Julie Ann Bertram is running for School Board Trustee in Zone 1 for the Near North District School Board in West Nipissing.
Julie Ann (she/her) is a parent of 3 children attending schools within the NNDSB. Her background is in the arts, as a musician and writer. She has been running a business in West Nipissing for over ten years and sits on a few volunteer committees in her small community of Field. She believes that strong and progressive communities begin with a strong and progressive public education system.
Why are you running for this position?
I can bring a different type of insight and expression to the table where the voices of our students, parents, teachers, and support staff are heard while upholding the progressing vision, mission, and values of the Board and the Ministry of Education. Concise communication between advocates, the Board, and policymakers is key to quickening action taken throughout the public education system.
With the pandemic came extra responsibilities at home, I became involved in my children’s schooling much more than I had ever planned. During this time, it was important for me to understand how they learned, what they missed about in-class learning, how they navigated online learning, and what they liked about learning from home. Now that most students are back in the classroom, I feel it urgent that extra academic assistance and mental/social health supports are available within schools to help alleviate the stress of the past few years. These observations, along with further discussions, can be beneficial to creating a future of education where our children are inspired, engaged, and well-prepared for the next stages of life in society.
What do you think are the greatest challenges your municipality faces?
The challenges our municipality faces are the same as most: a high cost of living, reduced quality of life, food insecurity, homelessness, problematic substance use, violence, and a rise in mental health issues combined with a lacking support system.
Other than the official ways of communicating (minutes, municipal notes), how else will you reach out to your constituents to involve them in the decision making process?
It is important to note how most people prefer to communicate these days.
Social media campaigns and direct emails with concise messaging, perhaps witty, and inventive correspondence from trustees to the community can surpass the traditional humdrum notices we all tend to ignore, and therefore tend to miss out on pertinent information. I feel a lack of humour in general has been a detriment to what should be an overall excitement as we help shape the future! We may want to take a step forward, away from the conventional solemnity that has been the norm.
Involving students in these communications is also important. Young people have generous and infectious energy that will automatically bring parents and community partners into the information fold.
Why do you think it’s important for women to be represented in civic leadership, including on committees, boards and municipal councils?
Women in leadership positions bring a less authoritative and more collaborative approach to the workplace, providing a different set of talents and imaginative solutions to the table. A creative perspective and unique sensitivity allow for ideas that may otherwise be missed.
Where can people find you?
Facebook
mail@julieannbertram.com
289-970-0150
