At the qathet School District meeting on Wednesday, November 27, qSD board chair Jaclyn Miller said that last week, the board, along with senior staff, participated in sessions with the British Columbia School Trustees Association (BCSTA) trustees academy.
"The sessions emphasized equity in education, Indigenous student success and innovative governance practices," said Miller.
One of the sessions of interest to the qSD board was about demystifying the emerging technology of generative artificial intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT. School districts across BC and North America are figuring out how to, "address the very challenging but important technology to improve student learning and well-being," stated a description about the BCSTA trustees academy session titled: School governance in an AI world - critical tool or distraction?
"On Monday, I was able to speak with the new minister of education and child care, Lisa Beare," said Miller. "I conveyed our appreciation that the Feeding Futures funding has been committed to base funding moving forward, how much we agree with the priorities she outlined to all trustees at the BCSTA academy, including refocusing on literacy and numeracy, the safety of our students and recruitment and retention of staff."
The province announced last year that it was investing $214 million over three years so school districts can create or expand local food programs in schools throughout BC.
Every school within qSD currently offers a variety of breakfast, lunch and supplemental food programs for children who require them.
"I also shared our struggles with recruitment and the possibilities that more robust partnerships with post-secondary could assist in producing increased numbers of high-quality teachers for our students," said Miller. "[We need] clearer communication guidelines between the Ministry of Children and Family Development and education so we can ensure our focus and support for children and youth in care can be as effective as possible, and that increased requests on our system need to come with funding as well."
Miller said the district also officially announced the hiring of Paul McKenzie as new superintendent of schools for qSD.
"Paul will be joining us from Saanich School District and bringing with him many years of experience in leadership roles within our sector in both Ontario and BC," said Miller. "We are eager for him to join us this spring, and in the meantime, we remain grateful for the steady leadership of interim superintendent Vianne Kintzinger."
Miller said Brooks Secondary hosted its first career fair for Indigenous students last week.
"This event, titled Strengthening Connections, was an inspiring demonstration of our district’s commitment to creating meaningful opportunities for Indigenous students," said Miller. "Representatives from post-secondary institutions like UBC, Simon Fraser University, and Island Health connected directly with students, helping them envision a bright future."
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