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Meet The Board of Education
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Peg is married and a parent of 4 children and a grandmother. Three children have
graduated from District High Schools, (two from Vic High, making that the 4th generation
in her family to do so, and one from Mt. Doug) and the youngest, who currently is
a student in the District. Peg is a three term Trustee for the Greater Victoria
School District and serves on the Education Policy Committee. She has also served
on the City of Victoria Social Planning Advisory committee and the Healthy Schools
Committee. Peg currently works on the School Boards “Needs Budget Committee” advocating
for a better Public Education funding formula for students and Peg is the School
Board’s representative on the Vancouver Island Labour Relations Council.
Peg enjoys working with community organizations, the BC Government and Service Employees
Union, and Child Find BC and was a long time delegate to the Victoria Labour Council.
Peg retired as of January 31, 2012 from Health Insurance of British Columbia (MSP).
Peg believes that "every child has the right to access the maximum in education opportunity,
regardless of their or their families' economic or social circumstance."
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Bev has been a Trustee for 21 years. She has served as the Chair of the Education
Policy Development Committee for 15 years, is the former Vice-Chair of the Board
of Education, the former President, CPAV (now VCPAC), former Director of BCSTA (five
terms), former President, VISTA (Vancouver Island School Trustees Association) and
a former member of TNAC (Treaty Negotiations Advisory Committee). She has served
on many community action and advisory committees over the years such as Victoria
and Saanich Parks and Recreation, Swan Lake Board, Race Relations Council Steering
Committee and Education Committee, Arts Commission Steering Committee, French Immersion
Advisory, Community Schools Committee and many others. Trustee Horsman is a long-time
parent activist and advocate for equity programs and "At Risk" programs in Victoria,
Bev organized the first school lunch program in Victoria. She is the proud grandparent
of three, with two grandchildren in the school system.
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Catherine has taught in the public school system since graduating from the University
of Victoria in 1992. She has taught in both primary and middle school, and presently
teaches in the Sooke School District. In 2006, she completed her Master’s degree
with a focus on curriculum development and leadership in education.
Before becoming a teacher, Catherine was an Early Childhood educator. She raised
two children and a foster son who were educated for the most part in the Victoria
and Saanich School Districts, at South Park Elementary and later, Esquimalt Secondary
and Claremont Secondary.
Catherine is committed to fully funding public education and ran to be a trustee
to advocate for greater support for students with special needs and a reduction
in class sizes to at least the levels present before 2001. According to Stats Canada,
funding for universal public education in BC has dropped from 3.7% of Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) to 3.2% of GDP in the past ten years. Trustees must have the courage
and conviction to challenge the government’s dismal record on public education and
demand funding that meets the needs of all of our students.
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- Retired businessman.
- Former teacher-on-call, Okanagan District.
- Director, Entrepreneurial Learning Foundation.
- Sponsor, Youth In Action Awards.
- Volunteer, Junior Achievement.
- Volunteer, Ecole Quadra Elementary School.
- Past Chair, Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary.
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Elaine Leonard has served for twelve years as a trustee and for three years as chairman
of the Board of Education. She is a parent of 2 children and has volunteered for
over 14 years in our classrooms. Elaine has served in various executive positions
of the Esquimalt School & McKenzie School parent Advisory Councils, Esquimalt
Music Parents Association and Christopher Robin Co-op Pre-School.
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Edith is a member of the Wolf Clan of the Gitxsan Nation, BC. Her matriarchal name,
Nox Gyes, recognizes the role that she has in her family and across Canada. She
has lived in the Greater Victoria area for the past 27 years and is married to Julius
Kuhanga, originally from Tanzania. They are proud parents of two sons and four grandchildren.
They also raised four nieces and nephews. Edith has a Bachelor of Education Degree
and completed a Masters in Education Leadership in December 2011. She has 30 years
experience in the education profession including teaching at the elementary and
post-secondary levels, counseling, curriculum development and administration. Since
1993, Edith has owned and operated First Nations Training & Consulting Services
Ltd. which provides training and services to Aboriginal communities across Canada.
In May 2002, she was awarded the YM/YWCA Women of Distinction Award in the Education,
Training & Development Category. From 2008 to 2011, she had the privilege to serve
on the Saanich Board of Education. Edith believes that every child has a right to
quality, relevant and meaningful education; that the school board should be open
and transparent; and trustees must actively advocate for a fully funded public education.
Contact Edith at: eloring@sd61.bc.ca
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Michael is serving his third term as trustee including three years as Board of Education
Chair. In April 2011, he was elected as the President of the British Columbia School
Trustees’ Association (BCSTA) by his colleagues throughout the province. He is the
ninth Victoria-area school trustee to lead the Association in its 107-year history.
Others include British Columbia NDP Leader, Carole James and George Jay, the namesake
of George Jay Elementary School.
Michael is committed both locally and provincially to improving public education.
In addition to working to ensure children are well grounded in literacy and numeracy,
he believes it is important that students be encouraged to develop their sense of
social responsibility and citizenship.
He is active in the community, having served on many volunteer committees in Saanich,
Oak Bay and Victoria, and recently held the position of Campaign Chair of the United
Way of Greater Victoria.
Michael’s wife is a high school principal and he has two daughters, one in high
school, and one attending university. He is a lawyer and works for the office of
the Information and Privacy Commissioner.
Email: mmcevoy@sd61.bc.ca
You can also follow him on twitter @BCSTA_President
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Diane began teaching in Alberta at 18 after two years at U of A, Edmonton. She completed
the 5 year B.Ed. at Uvic,and a two-year MBA (Royal Roads) in 2001, while working
full time. She has worked as a teacher on call, a classroom elementary school teacher,
as a special education student assistant (CUPE), a teacher at the READ Society,
taught at Victor School with a large multidisciplinary team supporting students
with multiple special needs, managed the classroom at the former school at Queen
Alexandra Hospital, supported special education at Arbutus Middle School and provided
special education / learning support / Reading Recovery at Frank Hobbs Elementary,
adding Reading Recovery at Rogers for one year, ending her teaching career in June
2011. Diane initiated the Frank Hobbs Animal Club, volunteers in a variety of animal
welfare activities, is a former Board member of the Early Music Society of the Islands,
and served on the Executive of the Greater Victoria Teachers' Association. Diane
looks forward to advocating for students and their learning conditions as a Trustee,
and remembers that in 1991, public schools received 26.36% of the British Columbia
provincial budget. Now (2011), public education receives 15.41 % of that budget. Contact Diane at: dMcNally@sd61.bc.ca
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My life experiences have caused me to become a social justice advocate and I feel
very compelled to do everything I can to take care of our children who belong to
the families in our district. I completed my undergraduate degree at the University
of Guelph. I, then, attended the University of Ottawa to study and there I graduated
with a masters in educational psychology. I have completed further course work in
education at the University of Victoria. I have taught in Ottawa, near Boston, MA,
in the city of Lawrence as well as in Victoria. I have raised my children in the
public education system and now I have a grandson who attends school in our district.
As an educator for over 25 years and I have taught at the elementary, middle and
high school level with a specialty in special education and ESL. I feel that I have
a broad and detailed understanding of our district. It is a dynamic community of
learners.
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