Education
Executive Council
October 2, 2009Ministers Encourage
Nominations for School Board Elections
The nomination period for the upcoming school board
elections begins today (Friday, October 2). Potential
candidates have until October 8 to seek nomination. The
2009 elections are scheduled for November 3 for the
Eastern, Nova Central, Western and Labrador school
boards.
"The province's school boards play a pivotal role in
advancing and strengthening our education system," said
the Honourable Darin King, Minister of Education. "The
elected trustees who lead them are volunteers who
believe that public education requires public input and
they play an important stewardship role in guiding our
education system. I encourage everyone to consider
putting their name forward for nomination over the next
week."
The Provincial Government allocated $400,000 in
Budget 2009 to support a renewed focus on building
candidate and voter participation. The date for the
elections was moved to November 3 to avoid confusion
with the municipal elections and to allow for more time
following the beginning of the school year to engage the
public and raise awareness.
A public awareness campaign was launched in
August by the Newfoundland and Labrador School Boards
Association. In addition to raising overall awareness,
the campaign is also seeking to increase the number of
female trustees as a means to establish greater gender
balance reflective of the overall population.
"It is important to have equal representation of
women on our province�s school boards to ensure balanced
decision-making," said the Honourable Kathy Dunderdale,
Minister Responsible for the Status of Women. "Women
bring different perspectives and insight to all issues
and it is critical that women be involved in
decision-making that has a direct impact on our
children�s future. I encourage everyone to consider this
when putting forward nominations this year."
The Honourable Dave Denine, Minister Responsible for
the Volunteer and Non-Profit Sector, remarked that
school boards are a great way to volunteer and get
involved in children�s education.
"Dedicating your time and efforts to volunteering is
one of the most rewarding activities," said Minister
Denine. "It is also a great way to be an example to our
children and show them how vital it is to get involved
and make a difference in the community."
Minister King noted that the 2005 elections provided
a promising benchmark to attract candidates for the
upcoming 2009 election.
"The last election saw candidates in place for 56 of
the 60 positions," said Minister King. "This was an
improvement over the showing for 2001, and I call on
everyone to put their name forward for trustee to make
this year�s election a real success. It is a great way
to support the children and youth of the province and to
be involved in the community."
Candidates must fill out a nomination package which
can be found at
www.makethedifference.ca. Mail-in
nominations must be postmarked and sent by October 6.
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