For Maple Ridge trustee
• Name: Cherie Delainey.
• Residence: Maple Ridge.
• Occupation/education: Customer service with the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch and part-time travel consultant.
• Volunteer work: Boy Scout leader, parent volunteer for Inlet Skating Club, youth soccer, hockey and baseball teams, area captain on the Fight HST Campaign.
Question: Please provide an example of what you have done that qualifies you for school board.
Answer: I am a community member and mother of three grown children who attended public school. They all had different learning needs, including special education, and achieved different results..
Q: Why are you running for trustee?
A: Public education affects all of us. I believe strongly in the value of public education as a cornerstone of democracy. I am standing up to protect our public education system.
Q: What makes you stand out from other candidates?
A: As the mother of special needs students, I worked closely with their teachers, counselors, administrators and staff to support their learning. I have a first-hand understanding of the challenges parents, students and staff face.
Q: How do you see the school district changing in the next 10 years?
A: Technology with play an ever greater roll in our children’s lives, but it can never replace the need for teachers or the social setting of a class room. All our partners in the education system will have a voice in the process. Our public education system will be geared toward the individual needs of our children and all children will have access to the tools that they need to succeed in their area of choice.
Q: What will be your top priority if elected to school board?
A: Top priorities will include working cooperatively with other education partners to pressure senior levels of government to restore adequate funding to our school districts, addressing the stressful situation of class size and composition and ensuring schools have the necessary support staff to run our schools effectively.