Ellen Oxman

Cowichan Valley School District Trustee Candidate

Q1. Please tell us a bit about yourself and why you are running.

A: In November of 2011 I was elected for the first time as a School District 79 Trustee. It was an honour for me that the community put their faith and trust in me to represent them at the Board Table. As one of five progressive Trustees we did a thorough consultation with our community to determine the educational needs. That process confirmed what we believed. SD 79 needed more funding to provide the services our students needed and weren't getting. June 2012 our Board passed a budget that included extra funding to meet the needs of our students. On July 1, 2012 the Education Minister of the day fired our Board.

I am running again to continue to advocate for our district. We will be supporting a balanced budget but there are many different ways we can get there. My previous Board experience taught me the value of including our community, parents, students, teachers and support staff in our discussions and decisions.I am running to bring back transparency to the decision making process, inclusiveness and to find ways to improve the way we deliver services in SD79.

Q2. What is your vision for the school district, and how would getting elected help achieve it?

A: I will work to include all voices in our decision making process. The first thing would be to change the open Board meeting time to later in the day. This will allow more community members to attend. We will set up a "Community Caucus" and invite people to speak to Trustees about their concerns. Not just a few minutes at a meeting but allowing the Trustees to ask questions, get information about the issue which will help us make more informed decisions. I would also like our district to follow Vancouver School District's lead and create a Student Trustee position. This is their education that we are making decisions about and often their voice isn't heard.

We need to look at ways to fund services our students need from our budget or look for another source of income to supplement the funding from the provincial government. The first thing I will ask for is a review of the budget and where the money is being spent. There will be many tough decisions to make and I have a proven track record in following through on my promises and making those tough decisions.

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