North Vancouver School District trustees have voted in a new chair of the board.
Christie Sacré was announced as the new board chairwoman following a secret ballot vote at the public meeting Dec. 8.
Sacré takes over as school board chairwoman from Cyndi Gerlach, who held the position following the resignation of Barry Forward last March.
Gerlach told her board colleagues she would not put her name forward to continue as chairwoman because the position requires more time than she is able to devote to it.
Sacré, nominated by trustee Franci Stratton, won the vote over trustee Megan Higgins, who was nominated by trustee Jessica Stanley.
Sacré, who officially took over as chairwoman Jan. 1, said she sees her role as one of keeping the board on track, making sure trustees have information they need to make decisions and being the voice of the school board on public issues. Among key issues the board expects to deal with in the coming year, trustees hope to hear from the minister of education soon about their request to proceed with a full replacement of Argyle secondary, said Sacré.
Planning is also underway on the next large capital project – a possible replacement of Handsworth secondary, which has already been approved for a seismic upgrade.
That project will likely go through a similar process as Argyle – with the school board weighing options of simply doing the upgrade or requesting a replacement of the school and negotiating with the province on how that should be funded. Early estimates put the difference between a seismic upgrade and a new school at about $20 million.
After years of declining enrolment, the board is also looking ahead to continuing projected increases in numbers of students, said Sacré. That means starting to talk with local municipalities now about future school needs, she said. Sacré said she’s also hoping to see a sustainability strategy in place in the school district that would combine energy-reduction initiatives and areas like outdoor and environmental learning.
Franci Stratton was voted in to the position of vice-chairwoman following a second secret ballot vote. Stratton won that vote over trustee Jessica Stanley.
In recent years, decisions over whether to sell and redevelop former school lands have been among the more divisive issues that the school board has grappled with. Both Sacré and
Stratton have supported that direction by the school board. Higgins, Stanley and Forward have all raised questions about that approach.
