The Ontario Public School Boards Association (OPSBA) says there is a continued interest in advocating for public education.
This after they reviewed election candidate information published by municipalities, with more than 670 people running for trustee positions at English boards across the province.
The association says more than 150 current trustees are seeking re-election while nearly 520 are new candidates.
More than 80 have been acclaimed, which officials say, is a modest increase.
“School board trustees have served Ontario communities since before Confederation because public education is simply too important to be governed at a distance,” says Kathleen Woodcock, OPSBA President. “In some respects, recent legislative changes have brought the trustee role closer to that of a board director in other organizations. But trustees retain something fundamentally different: direct democratic accountability to the students, families and communities they serve. The fact that so many people are prepared to take on that responsibility tells us that local education governance continues to matter deeply to Ontarians. It’s clear that democracy is not outdated.”
Both the Near North District School Board and the Nipissing-Parry Sound Catholic District School Board each have five people running for trustee positions in North Bay/West Nipissing.
Four will be elected at each board on Monday, Oct. 26.
