Trustees to consider criminal-record policy
There could soon be a policy on the books of the Kamloops-Thompson school district requiring criminal-record checks for all trustees.
Board chairwoman Denise Harper said trustees hope to have a report from superintendent Terry Sullivan soon.
“It’s in response to what some other districts are doing and in response to what provincial policy might be in the future,” she said.
“Most of us have had criminal-record checks, and I really think it was more a request to administration to have a look at this — where’s it going and what’s the impact of this?”
The matter was raised at a board of education meeting last month.
“I think there’s some fundamental issues that I have to look at,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said he’s going to look at whether it’s legally possible to prohibit convicted criminals from running for or holding trustee positions.
“Once there was a criminal-record check done and it showed that a person had a criminal record in their past, would it relate to their job as a trustee?” he said.
“If they did, did it relate to children or violence or fraud — things that would relate directly to their job as a trustee?
“Or, did it relate to a violation for smoking marijuana in 1970 when they were in high school?
“There’s a lot to consider.”
Under current policy, Sullivan said the school district would not be informed if a trustee has a record.
In last fall’s municipal election, criminal records became a public issue in the race for SD73 trustee seats when one of the candidates spent a night in jail.
Adrian Miller was arrested on an outstanding warrant stemming from a mischief conviction out of Prince George.
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