Over the past five months, I've watched our trustee work tirelessly to ensure that the school closure process inside the Greenbelt was based on the best available information and sound principles. From the outset, he's been frank in his advice and clear about his objectives.
Re-electing Albert Chambers will return an accountable and responsive trustee who is committed to serving this area.
The downtown and the near west neighborhoods must have strong programs and sufficient schools to serve our current and future needs.
Albert Chambers has forcefully argued against the closure plans which weakened immersion programs, overcrowded the elementary schools in his zone and eliminated valued day care programs.
Albert has our school council's unanimous endorsement!
I know that Albert made some difficult choices during his first term, some of which I've not agreed with, but he's always been there to consult with and more than willing to hear all sides of the question.
After speaking to members from various school councils, and with respected voices in the community - my vote is to return Albert Chambers as trustee.
The quality of life in Ottawa is critical to attracting the highly skilled professionals and workers that our city now needs. Trustee Albert Chambers clearly understands the role that our public schools must play. He knows that overcrowded schools, limited program choice and inadequate services to support children with special needs would all be counterproductive.
Albert's work to secure proper funding for quality programs and for new school construction outside the Greenbelt and his efforts to preserve a flexible network of neighborhood schools in the Downtown areas deserve our support.
Time and again, Albert has put the interests of kids first by focussing on the quality and the accessibility of programs like Junior Kindergarten, English as a Second Language (ESL), French Immersion, Alternative Schools and special programs for kids at risk. Without trustees like Albert, the OCDSB would be a "one size fits all" board.
I don't envy Albert the task of trying to represent more than 50,000 public school electors in two city wards and the students and parents of 15 schools, but I can tell you he's done a great job during his first three years as a trustee.
Despite massive budget cuts by the province, Albert has put kids first, focussed on strong programs and taken clear stands on the key issues. We need him on the Board for a second term!
As a former city councilor, I know that representing your ward and balancing the interests of the whole city is a real challenge. I've seen Albert Chambers at work in the OCDSB board room, in meetings with parents and with business leaders. He's demonstrated to me that he has the vision and the capacity to very effectively serve our needs and be a leader in local school board.
Albert Chambers has done a wonderful job of representing all of the school communities in our zone with balance and integrity. He has helped us tremendously with his tireless efforts on the School Board. I trust him to continue to work with us to preserve schools in our communities which are vital to us, our children, and the health of our neighborhoods.
Former OCDSB Chair Albert Chambers has been an honest, clear-thinking and passionate advocate on behalf of the electoral district that was hardest hit by school closures. Chambers was largely responsible for Formula Facts, the widely acclaimed OCDSB flyer that was sent to all homes in the Region to explain the impacts of the province's education defunding formula. He's worked to preserve junior kindergarten and extend it to suburban and rural areas, fought to retain badly-needed funding for special education and English as a Second Language programs, and saved the Adult High School, one of the OCDSB's most successful programs.