Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education Inaugural Board Meeting – November 4, 2024

Posted On Tuesday November 05, 2024

On Monday, November 4, 2024, the Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education held its Inaugural Board meeting. Board Policy 7: Board Operations defines the process of such meetings. The Inaugural meeting is to be held annually prior to the first regular public meeting of the Board in November. The Secretary-Treasurer presides over the meeting until the election of the positions of Chair, Vice-Chair, British Columbia School Trustees' Association Provincial Council representative, and British Columbia Public School Employers' Association representative of the Board for the 2024-2025 term is complete. Last evening, the Board supported by acclamation each of the elected roles.

Board Chair – Heather Grieve

Board Chair Grieve shared, “I am privileged to continue to lead alongside our Board of Trustees who have proven local and provincial leadership to make students’ lives better through their leadership. It is an honour to work with each trustee to move forward the priorities of the District Strategic Plan. I look forward to serving our community in a trustworthy, transparent, and respectful way.”

Board Chair Grieve is serving in her third term as one of five elected trustees in Kamloops on the Board of Education. Currently, Chair Grieve is the Board liaison to the Westsyde family of schools which includes: Arthur Stevenson Elementary, David Thompson Elementary, Pinantan Elementary, Westmount Elementary, Westsyde Secondary, Westsyde Elementary, as well as the School Board Office and Transportation Office. In this liaison role, she attends celebrations, events, and school visits upon invitation. She represents the Board as the Chair of the Human Resources Committee, Audit Committee, and Education Committee of the Whole. She serves on External committees including the Accessibility Committee, Legacy Grant Committee, and the Elementary School in Batchelor Heights Community Engagement Committee once it begins. Chair Grieve participates in recruitment of senior staff and principals and vice principals, and serves as the media representative for the Board of Education. She has been instrumental in planning and reviewing board agendas bi-weekly, suggesting responses to requests to present or correspondence to the Board, and to planning board workshops and professional development.

Chair Grieve has met with the Minister of Education and Child Care and other provincial representatives on behalf of the Board, and attended provincial advocacy meetings with provincial politicians and partners. This year, she attended UBCM with the City of Kamloops Council members to meet with Minister Rachna Singh, Assistant Deputy Minister Jennifer McCrea, and Assistant Deputy Minister Chris Brown to advocate for a new secondary school in Aberdeen.

In December 2021, Heather articulated the needs of school districts in the public consultation held by the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services. Provincially, she is serving as a member of the BCSTA Comprehensive School Health Working Group. She participated as a panel speaker in 2021 to share the importance of student voice in advising Board decisions, and she was also spokesperson and presenter at the November 2022 BCSTA Fall Conference.  In 2023-2024, Chair Grieve led discussions provincially about criteria for Trustee Codes of Conduct and the Kamloops-Thompson School Board’s Policy 4: Trustee Code of Conduct was referenced as an exemplar.

Vice-Chair – Rhonda Kershaw

Vice-Chair Rhonda Kershaw shared, “I am honoured to continue as the Vice-Chair of the Board for 2024-2025. I will continue to bring critical questions and suggestions to the Board table that move forward the Board’s strategic priorities.  I have always appreciated community input and engagement, and I look forward to leading alongside parents and community partners to achieve the best outcomes for our students.”

Vice-Chair Kershaw is in her fifth term as a trustee and has served in the roles of trustee, Chair of the Board, and Vice-Chair of the Board. Last evening, the Board elected Ms. Kershaw to be Vice-Chair for her third term in the role. Representing Barriere, Vice-Chair Kershaw serves as the Board liaison for Twin Rivers Education Centre, Continuing Education, Barriere Elementary, Barriere Secondary, as well as the Henry Grube Education Centre and Maintenance Department. 

Vice-Chair Kershaw also serves in roles of Chair of the Sun Peaks Committee, Vice-Chair of the Audit Committee, alternate on the Finance and Planning Committee, and trustee representative of the Legacy Grant Committee. She is the Chair of the In-Camera Board Meetings and sets the agenda for these meetings biweekly with the Board Chair, Superintendent, Secretary-Treasurer, and Director of Communications and Board Administration.

Vice-Chair Kershaw participates in recruitment of senior district roles, principals, and vice principals, and has served as a trustee representative on all committees in her five terms. She is a collaborative partner in review and revisions of board agendas biweekly, correspondence, and planning board workshops, MLA meetings, TRU Partnership meetings, and City of Kamloops meetings. She has a longstanding history and comprehensive understanding of the Board’s advocacy priorities and capital needs, supporting responses to requests to present and correspondence, and to planning and implementing Board professional development.

British Columbia School Trustees' Association Provincial Council – Trustee Kathleen Karpuk

Trustee Karpuk shared, “I have a passion for improving education for students, and I look forward to continuing to serve the Board as the representative of their interests on the BCSTA Provincial Council. In this capacity, I will advance the advocacy strategies that will ensure optimal life chances for students provincially and locally.”

BCSTA’s Provincial Council was established in 1987. It was formed to ensure that the interests of all boards are represented in the governance of BCSTA and to facilitate an ongoing dialogue around issues facing the association and its member boards across the province.

Last night, the Board elected Trustee Kathleen Karpuk to be their representative on the British Columbia School Trustees' Association Provincial Council. In that role, Trustee Karpuk will attend meetings throughout the year, including standing committee meetings and bring forward the Board’s questions or concerns, as well as their advocacy agendas, and will simultaneously attend to the needs of Boards in the Interior region. Trustee Karpuk will learn firsthand the needs of boards provincially, provincial advocacy directions, and potential annual general meeting motions, and will bring back this information to the Board of Trustees.

British Columbia Public School Employers' Association – Trustee Cole Hickson

Trustee Hickson shared, “I am committed to continue my learning about employee groups’ needs provincially and locally, and to bring forward advocacy for the betterment of employees locally and provincially. Given that this is my second year in this role, I am comfortable to ask in-depth questions to get to the heart of issues that are of central importance to employees in our District, the Interior of BC, and to employees provincially.”

The trustee who takes on the British Columbia Public School Employers' Association representative role acts as a liaison and communications conduit between Boards of Education and BCPSEA on human resources matters, including distribution of BCPSEA communications to board members while ensuring their Board’s voice is heard by BCPSEA.

Please join the Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education on their journey of advocacy locally and provincially. To learn more, go here. To learn more about the Board’s Governance Framework and Workplan for 2024-2025, please go here.

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