Who Has Your School Trustee Vote?

On October 25th, we also are asked to vote for a school trustee. I realize that it's hard enough this election to decide who to support for mayor, let alone to keep on top of potential school trustees and their platforms.

As it happens, I have dealt with our local incumbent trustee, Chris Bolton. He has sent along the message below and also has a website that you can explore.

Personally, I wholeheartedly recommend him as having student and community best interests at heart and as being responsive and approachable. I like his stance on issues, too.

He also was a teacher and a principal,which gives him an invaluable perspective on the issues. Here's an email message from him:

"On October 25 the municipal elections allow voters to cast their vote in three categories: mayor, councillor and school board trustee. Most voters realize the importance of the first two but some voters say that they don’t understand why they would vote for the school trustee, particularly if they do not have any children in school or feel they do not have connections with the local school. But there are very important reasons for casting a vote for trustee.

Why vote for school trustee?
Everyone, either directly with realty taxes or indirectly through rent, pays education taxes. While not all of your taxes go to the local school board, one of the prime responsibilities of the trustees for the local school boards is to allocate taxes to priorities in your area.
Although it is a common misconception that schools are about kindergarten to grade 12 education, this is not true. In the Toronto District School Board there are over 185,000 continuing education learners and growing. In Ward 10 over 70% of our households do not have children in the schools and residents should be asking for increased service through continuing education for life-long learners.
With the increase in population in the downtown we need to insure that flexible learning opportunities are available in school buildings that cater to all voters in the form of community hubs and not just through more limited educational options.
Schools represent a major source of parkland and green space. Voters should be voting for trustees based upon their position on keeping this resource for common use in the community."
Cheers,
Vanessa