The Catholic Church considers that elected democratic office is a position of immense responsibility, to be held in high trust and exercised with great humility, wisdom, and responsibility, in the interest of the common good.
This is particularly true with respect to those who seek to govern publicly-funded Catholic Schools. Education is of first importance for the future of our society; and Catholic education, properly conducted, can be of unique importance in passing our faith and the great good it can bring to individuals and societies to future generations. Few undertakings offer comparable opportunities to integrate faith into the entire range of personal and social values for future generations.
Trustees are broadly responsible for setting the mission and goals of the schools they govern. This includes overseeing and encouraging the director of education; setting and monitoring school budgets in order to ensure that students have adequate teachers and administrators, as well as adequate material resources such as school rooms, books, and other educational materials; developing policies that support and encourage superior student performance, both academically and in terms of spiritual and sacramental growth; and serving as spokespersons for Catholic education. And in doing so, they must be acting as credible – that is, joyful and well-formed – Christian witnesses.
This calls for individuals possessing rare combinations of professional and religious capabilities, as well as joyful and respectful personalities. Those who put their names forward for service as trustees are volunteering for difficult and complex jobs of grave responsibility.
Those who elect Catholic school trustees owe it to students, to society, and to those who serve in schools, as well as all foreseeable future generations, to educate themselves properly in the responsibilities of those whom they elect; to inform themselves concerning the goals and qualifications of those who seek office; and to reflect prayerfully on which candidates to vote for. This is a very great responsibility. Approached properly, it can be considered an act of prayer and devout witness.
The Church teaches that the ultimate purpose of this life is to seek the truth, which is God. “God is the ultimate end of his creatures and for no reason may the common good be deprived of its transcendent dimension.” This truth is most effectively communicated to our children when their families, parishes, and schools are properly prepared and properly engaged in their complementary roles.
- Christ the Teacher Catholic Schools – Website
- Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools – Website
- Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Division – Website
- Holy Trinity Catholic Schools – Website
- Light of Christ Catholic Schools – Website
- Lloydminster Catholic School Division – Website
- Prince Albert Catholic School Division – Website
- Regina Catholic School Division – Website
Candidate Questionnaires & Responses
It can be very difficult for voters in school trustee elections to gather information adequate for use in deciding which candidate(s) to support. In particular, it can be difficult to gather enough relevant and comprehensive information to allow responsible comparison of the experience levels, aspirations, and philosophies of multiple candidates. To that end, Catholic Conscience has worked with trustees from multiple separate school boards and has consulted a variety of documents prepared by separate school associations to describe the nature and the mission of Catholic Schools, using that information along with past election experience to prepare questionnaires designed to draw out from candidates their purposes and goals in seeking office as trustees. With the help of the Diocese of Saskatoon and other interested Catholics, we have tailored the questionnaire to address the needs and hopes of Saskatchewan students and their parents.
We have shared the questionnaire with all candidates for whom we can locate email addresses, explaining that completion of the questionnaire is voluntary, and that there are no right or wrong answers, except in the minds of discerning voters.
We post answers as rapidly as we can, usually by the end of the business day.
In some jurisdictions it can be very difficult to obtain contact information for candidates. If you are looking for a response from a candidate who does not appear below, please share the link to this page with them, with our invitation to respond, or send us their contact information. We aspire to present responses from all candidates.