The Delta school district is wasting its time and dollars being a member of the B.C. School Trustees Association, says trustee Dale Saip.
The longtime Delta school board member recently put forward a motion that the district withdraws its membership from the association, a suggestion that was later debated and defeated.
Saying he was surprised and disappointed by the decision of his fellow trustees, Saip told the Optimist it's clear that little in the way of tangible benefits have come Delta's way by being a member of the BCSTA.
"I think it's really important to get back to understanding what we are and who we are. We're locally elected trustees of the public trust. We're not advocates for education in B.C. or anything else. We're elected, without taxing authority, to carry out the operation and service provision in our schools," he said. "I think we need to be focused on Delta. I'm not really concerned about what happens in Surrey or Vancouver or anywhere else. That's not what I've been elected to do."
Saip believes the BCSTA raises many general issues and passes countless motions, but they're almost never taken seriously.
"I'm almost in my fourth decade doing this. I've seen it under the Social Credit and the NDP and Liberals. I hear the same motions every year at the conventions and the same things over and over again," he said.
Saip said the approximately $60,000 annual membership is money better directed elsewhere. He said the association does provide legal services, but the money saved could be used for such purposes if needed.
According to the BCSTA, it's a non-profit association that acts as school boards' strong, unified voice in advocating to government, other education partners and the public on matters affecting public education.
All 60 school districts in the province are members, but that will change now that Vancouver has given its one-year notice to withdraw. The Vancouver board voted to cancel its membership as part of a series of budget cuts, saving $80,000 in the process.
Delta school board chair Laura Dixon, however, said other trustees agreed it's important to be working provincially to advance larger issues that ultimately affect Delta.
"What we get from BCSTA in terms of value for our cost is significant."
