Karen Packard

Acclaimed Candidate Comments

As a Trustee that has been acclaimed, I look forward to getting to know our new Board members and begin working with them to do what is best for kids. We will have a lot of work to do, and will need to communicate with the division staff in order to find out how we can best support them in their roles. I have been a strong and vocal supporter of Covid safety in our schools, but I know that the pressures of Covid, maintaining connection with students, and delivery of curriculum throughout it all has taken its toll. Mental health is one of the NLPS priorities, and that includes staff. It will be important to ensure we ask our staff how we can help.

I believe that our staff have done an amazing job of trying to keep students engaged during the pandemic, and I feel that attempting to implement a new curriculum may only serve to disengage students further, particularly as the draft has a lot of age and developmentally inappropriate content. The draft needs more work, especially to advance the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action for education. Our new board will need to determine the path for our advocacy and could include things like exploring opportunities for Indigenous language instruction.

Ultimately, the amount of funding we will receive is determined by the province, but it will be critical to continue to advocate as a board for public school funding that will allow for smaller class sizes, and to restore PUF funding and eligibility to 2018 levels. 

I appreciate your patience, thank you for the opportunity to share. I will be only one voice of nine, but my actions will always be based on what is best for kids. 

Karen Packard

Trustee Ward 2