Bluewater School Board called up on the carpet again

Letters to the editor

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I recently received an emailed letter from the Bluewater District School Board, inviting me to attend one of four consultation meetings on the new Communications Policy and Procedure.  Though the letter was dated April 19, the board emailed it to me on the 29th, eleven days before the first meeting. 

The meetings were in Walkerton, Owen Sound, Hepworth, with a final meeting at Grey Highlands S.S. coming up on May 27.  These meetings are our opportunity as community members, students, and parents, to provide input into the new policy and procedure that will govern effective communications between all parties involved in the BWDSB.  

This policy is a step towards fixing the mistakes of the past, right?

Unfortunately, the board did not publicize the dates and times of these meetings in the newspapers, through the schools, or on their website.  I started to wonder what was going on when one parent attended in Walkerton and I was one of only three or four (with about twice as many from the board) at the Owen Sound meeting.  Do people just not care?  I think not; the results of the BWDSB survey and lengthy consultations paid for by taxpayers last year identified communications, accountability, and transparency as critical, but seriously lacking, issues.

 Except, no one knows this communications policy is in the process of being evaluated so it will pass at the June board meeting. 

Some members of the board have said the public were not invited because the School Community Councils were asked to submit input on behalf of the rest of the community.  Isn’t that a lot to put on volunteers when we pay people at the board level to do this consultation and research?  But it just might have worked, had all of the SCCs been notified about this process in a timely manner (if at all) or invited to the meetings. 

The board scheduled the Owen Sound meeting the same night as the Alexandra SCC meeting, so they couldn’t attend.  In fact, every SCC in town but one meets on Wednesday evenings throughout the month, yet the board scheduled the meeting on a Wednesday evening.  

When I asked the board why they scheduled it on a night that conflicts with the very groups that should have been attending, I was informed the SCCs were invited to send their recommendations in writing. Why have meetings, then?  (Not just for appearances, I hope... that would be a waste of our money and time.) 

Unfortunately, as of their May 19 meeting, West Hill’s SCC hadn’t even heard of the policy and had missed the Owen Sound meeting by over a week. Even if they had been notified on April 29, would they have had sufficient time to contact their community members and report back to the board in a meaningful, unified way when they only meet once a month? 

And just how will our trustees and administrators who attended the four meetings communicate the concerns and recommendations of the few people in attendance in time?   The last meeting is May 27 and trustees will vote on the policy the next time they meet, on June 15. 

The Bluewater District School Board did not communicate that they were consulting about the new communications policy.  Isn’t that a terrible irony? After the money our community has invested in helping them move forward in a positive way, in helping them find a way to avoid errors that, in the past, have seriously undermined their credibility and negatively affected students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers… if this is the result, wouldn’t that money have been better spent in classrooms? 

Parents interested in reviewing the policy may find it is a single page in length, with four pages of accompanying procedures and a flowchart listing the steps parents should take in dispute resolution situations… that is, if they can find it.  As community members reported at the May board meeting, the webpage with the procedures was not working.  Parents who did hear by word-of-mouth that this was happening couldn’t even find the policy to read. 

By now, Bluewater citizens should be able to expect more than red tape and step-by-step dispute resolution as a means of communication.  The policy does not address top-down communication.  It does not address proactive communication to prevent disputes.  After the Grade 7/8 Rotary issue, the JK/SK Kindergarten scheduling issue, the wrong date published for the Budget Meeting on the board website and the subsequent wonderment in the newspaper that it was poorly attended… now they have bungled the consultation and failed to communicate about communication?  It’s almost stranger than fiction. 

Peggy Sattler, the 2009 public meeting facilitator, wrote almost one year ago in the Bluewater Education Outreach Report, “The board must acknowledge past problems and ensure open and transparent communication of plans to address concerns and make improvements.”  The lone parent who attended the recent Hepworth meeting asked that this entire process come to a halt and the policy put off until the fall.  Yet the board seemed determined it had to pass in June for implementation in September.  Why is this being quietly pushed through at the end of the school year, despite serious concerns about its scope and relevance, the lack of consultation, and the policy going MIA when the few who knew about it went looking for it? 

The only thing worse than the old, broken way would be the passing of a new policy adapted from the old one, quietly passed through in a rush just to say it was done and calling it a new era, the one our community has been patiently waiting (and paying) for. 

Myself and others have asked for a third-party investigation, oversight, interception… something to bring some badly needed accountability and leadership to this board.  These are the people we must trust with our children for a good part of their young lives, and I know as a former student of the BWDSB that it can be much, much better than this.  

We are talking about a system that seems completely broken.  Recent events demonstrate the lack of commitment to following through on the Ministry of Education or other consultants’ recommendations in any meaningful way.

The Ministry of Education rejected my request for this oversight because their position is that it is not up to the Ministry; it’s up to the trustees.  The Chair of the Board of Trustees has stated that it is not up to the trustees, it is up to the Ministry. 

Our local MPP is simply not interested in hearing these complaints for whatever reason, and our MP has been told by the MPP to butt out. 

Parents can take concerns to their teacher, principal, trustee, superintendant, and Director of Education... and after that run-around, then what?  Present as a delegation at a board meeting, which is so intimidating most people wouldn't dare.  And then you're back to square one.

The provincial Ombudsman has no authority to investigate school board issues, despite the fact that our youngest and most vulnerable citizens are affected and at risk under poor governance and a lack of leadership. 

So I am sending this now to all of you, hoping that someone may finally step up and take responsibility so the parents of Grey and Bruce counties can stop chasing our tails.  This never-ending circle of passing the buck has to result in some positive action from someone, somewhere.  I will keep trying to find out who that is until whatever government body, organization or group of people responsible for the education of my children deals with these important issues.  To think that this board will soon be responsible for the care of three and four year olds every day with Early Learning is truly frightening to me, as a mother.  

I realize the board is tired of hearing these complaints from a few lone voices; however, that is the direct result of the hush-hush way this communications business is being conducted.  If more people knew this is how the business of educating our children works, they would be outraged. I happen to think accountability and transparency are important, especially where children are involved, and wish more of the people we pay to care about this would show that they agree. 

I apologize for sending this en masse but, once again, the timeline on this is so tight, it’s hard to do anything else. 

Sincerely ... Miranda Miller

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Wednesday, May 19, 2010