May 30, 2025
Why Words Matter: Protecting the Integrity of Public Education
With the recent amendments to Bill 51, I wanted to address the importance of terminology and renaming. It’s important to note that with any terminology, there is a strategy behind the language used by government and policy makers to describe our education system. A recent shift in the wording, quietly changing “private schools” to “independent schools,” may seem minor on the surface, but as those committed to public education, we…
April 30, 2025
The Power of Persistence
As public school board trustees, we know that advocacy is not just part of the job—it’s at the heart of what we do. We stand up for students, families, staff, and communities. We speak out when decisions impact the future of public education. But let’s be honest: advocacy can be exhausting. When progress feels slow or when our voices seem unheard, it’s easy to wonder if we’re really making a…
March 31, 2025
Stronger Together: Ensuring Every Student Thrives Through Fair Funding
One of the greatest hurdles public schools across Alberta face is the increasing competition for funding. While both public schools and charter schools aim to provide quality education, public schools are uniquely responsible for serving every child—regardless of ability, background, or circumstance. This financial strain impacts everything from classroom sizes to extracurricular programs, teacher and support staff salaries, and facility maintenance. Public schools are expected to do more with less,…
February 28, 2025
Turning Words into Action: Advocating for Our Public Schools
As President of this dedicated and passionate group, I want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible work we’ve accomplished together and highlight an essential component of our mission: advocacy. At its core, advocacy is about more than just speaking up—it’s about putting our words into meaningful action, ensuring that our schools receive the resources, support, and recognition they deserve. Public schools are the heart of our communities.…
January 31, 2025
A New Year, A Renewed Commitment to Public School Education in Alberta
As we step into a brand-new year, I want to take a moment to reflect on our shared accomplishments and look ahead with optimism and determination. The work we do together as trustees, administrators, and advocates for public school education is nothing short of extraordinary. Together, we are shaping the future of Alberta through our steadfast commitment to supporting and enhancing the public education system. I have said it multiple…
November 29, 2024
A Year End Message: The Vital roll of Public School Education and School Boards
Seeing as this is the final blog for the 2024 year, I am wanting to reflect on the advocacy work that has been done, and also highlight the important role public school education plays across the province. Public schools do far more than teach the ABCs; they prepare every student from the future tradesperson to the aspiring engineer, to the healthcare worker to contribute meaningfully to our province’s prosperity. PSBAA…
October 30, 2024
The Importance of Sustainable Funding for Public School Education
In light of the government’s $8.6 billion dollar infrastructure announcement, I feel its important to emphasize a pressing issue that impacts the future of our students, teachers, and communities: the need for robust government funding to support our growing public school education system. It is clear that ensuring every student receives a quality education is central to our mission, and this goal can only be achieved with the appropriate infrastructure…
October 1, 2024
Promoting, Elevating and Protecting Public School Education
Welcome to a brand new school year! The start of a new year brings with it a sense of renewal, opportunity, and the promise of growth for our students, educators, and community, and I always look forward to this time. This year, PSBAA is particularly thrilled to launch our PEP Initiative, which will help us all Promote, Elevate, and Protect Public School Education in Alberta. Promotion is the first pillar…
June 26, 2024
Building Trust and Embracing Change: A Year-end Message
As we wrap up another dynamic and inspiring school year, I want to take a moment to reflect on our journey and share some thoughts on the next steps ahead. This year has been one of significant growth, filled with achievements and challenges alike. When leaving this years successful PSBAA Spring General Assembly, I was struck with a thought. At the heart of our success lies two key points: trust…
May 29, 2024
Placing Students Before Politics
One of the greatest challenges we face in fulfilling the duty of prioritizing students and their needs is balancing the politics that come along with it and enter our educational system. While political discourse has its place in shaping policies and frameworks, it should never overshadow the core purpose of public education, which is to provide equitable and quality learning opportunities for all students. Our goal is to always protect,…