Public school board trustees calling for town hall to discuss leadership

Questions have been swirling around the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) since the sudden departure of Director of Education, jeewan chanicka in early December.

An all-staff email informed employees and a brief statement broke the news to the rest of the community, but little else has been shared since the announcement last month and that has led to calls for increased transparency.

On Jan. 2, school board trustee, Mike Ramsay penned an open letter and posted it to X. It was cosigned by fellow trustees Bill Cody and Cindy Watson.

In it, the group calls for a town hall-style meeting to to gather public input ahead of the process to replace chanicka. The letter reads that would give the board the information needed to “re-calibrate the board’s goals.”

The idea for a town hall first came about in a newspaper article last month, by local columnist Luisa D’Amato.

The letter also notes, “Schools should be focused on nurturing academic and athletic achievement for all students, developing their moral character and citizenship.”

The letter concludes by saying Ramsay, Watson and Cody will put forward a motion to host the town hall, as soon as they can.

The meeting schedule on the WRDSB website shows a Committee of the Whole meeting on Jan. 7, and a full board meeting on Jan. 27.

In a response to a request for comment, a WRDSB spokesperson shared a statement on behalf of Maedith Radlein, Chair of the Board of Trustees:

“Trustees and staff are fully committed to student achievement and well-being. We do this in partnership with families and community. As Trustees, we value transparency and accountability to the communities we serve. Any trustee can use the process outlined in the by-laws to bring a motion to have a town hall. Please refer to Bylaws for the Board of Trustees. There will be no further comment on the request for a town hall.”