By Trevor Greenway
Eleven out of 12 commissioner seats at the Western Quebec School Board (WQSB) went uncontested this year, and with just nine per cent of eligible voters casting ballots, Hills representatives say their roles are more important than ever.
“I’m very interested in education. I always have been. And when there didn’t seem to be other candidates coming forward, I just felt like, ‘No, we can’t leave this seat vacant,’” said Caryl Green, commissioner for the WQSB’s Ward 5, which covers Chelsea Elementary. Green is the former mayor of Chelsea, who spent 12 years running the municipality.
“In light of Bill 40 that was wanting to abolish the [English] school boards, and did abolish the French school boards, I felt it was very important…to have a full complement on the school board of commissioners,” Green said.
Green has experience on school boards, having spent time on the governing board of D’Arcy McGee High School when her sons attended. She also spent two mandates on the governing board at a CEGEP in Gatineau.
In 2020, the CAQ government pushed through Bill 40, which abolished school boards and replaced them with school service centres. The Quebec English School Board Association (QESBA) argued that the reform was unconstitutional and would be detrimental to English education in Quebec. That argument won over Superior Court Justice Sylvain Lussier, who struck down large parts of the Bill in August of 2023. However Quebec appealed that ruling, and the case is still pending.
‘A lot of issues’
Green told the Low Down that, aside from Bill 40, the WQSB is facing “a lot of issues.” She specifically named Bill 96, now Law 14, as one of those issues. After the CAQ government overhauled the Charter of the French Language, it imposed restrictions on how and when government institutions can communicate in English.
Green said she also wants to focus on climate change, classroom resources and fostering relationships with Indigenous communities. She was also elected to the governance and ethics committee and said she feels that her dozen years of political experience will allow her to make an on-the-ground impact at her local school, Chelsea Elementary.
“I do hope to have a relationship with the school itself – through the principal, through the governing board and the parents committee,” said Green. “It’s to bring the concerns from…the students and the parents and the staff back to the school board.”
Northern ward brings diverse challenges
Kazabazua Coun. Brandy Killeen, who just took outgoing councillor Craig Gabie’s seat in a by-election in October, was acclaimed for Ward 4, however she has a much larger area than that of Green – or arguably any other commissioner. Killeen’s massive ward includes Queen Elizabeth Elementary, Wakefield, Maniwaki Woodland, St. Michael’s, and Maniwaki’s Continuing Education.
“There’s going to be different things for each school. They’re not in the same demographic, right? So I think there’s probably going to be a couple of different issues,” said Killeen.
She said a consistent issue for all schools has always been transportation; contract issues like last year’s provincewide bus strike, which left parents stranded to get their kids to and from school for the last two months of the school year.
“It’s not just the transportation itself, but it’s the cost and the availability,” said Killeen. She explained that it costs “thousands” just to use a bus for a couple of hours to take students on a field trip. “That is actually stopping a lot of the kids from being able to have a lot of great experiences that will add to their education, like being able to go to different cultural events and museums.”
One in five students hungry at school: report
Killeen added that one of her main priorities will be tackling food insecurity, ensuring no student in her ward shows up without breakfast or endures the day without lunch.
“It’s only getting worse,” said Killeen. “With the food prices now, even if you have a good salary, you’re struggling to buy your food.”
A 2024 study by The PASUQ project, found that one in five Quebec students lives in a family experiencing food insecurity, and significant inequalities persist in access to school food services across the province. The PASUQ project is an initiative of the Breakfast Club and members of the Quebec collective of the Coalition for Healthy School Food. The organization is advocating for a universal school breakfast program for the province.
“It’s really sad, and I know that we’re trying from every angle,” said Killeen. “Queen Elizabeth school has a good breakfast program every morning, and they have one free lunch a week.”
Philemon Wright and Hadley implemented a No Student Hungry (NOSH) program in 2023, which feeds between 40 and 60 students each day.