LUISA D'AMATO SMACKS DOWN BOTH LOCAL SCHOOLBOARDS

Actually there were two items in today's Waterloo Region Record concerning our two School Boards here in Waterloo Region. Stephen Woodworth, former M.P., wrote via a Letter To The Editor an impassioned plea on behalf of Trustees suggesting that they are still desperately needed to encourage democracy versus authoritarian governments as well as to encourage education rather than political indoctrination. I haven't yet figured if he's a little over the top, on to something, or simply an admirer of the failed status quo.

Luisa D'Amato's article is titled "They're ineffective and petty. Do we really need school board trustees?". Obviosly she's much less impressed with them than Mr. Woodsworth. Louisa refers to recent disrespectful behaviour by the Catholic School Board towards elected trustees. She references not only recent issues of trustees infighting at the public board (WRDSB) but also an incident on Monday of this week. One of the Trustees asked the question as to which Staff was Trustee Andrea Mitchell referring to when she publicly said that some top Board staff were fleeing to other Boards to get away from Trustee acrimony. At that point two other Trustees got up and walked out. At that point the meeting was adjourned due to low attendance (quorum?).

Silly me twenty-five or six years I naively assumed that there were no political, social or other concerns regarding educating our children. I thought that everything was black and white and that everybody would be on the same page. Afterall education is a Mom and apple pie sort of issue isn't it? Who could possibly be agaginst it? Well personal experience dealing with shcool boards, teacher's unions and assorted riff raff disguised as professional bureaucrats, lawyers and educaters has opened my eyes.