School Boards are reeling after a consultant recommended they be disbanded.
Dr. Avis Glaze presented her report outlining 22 items she feels will improve the administration of education in Nova Scotia.
President of the Nova Scotia School Board Association Hank Middleton says the loss of school boards would mean decisions around education would be made without local input.
“I really feel that she missed the [boat] with the fact that we do not have democratically elected school boards to represent communities.”
Middleton says having a system of directors reporting directly to the Deputy Education, as suggested by the report, means they aren’t accountable to residents in areas they serve.
“If policies come from on high, who’s going to push back? And if parents are unhappy with what’s happening in education, you can always go to your school board member. And if you’re not happy with what your school board member does, you’re no longer a school board member, you’re gone.”
Glaze has suggested local input could be made through School Advisory Committees.
But Middleton says replacing seven school boards with 300 micro-boards would mean local voices would get lost.
He hopes the Minister of Education agrees there is a need for a local, democratic voice in public education.
And he’ll be raising his concerns with the Minister at their meeting today.