Roles & Responsibilities of a School Board Trustee

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• The HDSB Board of Trustees is responsible for governing the school system in the best interests of all the students in their jurisdiction and on behalf of all the communities  they serve.

• The Board of Trustees, as a corporate body, is the legislative source of all decisions and responsible for the success of the organization in terms of its purpose. It does this by providing oversight, direction setting and decision making through a governance process which includes defining roles, relationships, structures and processes.

• Individual Trustees are granted no authority through the Education Act.

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Individual Trustees

 

• A Trustee is a member of the Board. They are not a member of parliament, which is important to understand, as each Trustee holds no individual authority

• Carry out their responsibilities in a manner that assists the Board in fulfilling its duties under the education act, and other regulations

• Attend and participate in meetings of the Board, including meetings of Board committees of which they are a member.  

• Consult with parents, students and community of the Board on the Multi-year plan

• Bring concerns of parents, students and community of the Board to the attention of the Board. 

• Uphold the implementation of any Board resolution after it is passed by the Board.

• Entrust day to day management of the Board to its staff through the Board’s Director of Education

• Maintain focus on student achievement and well-being

• Comply with the Board’s Code of Conduct

 

Community Representation

 

While the job of school Trustees varies widely across Ontario, what all have in common is serving the community as elected representatives while focusing on the primary task of acting as members of a Board that makes policy decisions, oversees curriculum and program delivery and fulfills its responsibilities as an employer.

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Advocates of Public Education

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• Local – work on behalf of the community and must consider the unique needs of their community when deciding what position to take on any issue, while still looking at the board as a whole.

• Municipal – connect with municipal counterparts

• Provincial – liaise with their local MPP and other members of Provincial Parliament regarding public education

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Meeting Commitments

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• A Trustee must be present for at least 3 regular meetings of the Board in each 12 month period beginning with the start of their term

• Trustees may also participate in other Board committees which can take place during the day

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