School Council Election Process

Fall Election for Parent Positions Determines parent representatives – not executive (e.g. Chair, Vice-Chair etc.) positions Executive positions can be determined after parent membership is in place Minimum membership includes: Majority of parents Parent membership is not restricted to any number of parents Your bylaws determine your actual membership An HWDSB employee can be a member on the council of their child's school as a staff representative if they declare that they are an HWDSB employee

Planning the Election Step One

Planning the Election STEP 1 Consider forming an election planning committee consisting of parents, teachers and support staff Secondary schools should include a student representative, appointed by student council It is recommended that this election planning committee be formed in the spring prior to the next school year Begin by forming an election planning committee, which will be responsible for planning and holding the election. Section 7.3 of the School Council: A Guide for Members, provides useful timelines to help with your planning. A student rep should also be involved if you are a secondary school council. If there is no student council, then the student representative will be elected by the student body. It's best to begin forming this committee in the Spring, so you have plenty of time to plan the election.

Planning the Election STEP 2 Develop your election plan before your last school council meeting of the year Include the date, time and location of the election for school council parent members (must occur within first 30 calendar days of the school year) and submit the permit date through eBase. STEP 3 Advertise the election - communicate in June through school newsletter & website The planning committee's first task is to choose an appropriate election date and time. The election must happen within the first 30 calendar days of the school year. Election information can be communicated to parents in June through the school newsletter and website.

Inform parents of the process for nominations and elections Planning the Election STEP 4 Inform parents of the process for nominations and elections STEP 5 Ongoing communication in the days leading up to the election is essential to encourage parent engagement Nomination forms are returned to the school As part of Step 4, communication regarding school council elections can be shared through your school’s summer communication or September start up letter.

Planning Your Election STEP 6 collect back the nomination forms share with parents before election These processes will be further established and influenced by parental interest in school council. create a list with bios of candidates Inform parents of election date & how many reps to vote for

Planning the Election STEP 7 Hold the election

During the Election Step Two

During the Election Elections must be conducted by secret ballot Only parents or guardians of a student enrolled at the school can vote All eligible voters may cast one vote for each parent position Voters must be present at the school on the election day(s) during the hours of the election Individuals running for a position should not be staffing the election table

After the Election Step Three

Final Checklist Announce names of elected council members within 30 days of the election Newsletter School website Social media Internal School Council Yammer Elected council members serve a term of 1 school year. Additionally, there is no maximum number of terms for a council member. Hold the first meeting within 35 calendar days of the school year & elect your executive positions

Thank you for your work on behalf of the children For information or support, please email PIC@hwdsb.on.ca