The Canadian School Boards Association met recently in Wendake, Quebec for the fall Board of Directors meeting, the first since a very successful 2017 Congress in Whistler, B.C.
Each jurisdiction shared information on their activities and challenges and the Board continued to work on advancing our key priority areas:
Student Health and Wellness: Much of our work this past meeting focused on the Legalization of Cannabis. Following an example set by Quebec leaders in education from both the English and French sectors, CSBA drafted a National Declaration on Cannabis which was signed by our members, our colleagues at the OCSTA and NBDEC and other national education partners. All participants helped draft the declaration which asks those who will determine policy to include education partners in the process, as well as to consider the principles we believe need to be adopted by both the Federal and Provincial governments in order to protect Canadian students (see the back section of this bulletin). Following several meetings with our partners in education, the Board also expanded the focus of the Student Health and Wellness Committee to include the entire school community reflecting our commitment to Comprehensive School Health and providing the tools and education that can help schools provide a healthy environment for all.
FNMI Education: The committee continues to gather information from across the country to create a national portrait on best practices in FNMI education. School board representation, governmental agreements for funding, and self identification are among the information being collected. We continue to share information/tools with INCA and other organizations. We are pleased to have representation from the Assembly of First Nations at our table for our meetings now and appreciate the insight and leadership provided there.
Governance: There continues to be challenges to the governance role of school boards across Canada. Nova Scotia is the last jurisdiction to announce a review of their education system. CSBA will be monitoring the impact of this review.