The Rainbow District School Board has received 13 applications from members of the public to replace a trustee who resigned last year amid controversy.
Applications opened in mid-January and closed Feb. 13. Candidates were asked for a variety of documentation, including proof that their taxes go to the English public school system, a resume and cover letter.
Rainbow board director of education Norm Blaseg said the board has sent an email confirmation to all of the applicants. The board is following up with the candidates to make sure they've submitted all of the necessary paperwork.
“We're very pleased with the number of applications,” Blaseg said. “We're just trying to make sure they meet the qualifications, as outlined in the Education Act, and then we'll move forward.”
Staff will prepare a presentation on the candidates which will be put forward at the board's March 7 strategic planning meeting. Blaseg said the list of candidates will be made public at that meeting.
Trustees will make a decision at the regular board meeting on March 21.
Unlike the process Greater Sudbury city council followed in 2014 to fill two vacant councillor positions, candidates vying for the Rainbow school board position will not be invited to present to the trustees.
Trustees will instead make their decision based on the documentation provided by the candidates, Blaseg said.
The board is replacing Tyler Campbell, a veteran trustee who announced his resignation late last year.
While he said he was stepping down to focus on his career, Campbell, also a manager with the City of Greater Sudbury, had faced allegations of conflict of interest around a proposed soccer dome or artificial turf on school board property.
He resigned in the middle of a contentious accommodation review, meaning his area was without representation as Rainbow board trustees voted earlier this month to close eight schools.
The process to replace Campbell has itself been controversial.
Some have suggested that the candidate who came second to Campbell in the last election, Anita Gibson — whose children attend a Rainbow board school — should have been appointed by the board. Anita, along with husband Dylan, has been under a no-trespass order by the board since 2012.
Rainbow also could have held a byelection to replace Campbell, but this idea was rejected as being too costly. Some have said a byelection would have been preferable to accepting applications from the community and appointing a replacement.
