By CKPG News

SD 57 Candidate Questions: Milt Mahoney

SD 57 Candidate Questions: Milton Mahoney

May 30, 2023 | 12:00 AM

1. Why are you running for school trustee? What knowledge and professional qualifications make you a good candidate for SD57 School Board Trustee?

I have a Master’s Degree for a lifetime of experience. I have developed programs, policies and procedures for industry. I have held leadership positions with regards to unions and as well as been in corporate management. In addition, I ran a family corporation, and operated a Conflict Resolution enterprise part time.

I was a Trustee for a short period starting in February 2022. As a Trustee and only having one vote, my success was limited.  Being a member of the finance committee, I was able to cut some spending ensuring some very important programs remained a part of the district. I was able to get some new policies tabled for the new board to vote on, rather than having the old board hold a rush vote and pushing these policies through without careful consideration. I was able to make small changes, but for the most part I was hitting my head against the wall. It was far more difficult being a Trustee than I had anticipated. In my very short time as a trustee, I predicted SD57 would be the worst district academically in the province and in fact, the Fraser Institute 2023 evaluation on BC`s School Districts rated SD57 one of the lowest. While on the board I couldn`t convince the board at that time to redirect and correct the path this district was on (I only had one vote) or at least consider the possibility there was something wrong. They chose instead to sanction me because they couldn`t terminate me. I was hampered from speaking the truth on such matters and was not able to report to the public about the many issues the school district was facing.

The Boards of the past 10 years, I believe, lost their focus and were too politically motivated. But let’s not dwell on the past, let’s learn from it. What I learnt was that neither the board nor senior administration had the well-being of all students at the forefront of their goal setting. I also learnt that SD57 has had 7 Superintendents in 7 years, which is quite an accomplishment. This district is the flagship for all the districts in the province, according to the former Minister of Education, when in fact this district is the laughingstock of all the districts in the province. This district is seen as the “what not to do” example for all boards and senior administration.  This district has been acting under a ministerial order which was put in place due to the Advisor’s report (instigated by the former minister of education) which was released last year. These recommendations I still believe were compiled using misinformation or information that is no longer relevant to how education is being offered in our district.  The Advisors were supposed to work with the last board and give the recommendations to the board for their review, but instead these recommendations were implemented by senior admin without proper consultation with the previous board. The district has a Strategic Plan to enhance Indigenous education and Indigenous graduation rates, as was called for in the Advisor’s recommendations. Instead of raising the bar for all students, this district has lowered the expectation for our Indigenous students, essentially lowering the rate for a pass to less than 40% and every Indigenous student (regardless of passing grade 12 or not) can now walk the stage at a high school graduation ceremony. This district has the Indigenous Education Learning Table, a committee comprised of 2 of the local Indigenous nations to enhance Indigenous learning and increase graduation rates, but also to approve or disapprove other curriculum. There is definitely a place in our educational system and our school district for the local nations to have a voice in the education of their students, the same as any other group of parents would. Indigenous Education needs to play a key part in our schools, as everyone’s history and culture is important and needs to be celebrated. Past administration teams had control over the school board by withholding information or not being truthful, or by ignoring directives. Case in point: the idea of rebranding was defeated by the previous board in the fall, with the realization that money could be better spent in the classroom after the outcry from the public made it known that rebranding needed to take a back seat. If you go to the district’s webpage you will quickly realize that it has changed (the start of rebranding), and the sad part is that at least two trustees knew this rebranding idea was defeated by the former board but still allowed it to move forward with senior admin (even in a reduced capacity).

I believe this current board is on the right path for the most part, and I know we would work well together as a team to set this District on a road to recovery, where all students will be successful.

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2. Do you support sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) education in B.C.? Why or Why-not

I believe one’s sexual orientation and gender identity is solely a personal matter, but I will defend their rights. I would follow the Government mandate to ensure a safe working and learning environment for all district staff and students.

3. What does School Board transparency mean to you? How will you work to make sure school board activities are transparent for stakeholders and the public?

Transparency is very important to me. The previous board sanctioned me because I was trying to be transparent. They also would not receive my Trustees reports when submitted, because it went against the fuzzy-bunny and rainbow attitude they were portraying to the public. The previous board was not being transparent and honest about many of the difficulties facing this district, including the toxic work environment being face in many of our schools.

4. What are the top three issues facing students?

Issue #1 – There being a lack of a safe learning environment for our students. Our children are facing bullying, violence, threats, and intimidating behaviours by their peers. Teachers and support staff are trying their hardest to make every student feel safe and to welcome them into their classrooms, but are often faced with a lack of support at the school administration level and beyond to the senior admin team.

Issue #2 – Our students are being offered a second-rate education, not through lack of trying on the teachers’ part, but because our senior admin teams have decided over the last couple of years to lower the bar to increase graduation rates. Our students are not being challenged, instead they are being told that “just good enough” is good enough for them, while instead they should be told “try your hardest, strive for the best”.

Issue #3 – Our students do not currently have access to the resources they require to be successful (for example, cuts have been made to learning resources and to some programs). Some of our students will enter university, while others will pursue a trade – they all need to have the courses, resources, and help necessary to ensure their success. Some students come to our schools with diverse complex learning needs, and the district needs to ensure those needs are being met.

5. Is the school district doing enough to prepare students for success following graduation? If not, what could it do better to prepare students?

Many of our students are passing with a 40% grade (pushed into the next grade/class) and in some cases are graduating functionally illiterate. Academic students don’t have the tools to prepare for higher education. Trade orientated students are hampered due to a lack of modern equipment necessary to give them the fundamentals. To better prepare all students, this district must be rebuilt, starting with a back to the basics approach. Our schools need to move into modern times with digital and modern shop equipment. The district needs to ensure they have the best of the best teachers from K-12 to help our students be successful in classes which will lead to success after graduation. In order to do this, SD57 needs to seriously examine why so many teachers and support staff are leaving the district.  Other countries are teaching their students Quantum Physics, while we are teaching illiteracy. Remember our students must compete with these other students.