I have met a number of people on the doorstep who have no idea what trustees do. For a couple of good descriptions, visit the Trusteeship section of my Links page.
In terms of trustees and their role in enhancing “quality” in our public education system, I believe the following:
- Trustees must encourage each school within the district to be “an excellent choice” for students and parents, and as far as possible, allocate resources to permit this to happen.
- Trustees must fully understand the costs of providing quality education in their district and work with administrators to communicate the costs and benefits in a clear, responsible and regular manner to the community at large and government officials.
- Trustees must speak up about the value of public education whenever possible, so that the community does not take its schools, teachers, and students for granted.
- Trustees must make their policy decisions based on meeting the needs of all students.
- Trustees must make decisions understanding the full implications of those decisions for today’s students and schools as well thinking about the implications for the future.
