I have watched with interest the debacle of the renaming of Kelly Road Secondary. School District 57 has admitted that they did not do their due diligence in canvasing the public about their feelings in the renaming.
Superintendent Anita Richardson was going to meet with students at the school to obtain their views. The public meeting was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic so a glossy online engagement questionnaire has been published. A time line on this questionnaire of "how did we get here" states events that happened Sept. 2020 and Nov. 29 2020. Does the district have a crystal ball to foresee future events? I hope this is not an indication of a "done deal" and the district is only going through the motions to appease the public.
If the district, with all their high paid administrators whose salaries have continued through these difficult times, cannot get their dates straight, I question the veracity of the balance of the "information" provided in this brochure. Me thinks too much gloss to impress and not enough substance.
For decades, administrators have used school names as a means to foster pride in student populations yet a minority group can request a name change and the current board can unanimously approve that request without public consultation. Am I wrong in thinking some elected trustees are pushing their own personal agendas to the detriment of other stakeholders? To me, the school district is guilty of racism by not providing the public dialogue necessary to foster understanding in something that should be as simple as naming a school.
Prince George, the public questionnaire is accessed online through the SD57 website until Friday, Apr 17. If you have not done so already, I urge you to logon and have your voice and opinion heard.
Hopefully this is what democracy is about.
L. Fernett
Vanderhoof