Politicizing school trustee elections

Does a lobby group seeking to stack election of school trustees threaten the system?

One could argue that the whole idea of having elected representative school trustees or governors is designed to empower those seeking change. But few school system authorities would welcome the emergence of active and well-organised lobby groups with the likelihood that they will significantly affect the tone of school governorship.

One example quoted in TheSchoolDaily is of a teacher lobby group seeking to affect a new government proposed examination and qualification.

In the longer term a balanced politicization of these elections may be the best means of ensuring that parental voice is heard, ensuring better representation than the frequent practice of only a few even bothering to stand. But along the way to this greater parental awareness of the issues, the imbalance from time to time may be extreme.

A system planning a devolution towards local parent power might do well to use a staged approach and even to encourage information campaigns about the policies and philosophies that different nominees may have.

Last updated:16/5/07

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