Structure of school boards causes conflict, professor says

On Monday, B.C.'s education minister Mike Bernier fired all nine elected trustees from the Vancouver School Board after the board failed to pass a balanced budget, and after months of conflict.

Helen Raptis, a University of Victoria professor of education, remarked the firing was not at all surprising.

Raptis, who has studied the history of school boards in British Columbia, said multiple board firings have happened within the last 30 years, and almost all of them have been on the basis of failure to comply with financial directives.

School boards, she said, are in a tough position.

"It's a very odd system because they are not only accountable to the electorate that elected them, but they are accountable to the dictates of the School Act, to the provincial government," she said.

So while boards might feel like they have to advocate for the electorate, Raptis said, "they really don't have the powers that some of them seem to think that they have."

The key, she added, is in the name — trustee. The role of a trustee is to stand in on behalf of the Ministry of Education to manage the schools on behalf of the government's affairs, she said.

When the board fails to get in line, it is at risk of being fired by the government.

Politically damaging

Nevertheless, a decision to fire a board is not easy for the government, Raptis said, as there could be severe political fall-out.

She pointed out the government waited months since June 30 — when the board became eligible to be fired — to make a final decision.

"Parents get upset, students get upset. Board members are left with the legitimate charge that the democratic process has been foiled because trustees are elected by the community," she said.

"I would imagine this was a decision that they entered into with a great deal of difficulty."

Outdated system

Part of the problem, Raptis argued, is the school board system is part of an earlier structure — created in the 19th century — that has been outpaced by the current realities of schooling.

The original board members were meant to oversee very small scale operations, she explained.

Before World War II, she said, there were over 600 boards in the province. Then these boards were eventually consolidated to the 60 school districts.

"Board members are now overseeing these enormous enterprises ... and sometimes they're not qualified or prepared for the tasks they've been elected to do," she said.

Raptis said she advocates for restructuring the system by creating smaller units, although she admitted there is unlikely any political will in B.C. to make any changes at this time.

But until that happens, Raptis expects stand-offs between governments and school boards will likely continue.

With files from The Early Edition and On the Island

To hear the interview, click on the link labelled UVic Professor Helen Raptis on the history of B.C.'s school boards