MONTREAL — A controversy has been brewing at the English Montreal School Board, where the EMSB Central Parents’ Committee has accused the board of blocking the distribution of a parent survey — and then lying about how much information it had when it did so.
According the to CPC, there are 20,450 copies of a survey intended for parents sitting in boxes at the offices of the English Montreal School Board, and the board is stalling over distributing them.
“It’s important that parents have the opportunity to be heard,” said CPC parent commissioner, Andrew Ross. “Parents are at the core of the school board and have a right to be heard.”
When interviewed on Wednesday, the school board commissioner Angela Mancini told Global News that once the CPC asked the school board to endorse the survey, officials were obliged to check with its partners, such as the teacher’s union, before giving the go-ahead for distribution.
“What’s important to keep in mind is that we will be consulting parents,” Mancini said. “We were never told when we were voting that evening that the questionnaire was already printed.”
WATCH ABOVE: EMSB school board controversy over survey
It was this statement the CPC is now disputing.
“English Montreal School Board Chair Angela Mancini claims that she didn’t know the Parent Opinion Survey was being printed,” the CPC posted on its Facebook page. “On April 22, Parent Commissioner Andrew Ross told her exactly that… all on tape.”
The CPC also is claiming that Mancini said she had not seen the survey before, but according to emails shared on the committee’s Facebook page, she was emailed copies of the questionnaire in February and March.
Global News reached out to the EMSB for comment, but have not received an official response.
Parents are invited to ask questions and voice concerns at the Central Parents’ Committee’s monthly public meeting at the LMAC Library on Thursday evening.
As for what’s in this controversial survey: the CPC provided Global News with a copy.
Take the questionnaire below.
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