Hamilton’s public school board will be seeking an independent third party to review its governance policies and procedures through an anti-racism and anti-oppression lens.
Trustees with the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board unanimously approved the motion from chair Alex Johnstone during Monday’s meeting.
It would be the first review of the board’s governance since February 2013, and Johnstone said it’s long overdue.
“This is an important opportunity for us to continue to re-think how our governance structures are set up,” said Johnstone. “Any time that the rules are getting in the way of the work that we are wanting to accomplish, that is when we need to change the rules and ensure that they reflect the needs of the day.”
She said the pandemic has forced the board to “re-think” what classrooms look like and what the school system looks like, and that means it’s a good time to do the same for the rules that govern them.
The review, which will pay specific attention to anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism, comes a couple of months after the board announced that a separate third-party review will investigate allegations of racism from a former student trustee.
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Ward 3 trustee Maria Felix Miller seconded the motion, saying it’s “very important” and “delicate” work that needs to be done.
“I will be honest, there is a lot of work to do at this table,” said Felix Miller. “But … I welcome expertise and discussion and consultation in order to see how we can better implement anti-oppressive and anti-racist frameworks in our policymaking, our decision making and our world views.”
Dawn Danko, trustee for Ward 7 and vice-chair of the board, said it’s a good opportunity for board members to look at how they govern themselves.
“As we’ve gone through a time of disruption, that is a time when you start to realize that your governance and your structures (don’t) work,” said Danko. “Whenever the process gets in the way of doing what’s right or moving a board forward, I think we need to take a close look at that.”
The board will be issuing a call for proposals for a third party to undertake the review.
Johnstone said the last “in-depth” governance review in 2013 took about half a school year.
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