Chris Stern hopes to be a strong voice for public education if elected to the board of School District 57.
Stern, a foreman in the City of Prince George's water and sewer division, said being a school board trustee is a tough job, but he has the passion to do it.
"Lack of funding is one of the main concerns. Looking on the Ministry of Education website, the budgets are remaining the same," Stern said.
The current operating budget for the district required $3 million from the district's reserves for the year, he said. When those reserves run out "that is a lot of services" the district will have to consider cutting, Stern said.
"That is why it is so critical to get that [funding] formula increased. I think it is time for a raise," he said. "The main goal for all these monetary issues is lobby, and lobby hard. If there are issues that come to my attention that are not being addressed, I will go to the minister of education's office and knock on his door. Sending sharply-worded letters... that just doesn't cut it."
Stern said he'd like to see the school district expanding on existing partnerships with local post-secondary institutions and promote career-oriented training for students.
"I'd like to look into trades [training] more. Not every student can be a scholar -be a doctor or go to university," he said.
Stern himself previously worked for two school boards in Alberta as a carpenter, boiler operator and maintenance person. That, combined with his experience working for the city, has given him a ground-level view of operations in large public organizations, he said.
In addition, Stern has been a soccer coach, a training officer and services as the first vice president of Canadian Union of Public Employees' local 399 representing outside workers at the city.
"I've been a magnet for volunteering and problem solving," he said. "The school board has more employees and a bigger budget than the city, but no power. It's not going to be easy. [But] I'm not just going to look outside the box, I'm going to look under the box - turn it over."
