HDSB Seeks Trustee Candidate for Milton Vacancy

At the Halton District School Board meeting of June 20, 2018, trustees opted to approve an application process to fill the trustee vacancy on the Board following the resignation of Milton Trustee Kim Graves.  Graves notified trustees of her intent to resign on July 20, 2018, as she is moving out of the region, making her ineligible to continue as a Halton trustee.

The process trustees will follow in seeking that replacement will be a public process, similar to what has been followed in Halton and at other school boards throughout Ontario. The Ontario Education Act states (S.221.1) that:

… “if the office of a member of a board becomes vacant before the end of the member’s term:

(a) the remaining elected members shall appoint a qualified person to fill the vacancy within 90 days after the office becomes vacant, if a majority of the elected members remain in office; or
(b) a by-election shall be held to fill the vacancy, in the same manner as an election of the board, if a majority of the elected members do not remain in office.”

This is supported by Section 38.1 of the Municipal Elections Act that states “the candidates declared elected to the school board may appoint a person to fill the vacancy at a meeting of the members called for that purpose.”  Interested candidates will complete an application form found on the Halton District School Board’s website (www.hdsb.ca), and submit it with an accompanying resume and proof of qualification.  Completed applications with attachments must will be received by 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 12, 2018.

Confirmation of receipt of application will be sent to the email address indicated on the application form, by or before 12 p.m. (noon) on Friday, July 13, 2018. The email will contain confirmation of qualifications.

All qualified applicants will be invited to participate in interviews scheduled from mid-afternoon to early evening on Tuesday, July 24, 2018 to Friday, July 27, 2018. Interview appointments will be scheduled with candidates via the email address provided on the application form.

Applicants will be interviewed by trustees in public, and as such, the names and addresses of all applicants will be recorded in a report to the Board in public session.  The Notice of Application form will be a public document. The Halton District School Board reserves the right to post this information and the attached resume on the Board’s website.

Any trustee who participates will be present for all interviews.  Deliberations will also take place in public.

The successful candidate will be announced following the final round of interviews, confirmation of the candidate’s qualifications, and after contacting the successful candidate and confirming their acceptance.

The successful candidate will be sworn into office during a public meeting of the Halton District School Board scheduled on Wednesday, September 5, 2018.

The successful candidate will serve as a trustee with the Halton District School Board until the October 22 municipal election determines a successful candidate for the December 1, 2018 – November 30, 2022 term of office.

Candidate qualifications to apply for the trustee vacancy are listed on the application form posted on the Board’s website at www.hdsb.ca.

Section 219. (1) of the Education Act, states:

“A person is qualified to be elected as a member of a district school board or school authority if the person is qualified to vote for members of that district school board or that school authority and is resident in its area of jurisdiction. 1997, c. 31, s. 112.”

Disqualifications are outlined in Section 219 (4) of the Education Act.