SD44 Board Meeting – Apr 19, 2016
Here’s April 19th meeting videos. Thanks to Dakota from the BC Student Alliance for recording the meeting in my absence.
SD44 Board Meeting – Feb 16, 2016
A few quick comments about last nights meeting:
- Balancing student safety with board policy, union concerns and privacy issues continues to be a concern. Karen Nordquist continues to press the issue with some support from a few trustees. The BC Student Alliance was in attendance with their comments on the issue. Amanda Nichol spoke to the issue on behalf of NorthVan Pac. Trustee Christie Sacré opening remarks included an apology for the issues in the last meeting.
- Some trustees spoke to a misunderstanding in the community with regard to the Argyle rebuild project. Argyle will be rebuilt, the only question is if we’ll receive all the bells and whistles or a simplified project that still mostly meets our needs. If I remember correctly the difference in cost between the bare-bones rebuild and the bells and whistles rebuild is about $3 million dollars. Funding for this last bit was based on the Braemar sale which fell through recently.
- Trustees spent a full 45 minutes discussing Trustee Higgins’ proposal. The intent of the proposal was to request staff provide information about possible private funding for last $3 million in the project. A variety of concerns were discussed, and the proposal was eventually shot down on a tie with Trustee Christie Sacré, Trustee Franci Stratton and Trustee Cyndi Gerlach voting against.
- Teachers continue to be concerned about cold buildings on Mondays. Apparently the air temperature is comfortable when schools open, however surface temperatures can still frigid. The strategic energy management plan has a goal of reducing power usage by 20% overall and the cold classrooms are a side effect of this effort.
- Click here to see the meeting playlist on youtube where you can quickly skip to the sections that interest you. You can also watch the embedded video below or click around to scan the playlist.
SD44 Board meeting, Jan 19, 2016
North Shore Safe Routes Advocate
Budget, Banking, Committees, Assignments, BCSTA and BCSPEA.
<< Coming Soon >>
Handsworth Secondary Capital Project
Childcare Major Funding Program
Summer School Program
School Calendar Adjustment
Land Learning and Livability and the Rest
(Includes Argyle update)
Karen Nordquist comments about Reids one week suspension.
North Vancouver School Board: May 26, 2015 Meeting
Opening
Presentation: Secondary School Apprentices Scholarship recipients
Presentation: Ridgeway School & Environmental Learning Centre receive LEED certification.
Revised Policy 104: Video Recording Meetings
Revised Policy 203: Communicating Student Learning To Parents
Budget Consultation Update – Mountainview Secondary
SD44 Annual Budget Bylaw 2015/2016
Raising of the Rainbow Flag
Land, Learning & Livability Update
Standing Committee Meeting
Out of Country Field Trips
Superintendent’s Report
Report Out: BCSTA & BCPSEA
Trustee Reports & Closing
April 21, 2015 – North Van SD44 Board Meeting
Hey Folks, Here’s the meeting videos from last night. Sorry, I was away in March and wasn’t able find someone else to make the recording.
Intro
Corporate Banking Services
Annual Facilities Grant
Budget Consultation Update and Board Direction
At 3:35: Lewis discusses how they grouped cleanliness and custodial absenteeism into “Health & Wellness” as part of an explanation on why Health & Wellness increased from 0.9% to 10%. Stanley and Forward both ask questions about why this money is listed in Health and Wellness instead of into Facilities.
After questions from Stanley and Forward Lewis explains they grouped “cleanliness and custodial absenteeism” into “Health & Wellness” as part of an explanation on why Health & Wellness increased from 0.9% to 10%.
I’d like to point out the Health & Wellness is listed as including “Succession Planning.” No one brought up the obvious (to me question), “Is the increased costs of John Lewis’s employment change being hidden in this item?”
Forward points out “Special Needs Supports” has decreased by the difference and then some.
The table being discussed is an “Executive Recommendation” and the Trustees should not feel bound by them.
Summer School Pilot
North Van School Board Meeting – April 21, 2015: Bill 11 Board Position
Recommending the board writes a letter similar to upcoming the BCSTA letter. Recommended motion was sent by email and didn’t appear in the agenda. Some trustees supported the idea but not the language in the motion which Trustee Forward describes as “too adversarial.” The BCSTA letter is referenced here.
North Van School Board Meeting – April 21, 2015: Land, Learning and Livability Update
Update on Monteray, Ridgeway Annex, Argyle Replacement project request.
It’s very hard to hear, but Trustee Sacré brings the issue of “a lot of talk” out there in the Ridgeway community and it would be nice if Anthem updates the community. I gather the sale of Ridgeway Annex is conditional on rezoning and there was a question if the school board could recommend against rezoning, thereby causing the sale to fall through.
Lewis makes some clarifications on how Bill 11 might affect school boards.
Superintendent’s Report
Trustee Franci Stratton Report
Trustee Susan Skinner Report
Trustee Jessica Stanley Report
Trustee Barry Forward Report
Trustee Christie Sacré Report
Trustee Megan Higgins Report
Trustee Cyndi Gerlach Report
Report Out BCSTA & BCPSEA
Closing
February 17th, 2015 – SD44 Board Meeting
From Tuesday nights North Van School Trustee meeting. I’ve had the videos ready to post for day now but haven’t had time to write up any commentary. (ok, I just wrote up some commentary, I’ll edit for grammar and spelling on another day.) I’ve decided to just post them to get the information out there. I’ve split the videos into the agenda item parts so you can go right to the part which interests you. The budget vote had many good questions from Trustees and is a great place to start to get a better idea of where the money goes, many good questions asked about the teachers strike and the provincial claw back of funds.
Field Hockey Academy
The field hockey academy was approved for a very small cohort. Enrollment will be by lottery, many more applications are expected than they have room for. I believe the program will grow in future years if there is enough interest and sufficient resources to manage all the interest.
Policy Updates
The next three videos are about policy updates, banning e-smoking and increased support for medical assistance by teachers.
Policy 101
Policy 303
Policy 804
Breach of In Camera
Well worth watching this video regarding in camera meetings and the leak with regards to Superintendent John Lewis’ change in employment. The Board had some advice or training regarding meetings. During the training they heard a leak indicates a problem with the process during the meetings and at least one Trustee (and I believe more were supportive) spoke about the desire to address the process. Better, more democratic meetings in which all Trustee voices are heard and respected, and all concerns sufficiently addressed would be a benefit to the entire North Vancouver school system.
Lucas Center and Cloverly
Trustees voted to request the removal of Lucas Centre and Cloverly from the special study areas of the OCP. This will be a cost savings to the School Board as they city would have charged for part of the service. This is seen by many as a first step in addressing the “school board land sales” issue that came up during the election. The new board seems to be changing direction from selling lands to finding community uses for those lands.
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