Elizabeth Terrell-Tracey was elected to the York Region District School Board earlier this year despite racially offensive postings that appeared on her Facebook account during the campaign.But at her swearing in Monday night, the trustee for East Gwillimbury and Whitchurch-Stouffville was the target of protesters who shut down the public proceedings, urging people not to stand “idly by” and let it happen.People booed as she was introduced, and a row of parents held up signs urging her to step down. Before recessing the meeting, director of education Louise Sirisko acknowledged that there were people in the audience who attended to show their “hurt and anger.`“We are committed to listening,” she said.In an unprecedented step, the board had already scheduled a special meeting after the formal proceedings to give community members a chance to be heard.Terrell-Tracey’s election came as the board was finally getting past a turbulent few years. The culture at the board had been deemed so toxic that former education minister Mitzie Hunter called in a team to investigate.Hunter later issued 22 directives to get the board back on track, and Sirisko was brought on as the new director.“We’re just ironically just wrapping up the 22 directives from the ministry,” board chair Corrie McBain told the Star before Monday night’s meeting.“There’s been so much good work done from that, and the spirit of them being incorporated into the culture of the organization. So this is really testing to see if all those mechanisms put in place are going to serve the purpose that they were intended,” McBain said. Two years ago, she added, the board did not have a human rights office or an integrity commissioner, who provides independent oversight of the board and can accept public complaints.However, McBain explained, complaints must be based on behaviour once trustees have taken office, and that prior incidents can ...
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