between the school community, schools councils, the school boards and the Department of Education,� Minister Burke said.

The school council liaison officer will be responsible for ensuring school council members receive any training and training-related materials they require; the final preparation and distribution of a revised school council handbook, and for assisting school councils in their efforts to communicate more effectively with the people they represent.

Media contact: Jacquelyn Howard, Communications, (709) 729-0048, 689-2624

2006 09 26                                            9:00 a.m.