Laura Elliott has been appointed the new director of education for the Thames Valley District School Board, following the retirement of Bill Tucker.
The appointment is effective as of September 1st.
Elliott has been with the board since 2007 and is currently the executive superintendent of program services.
She previously worked with the Durham District School Board, Ministry of Education and the Ontario College of Teachers, among others.
TVDSB Chair Joyce Bennett says “[Elliott’s]certainly open to listening to the student voice, which is something that we often forget, even though what we do every day is to support student success.”
Leadership change comes amid controversial school closures
As Elliott prepares to start her new role, students at Sherwood Forest Public School were saying goodbye to their school on Wednesday.
The school is set to close after 47 years, another victim of declining enrollment and tight finances.
Elliott says “I don’t think we’re out of the woods yet. We still have a number of schools that are under capacity.”
She adds that with Ministry of Education funding tied to having school at or near capacity and “For each school that is not a school that’s full or a school that needs to be repaired, that draws from other aspects of the board budget.”
Still some parents remain determined to hang on to their neighbourhood schools. A campaign to save Lorne Avenue Public School has at least delayed its closure.
Elliott is no stranger to difficult decisions though, acting as the board’s point person when the decision was made to stop extra-curricular sports during recent job action by teachers.
