Interview with SD43 School Board Trustee Jennifer Blatherwick

Host Judith Castillo interviews SD43 School Board Trustee Jennifer Blatherwick about the role of school board trustees and the school board in general. In British Columbia school board trustees are elected much like civic councils and, in fact, in most cases at the same time as civic councils. Through the school act here in British Columbia school boards are responsible for 1; graduation rates, and 2; providing a balanced budget. Their role is to manage these things and at the same time provide the students with the best opportunity for success. Over the last couple of year school funding in British Columbia has changed such that funds are now collected by the province and distributed according to need. This has been done in order to level the playing field for all students rather than having students in more financially challenged communities suffering with lesser sources or quality of instructors. Also discussed is the role of integrating the increasing numbers of international students into the existing student population. This has been a benefit to the school board and the schooling system in general as, in many cases, the increases have taken place schools where there is lower enrolment. The increased population in these schools has allowed for increased funding and thus a wider diversity of programming can be offered. Families of international students are also required to pay extra funds to cover the costs associated with accommodating them and these funds are used to improve the programs available to all students. Coquitlam School District is the third largest of the 60 B.C. districts, and we are the largest employer in the municipalities we serve. We have over 4,000 full-time and part-time employees.