Parent volunteer is new public school trustee
KITCHENER — The public school board is getting a new education trustee to help decide how schools operate in September.
Longtime parent volunteer Laurie Tremble has been appointed to the 11-member board upon the resignation of Kitchener trustee Natalie Waddell.
Waddell, 52, is leaving the Waterloo Region District School Board to move to Alberta with her family and business. She was to attend her final board meeting Monday.
The board appointed Tremble to complete Waddell’s four-year term, rather than hold a byelection. Tremble was the next runner-up in the 2018 municipal election.
“I was always an advocate for broader consultation ... as opposed to just handing out information after the decision has already been made,” Tremble said.
Tremble, 48, has two children in public schools. She has served on school councils and on board advisory committees. She’s a former homemaker who recently returned to the workforce in an administrative role.
Depending on COVID-19, Ontario boards have been told to plan for three return-to-school scenarios; regular classroom learning with enhanced safety rules, remote learning from home or a mix of classroom and home learning.
Tremble is keen to see the board resume a French immersion review that was delayed by teacher job action and by the pandemic. She plans to focus on equity in learning.
While it’s stressful to close schools over the pandemic, she said, “these kind of situations give you an opportunity to really rethink some things and maybe do things differently.”
Waddell was first elected in 2014 after earning a community profile as a board critic. “It’s been a ride,” she said from her home while movers boxed it up. “I don’t think they were excited to have me on the board at first.”
She went on to develop close connections with some trustees. “I’m very sad to be leaving,” she said.
On the board Waddell earned a profile advocating for students who are diagnosed with attention deficits. She also helped guide the board in updating its procedural bylaws.
She’s thrilled to be replaced by Tremble. “She’s a top-notch person,” Waddell said.