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Independents Working For You focus for vulnerable students

The Independents Working for You School Board slate says it’s committed to furthering support for at-risk and vulnerable students. “The concerns of a school trustee are as varied as the 16,000 school children we have enrolled in our District.
independents working for you
Joe Muego, Laura Dixon and Nick Kanakos are the school board candidates on the Independents Working For You ticket.

The Independents Working for You School Board slate says it’s committed to furthering support for at-risk and vulnerable students.

“The concerns of a school trustee are as varied as the 16,000 school children we have enrolled in our District. Some students will move through their entire school years with few bumps in the road. Others start out having to overcome challenges and for some, vulnerability and risk factors will develop as they move through Kindergarten to Grade 12,” said incumbent trustee Nick Kanakos.

“Students with special needs, students whose families struggle with poverty, LGBTQ+ students who need to feel safe and accepted, refugee families and students with mental health challenges are amongst a few of the vulnerabilities and risk factors that require our most careful consideration and support.”

 

Laura Dixon, the current school board chair, adds, “In my work supporting children, youth and families in Delta it is abundantly clear that early intervention and prevention is always the right thing to do and is the most cost-effective thing to do. We have responded as a school district by placing student connectedness at the top of our Framework for Enhancing Student Learning. The research is definitive that the protective factor of having several adults in the school who believe you will be a success can make all the difference; that’s what we mean by connectedness. Common sense tells us everyone works and learns in a better way when we can truly show that we care for one another.”

Dixon said they will directly survey each student on their perception of their own connectedness. Staff will then be taking the self-reporting data to respond right away with the appropriate strategy if we see a reason for concern.

 

Current District Parent Advisory Council chair and Independents Working for You trustee candidate Joe Muego says, “The number one thing parents are looking for from their child’s education isn’t top test scores; rather what parents want first is for our kids to be cared for, to know that their teachers and peers see them as the unique individuals they are. At DPAC, we encourage parents to have conversations with their child about who they feel most connected to and to work with their child’s school if they have any concerns as home and school connectedness is key to positive outcomes.”

Dixon, Kanakos and Muego are the trustee candidates on the slate with candidate for Mayor Jim Cessford and council candidates Jeannie Kanakos, Bruce McDonald, Sandeep Pandher and Garry Shearer.