The Hastings Prince Edward District School Board was kept busy, very busy this past year.
Director of Education Mandy Savery-Whiteway sat down with Quinte News to take a look back on 2018.
There were a number of accomplishments in the past year according to Savery-Whiteway and one she is very proud of is the accomplishments they’ve been able to make with their three year financial recovery plan.
They are also heading into the fourth year of their five year strategic plan (2015-2020) and she says they are well along the path laid out there. They also saw a new school model for the board come to fruition with a Grade 7-12 school at Centennial and Trenton High School, as well as their first kindergarten to Grade 12 school in Picton.
Savery-Whiteway says the board are also working with their employees to find out what they are doing well, where they can work together better and take some steps towards those changes in the new year.
Hastings Prince Edward District School Board Director of Education Mandy Savery-Whiteway. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)
She says one of the big focuses was also on physical, mental, emotional and social well-being of all students. She says they want to give all students a solid foundation in that regard.
While there were accomplishments, there were also a few challenges the board faced.
Savery-Whiteway said one of those big challenges was finding ways to ensure the community understands some of the changes that were made, including the amalgamation of schools.
Another challenge they faced was the fact they were on a multi-year financial plan to make sure they weren’t operating in a deficit.
Savery-Whiteway says this means they can’t continue to do things they way they have before and change is hard.
