Letter from Student Trustees Tristan John-Jandles and Rowan McDonald
As Student Trustees, we would like to first recognize the challenging and unprecedented times we are living in. Waterloo Region District School Board staff, students, and families have displayed incredible resilience and quickly adapted to the many changes that have been asked of them during this pandemic. Our priority has been to continue to provide a voice at the Board table for students despite these difficulties.ย
Being the Student Trustees for the 2020-2021 school year, we have also had to adapt. We have been creative in our methods of connecting with our peers by hosting virtual Student Senate meetings and launching a new Student Trustee Instagram account – both of which are for and by students. These tools help us reach out to our peers to provide them with important information and gather their ideas, questions and concerns. Through these initiatives, our peers have told us that they want us to raise awareness of mental health resources, assist with strategies to connect our virtual learners, and incorporate social justice concerns in WRDSB decisions. We will continue to advocate and share these priorities at the Board table to assist Trustees and staff with their plans to support all students. We are committed to responding to every student who reaches out.ย
We look forward to continuing our work of making sure student voice is at the forefront of decisions made at the Board table and within the Committees where we are members. These include the Equity and Inclusion Advisory Group, the School Resource Officer review committee, the School Naming Review Committee, the Suspension Review committee, the French Immersion committee, and ultimately the Board of Trustees.
In 2020, we were forced to adapt beyond what we had imagined. In 2021, like all students we represent, we are eager to apply the skills of resilience, perseverance and patience in every possible way.
Tristan John-Jandles
WRDSB Student Trustee
Rowan McDonald
WRDSB Student Trustee
