Education:
Graduate of Mission Public School District, UCFV
Occupation:
Retired fisheries and environment manager of community programs CFDCofNF, DFO/WD ;
Self employed (agriculture)
Previous political experience:
Trustee MPSD#75
President of the Council of BC School Districts
Residency:
Deroche
Community involvement:
Founding president of Fraser Valley Chapter of MS Society of Canada,
Past trustee of MPSD75 / chairman of the board of trustees
Past President of the Council of BC School Districts
Past President of the Mission Community Skills Center
Past Board of Mission Minor Softball / Mission Minor Hockey
Founding board member of the Mission Chapter of the Special Olympics
Founder of the Fraser Valley Regional Watersheds Coalition
Marital status/children:
Married 36 years to Susan, 4 married children, 9 grand children
Email: rmckamey@shaw.ca
What do you feel are two key education-related issues Mission voters should be considering when choosing trustee representatives in this civic election?
1) Our School District must create a collaborative and transparent corporate body that is recognized as approachable and trustworthy to our community. In order for our Public school system to best serve our student’s commitment to the system must be established. Our schools should be a vibrant, exciting, active and empowering learning environment for students, employees and parents.
2) Our School District must become more innovative in developing educational partnerships and programs that fit today’s needs through applied learning models and source funding outside of the core funding of the Ministry of Education.
Why, and what would you do to address these issues?
My career and experience was driven by the skills of facilitating process that brought community together and developing bonds and partnerships driven by meaningful dialogue and recognition of all views at the table. My goal would be to develop a sense of pride in our district through a collaborative approach involving all members of our schools community. Trust and transparency is developed through hard work and determination. It is developed over time but lost in an instant.
Our School communities deserve honest and open leadership that focuses on transparency and belief if educational success is to be the outcome for our students in the classrooms.
Core funding can no longer be expected to deliver educational successes that we have come to expect. Our students deserve a Board of Trustees that will advocate and strive for their educational success. We must endeavor to develop meaningful educational partnerships with business, industry, NGO’s and the community at large through strengthened relationships. These partnerships will assist in developing programs that ensure applied skills and knowledge leaves our system with our students upon successful completion of their grade 12 year.
Our forest industry is just one example of this type of partnership with their educational fund that is accessible to school districts.
Educational Excellence must be the focus and partnerships must be a tool to achieving it.