Miranda Miller is an Owen Sound mother, writer and adult educator currently running for BWDSB Trustee in the City of Owen Sound.
New Board By-Laws Make It Harder Than Ever to Reach the Board
You may not have yet heard about some of the "improvements" Bluewater District School Board recently implemented, in regards to board meetings.
On the plus side, after the election, board meetings will be held in the evenings twice a month, rather than once a month during the day.
This long overdue change is a result of one of the recommendations made by advisors sent by the Ministry of Education to help the BWDSB through their self-described crisis.
Speaking at Board Meeting Offered as "Last Step" for Community Members and Parents
Unfortunately, new rules and clauses in the updated Board By-Laws policy increase the gap between the board and the public, limiting the scope of topics and reducing the time allotted to members of the public who wish to speak as a delegation at a board meeting.
When the board held its Public Consultation meetings (not open to the general public) on the deeply flawed Communications Policy late in the 2009/10 school year, speaking as a delegation at a board meeting was offered as the last step for members of the public seeking resolution for issues affecting their children or concerns about board business and governance.
The idea is, when all else fails, you can appeal directly to the board for assistance. It sounds good in theory.
Delegations Limited to 20 Minutes
In reality, clauses buried in the updated 28-page Board By-Laws policy cut the time allotted to delegations from 30 minutes total to 20 minutes. Prior to the changes, which were passed in the June 2010 board meeting and come into effect September1st, two delegations with prior notice had up to ten minutes each to speak directly to the board (in closed) and members of the public (in open) session. An additional two delegations could speak without prior notice, for five minutes each.
In the new by-laws, delegations without prior notice may only speak if the 20 minutes total time allotted to the public is not used by those with prior notice.
Speaking in Public as Only Way to Address Board is Challenging Enough
Speaking as a delegation with notice is already an intimidating, cumbersome process, as brought to the board's attention in the Public Consultation meetings. This is because:
-
Those who wish to speak must submit a summary in advance and send their delegation request to the Director well in advance of the meeting.
-
There is no allowance in the policy for low-literacy individuals who may be unable to create a written summary or apply for a delegation in writing.
-
Many individuals are uncomfortable standing at the front of the room and appealing to the very people who may be involved in their complaint for assistance.
-
Others are uncomfortable speaking in front of crowds, in general.
-
The board's sweeping, sometimes questionable, definition of topics that should be discussed in closed session often caused interruptions and misunderstandings as delegations found themselves called out of order or unable to discuss the issues they had come to discuss, even when these did not seem to violate open session policies.
Despite these valid concerns, the new by-laws actually further restrict members of the public who wish to be heard by the members of the board elected to represent them, after all other avenues have been exhausted.
You can appeal to the board in writing, but they are not obligated to answer. In my case, I have been asking for information for six weeks now, with not a peep from the board.
Delegates Limited to Speaking Only to Agenda Items
The previous version of the board by-laws gave priority to delegations without prior notice who wished to speak on an agenda item.
The new version takes this a step closer to censorship, limiting accepted topics for delegations without prior notice ONLY to those on the board's agenda.
This means that a parent wishing to appeal to the board, as a delegation without notice, about a problem unresolved at the school level could not do so unless the board already planned to discuss the topic on the agenda, should the board choose to enforce the rule as written in the new policy.
And Then What?
After jumping through the hoops to register with the Director's office at least a week in advance of the meeting, writing a summary and including any questions or recommendations and submitting it in advance, and getting up in front of a room full of people to state your case, your issue will be resolved, right? After all, this is the last step available. It's the end of the road.
Not so fast.
Trustees are not required to respond to community members who speak at the board meeting. You can expect a verbal or written response, sometimes two to three months later, which may or may not address the questions you raised in your presentation.
Delegations may not speak more than once every three months. This means groups such as Bruce Grey Citizens for Education, who represent and advocate for the many parents and community members who need help and find this process intimidating, are limited to helping one person or family every three months.
Further, the board will not hear about the same subject in the next six months.
A New Era?
Bluewater District School Board has succeeded in further distancing themselves from the grind of everyday life for students, parents, and community members they are elected to serve. Of course, no one would know this unless they went digging. These changes certainly were not announced in any forthcoming way by the board.
The new Board By-Laws are available on the board website (look for information on delegations near page 20).
+ 0 + 0 
