"Do you think nobody would willingly entrust their children to you to pay you for teaching them? Why do you have to extort your fees and collect your pupils by compulsion?"
~Isabel Paterson, The God of the Machine
Why I’m Running
I believe truth, trust, transparency and educational excellence must be fundamental to how the WRDSB is governed. A publicly funded board ought to serve the public.
For years, I have done the work — communicating with teachers, principals, senior staff, attending meetings, researching and impacting policy and decisions, filing Freedom of Information requests, delegating before trustees, serving on parent committees, organizing community events, meeting with elected officials, and speaking with and connecting with thousands of parents, educators, staff and citizens.
That experience has shown me both what is working and where change is needed.
Good governance requires more than celebrating accomplishments. Trustees must be willing to ask difficult questions, examine results, scrutinize decisions, and ensure that parents, educators and the public have a meaningful voice in the process.
Parents should not have to agree with the Board in order to have their perspectives heard and acknowledged.
Safeguarding our children from age-inappropriate content ought not be negotiable.
Educators should be supported to focus on effective teaching.
Students should be challenged to develop knowledge, skills, confidence, curiosity, and the ability to think critically for themselves, with the resilience to get back up when they fall short.
I cannot, in good conscience, nor expect other families to, continue placing our children, our trust, and our public dollars into a system without doing everything I can to help ensure that system is worthy of all three.
The challenges placed before me—and the solutions I have helped pursue—have given me a sense of responsibility to use that experience to help restore a public education system that earns the trust of the people it serves.
Because public education should be a system families choose with confidence, educators are proud to serve in, and students are better for having experienced.
What Would It Take?
If we had to identify the conditions most important to making the WRDSB a school system families choose with confidence, where educators are supported and students are equipped to thrive, where would we begin?
Over the years, I have seen strengths within our schools — and areas that require serious attention.
My perspective has been shaped not only by my own experiences navigating the system, but by thousands of conversations with parents, students, educators, staff and members of our community and helping many others navigate the system.
Those experiences have helped me identify four broad areas where I believe focused attention can strengthen public education in Waterloo Region.But identifying priorities is only half the equation.
How we govern matters just as much as what we choose to address.
A BETTER WAY TO GOVERN
Public Education That Serves The Public
Priorities
The priorities below reflect what I have personally witnessed, researched and heard repeatedly through years of engagement with parents, students, educators, staff and members of our community. Together, they point to areas that require serious attention.
They are not meant to suggest that one trustee arrives at the Board table with all the answers. I do not believe any trustee should come to the table simply to impose their own picture of what public education should look like.
My principles and experience will shape the questions I ask and the decisions I make — as they should — but my thinking must and will remain open to evidence, community experience and better ideas!
Good governance requires the humility to listen, reconsider assessments and change course when the evidence supports doing so.
With that approach in mind, these are four areas where my experience and conversations with the community have consistently shown a need for focused attention:
Student Success & Wellbeing
Establishing educational excellence through strong literacy and numeracy, age-appropriate learning, physical activity, creativity and balanced use of technology – fostering capable, confident, healthy and resilient children able to read, write, reason, solve problems and recover when learning is difficult.
As Trustee, I would continue to pursue:
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age-appropriate learning content and educational resources
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stronger literacy and numeracy outcomes
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earlier identification and support when students fall behind
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purposeful, balanced use of screens and classroom technology
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more physical activity, outdoor time, creativity and hands-on learning
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regular evaluation of programs against clear, measurable student outcomes
Meaningful Parent Participation
Ensuring that parents genuinely contribute to decisions affecting their children — helping families navigate the path forward and when concerns extend beyond the Board’s authority, carrying those voices forward. Families ought to know who makes decisions, how their input is considered and where to turn when concerns remain unresolved.
As Trustee, I would continue to pursue:
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review of policies, by-laws and procedures that create unnecessary barriers to participation, transparency or accountability
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stronger two-way communication between families, trustees and the Board
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meaningful roles for school councils and the Parent Involvement Committee (PIC)
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clearer, more reasonable pathways for raising and resolving concerns
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better follow-up after consultations, --what was heard, what was decided and why
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regular community conversations and town halls on significant issues
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advocacy to the province when concerns fall outside the Board’s authority
Supporting Educators to Teach
Removing unnecessary barriers and ensuring safe, well-supported classrooms so educators can use their professional expertise where it matters most — delivering effective instruction with measurable results.
As Trustee, I would continue to pursue:
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safer, more orderly classrooms where teaching and learning can remain the focus
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appropriate and timely supports for students with complex learning, behavioural or developmental needs
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meaningful educator input into classroom-related policy
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professional development tied to educational excellence
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measurable results, professional support and clear expectations for effective teaching
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meaningful communication with parents and families regarding progress
Truth, Trust & Transparency
Removing unnecessary barriers and ensuring safe, well-supported classrooms so educators can use their professional expertise where it matters most — delivering effective instruction with measurable results.
As Trustee, I would continue to pursue:
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safer, more orderly classrooms where teaching and learning can remain the focus
-
appropriate and timely supports for students with complex learning, behavioural or developmental needs
-
meaningful educator input into classroom-related policy
-
professional development tied to educational excellence
-
measurable results, professional support and clear expectations for effective teaching
-
meaningful communication with parents and families regarding progress