Former school board trustee Betty Bekkering said she is heartbroken to have stepped down from her role, but says she just couldn’t do it anymore.
Bekkering announced her resignation from the School District 57 board last week, following the resignation of fellow trustee Gillian Burnett and the departure of Superintendent Cindy Heitman.
In a resignation letter, Burnett said, “this is a dysfunctional board that has no understanding of the role of trustees or good governance, and I cannot be associated with their actions.”
Bekkering explained the board has been divisive since its inaugural meeting in November, 2022.
At that meeting, Bekkering was nominated for chair but was ultimately defeated by Rachael Weber, who at that time had only six months experience as a trustee.
Bekkering described the board as ideologically split between herself, Bob Thomson, Gillian Burnett on one side and Weber, Corey Antrim, Erica McLean and Craig Brennan, on the other.
“It was just at the swearing in ceremony, you just don’t think it’s going to continue,” said Bekkering. “But they didn't seem interested in learning what the role of the trustee was. They really wanted to concentrate on operations of the school district, which is the jurisdiction of the superintendent. They didn’t seem interested in governance.”
She said she thinks of herself as an ethical person and could not continue in her position.
“We were not going to ever defeat this four to three [split]. We're never going to move issues forward,” she said. "“Knowing we are going to beat our heads against a brick wall to keep on for three-and-a-half years into the future - it just looked like a bleak desert to me.”
Bekkering said she could not comment on the departure of Superintendent Cindy Heitman, whose exit was announced following an in-camera meeting of the board, but added that Heitman was exemplary in her role.
She praised her leadership through the pandemic and in developing the districts new strategic plan.
“She had a lot of responsibility, and she carries it off so well. We were just so happy with her work.”
Although Weber has released a statement regarding Bekkering and Burnett’s departures, she had not accepted any requests for an interview from the Citizen since she was elected chair.
Bekkering said she thinks that silence is unforgivable as policy states the superintendent or board chair must act as spokesperson for the district.
“With the superintendent gone that means the chair is the spokesperson. It's not right that she's not replying.”
The Ministry of Education has been reluctant to comment on the situation as well, stating simply that “as the employer, school boards are responsible for making local personnel decisions” and that they are focused on “supporting SD57 School Board to ensure students and staff in the district have a safe, supportive and stable learning environment.”
