BC School Trustees Association
Published in the Local Weekly at https://issuu.com/brianhubenig/docs/the_local_march_23
The School District No.46 (Sunshine Coast) Board of Education are members of the BC School Trustees Association (BCSTA). BCSTA is a non-profit provincial organization that serves and supports member boards with professional learning, communication, and legal counsel. The BCSTA is also responsible for advocating to government and other education partners on behalf of member boards as well as enhancing the work of local boards to improve student achievement.
Members of the SD46 Board of Education have active roles in the BCSTA and contribute to the work of the BCSTA. Trustee Pammila Ruth is our locally elected Provincial Councillor, a position formally held by Trustee Dave Mewhort. The Provincial Councillor represents the Board of Education at Provincial Council meetings in October, February, and April. The Provincial Council is deals with emergent issues in BC education and provides direction to the BCSTA Board of Directors.
Trustee Lori Pratt is the South Coast Branch President and member of the BCSTA Elections Engagement Committee. The South Coast Branch is composed of boards of education from Powell River, Sea-to-Sky, and the Sunshine Coast. Trustee Pratt leads our regional work but also represents our Branch on the BCSTA Elections Engagement Committee. With the upcoming provincial election, this committee developed a provincial campaign to bring BC public education to voter awareness. The campaign is called “Public Education is the KEY.” Follow the hashtag #bcedkey on social media.
Chair Betty Baxter participates in the BCSTA with conference calls on provincial announcements and Board Chair Listserve to connect, share ideas, and ask questions with other member board chairs. Chair Baxter also attends a provincial conference with superintendents, secretary-treasurers, and Ministry of Education in October, which is followed up by a BCSTA facilitated event designed for board chairs to support them in their work and professional learning.
Trustee Christine Younghusband has served on the BCSTA Board of Directors for the three years as Director, where she was the Board Liaison on the BCSTA Education Committee for two years and BCSTA Legislative Committee for one. She is also a member of the BCSTA Learning Guide Committee, which oversees the development of a new trustee curriculum to support boards of education and individual trustees with their professional growth and development.
In April, several SD46 trustees will attend the BCSTA Annual General Meeting in Vancouver to deliberate, debate, and provide direction to the incoming BCSTA Board of Directors.
