School board elects NPA trustee as chairman
5-4 decision swings on lone Green party member
The new chairman of the Vancouver school board will be NPA trustee Fraser Ballantyne.
The Vancouver school board voted Wednesday for the new chairman, a job that promises to be challenging because of possible upcoming school closures, tensions with the provincial government and a politically split board.
Ballantyne was first elected as trustee in 2011. He will serve as chairman until December, when a new election will be held.
Former chairman Christopher Richardson resigned earlier this month in a surprise announcement, citing “deeply personal matters.” His resignation came within a week of the release by the provincial government of a 236-page, $370,000 Ernst & Young report that said as much as $37 million a year could be saved if 19 under-capacity schools were closed.
The lone Green party trustee on the school board, Janet Fraser, once again sided with the NPA in choosing Ballantyne, who was selected on the second ballot, in a 5-4 vote against Vision trustee and former longtime chairwoman Patti Bacchus.
Ballantyne said he believes the politically split board can work together, particularly to achieve its seismic upgrade goals. The role of chairman will be “tricky” and “challenging,” he said, but “I believe everybody’s heart is in the right place.”
Ballantyne commended Bacchus for her work.
Bacchus said she had mixed feelings about not re-gaining the chairwoman position, because the board is facing a series of tough decisions.
“This allows me to continue to speak freely,” Bacchus said.
About Fraser’s decision to back the NPA for a second time, Bacchus said, “It’s quite clear to us that … the Green trustee is far more aligned with the values of the NPA.”
Fraser said she voted for the candidate she thought would provide the best leadership for the school district.
Specifically, Fraser cited her belief that the chairman must work collaboratively and respectfully with the provincial government.
“There are many Ministry of Education decisions I profoundly disagree with; however it is important that the Vancouver school board has a working relationship with the provincial government so that we can successfully act on our many challenges ahead including responding to the special adviser’s report, submitting balanced budgets and moving forward as quickly as possible with the seismic mitigation program,” she said.
Ballantyne worked as a teacher, counsellor, school administrator and district management team member at the VSB before becoming a trustee.
“It’s quite clear to us that… the Green trustee is far more aligned with the values of the NPA.
PATTI BACCHUS VISION TRUSTEE AND FORMER CHAIRWOMAN