The GVTA office is open until July 10th,  re-opening on August 24th. Have a great summer - we look forward to seeing you in the fall.

Greater Victoria Trustee Catherine Alpha reinstated!

What a great way to wrap up the school year!

The Greater Victoria Teachers’ Association is pleased – and pleased is an understatement – that the Supreme Court of British Columbia reinstated Catherine, who has been a tireless and outspoken advocate for public education and full funding by the Ministry of Education.

Catherine Alpha ran last November as a Victoria Public Education Coalition (VPEC) candidate, fighting for full funding for public education.

The BC Supreme Court ruled on Friday June 19 that Catherine and her Financial Agent Deborah Nohr did indeed submit Catherine's campaign financing disclosure on time, contradicting claims made publicly by Board chairperson Tom Ferris. The Judge noted that Catherine’s financial disclosure was non-conforming, but determined that Catherine had acted with due diligence, and therefore ordered a 30 day extension to the filing period. And because Catherine had already provided a second disclosure some time ago, the Judge ruled that Catherine be reinstated and that the June 27 by-election be canceled.

The Judge's decision clearly differs from, and corrects, the School District Secretary-Treasurer's declaration that Catherine had not filed at all, a claim that was accepted without question by the majority of the other School Trustees (Michael McEvoy, Tom Ferris, Dave Pitre, Elaine Leonard, and Jim Holland) who immediately started the by-election process.

In giving his decision, the Judge also noted that Secretary-Treasurer George Ambeault had a statutory obligation to give notice of non-conforming financial disclosures, but failed to do so until five days after the late-filing deadline.

Teachers in Greater Victoria thank Tamara Malczewska, who campaigned for election in  the now-cancelled by-election. Tamara was endorsed by the GVTA membership, VPEC and the Victoria Labour Council. Her commitment to public education won her wide support and many endorsements.

We thank all the BCTF locals who supported our struggle, and thank teachers and members of the public who wrote powerful letters of support to Ministers and the media and who posted on blogs and lists.

Now the Board of Trustees of Greater Victoria needs to get on with the real business of Trustees of public education – working with other Boards across the province to pressure the BC government to rectify the damage done by years of Ministry planned structural deficits by  fully funding  public education.

And more good news...

The irrelevance of the Fraser institute school rankings is becoming clear to journalists and to members of the public. After the release of the rankings of BC high schools in the week of June 15, public media published letters and columns on the irrelevance of FSA results to the real educational needs of students. Every public schools is an inclusive community that  reflects the  ideals of our broader communities in which we live.

Teachers, support staff, students, and parents - have a great summer!