HWDSB Welcomes New Student Trustees
L-R: Tory Dockree (Westdale) and Elizabeth Wong (Henderson) are the new Student Trustees for the 2016-17 school year.
After being elected by Student Senators, Westdale’s Tory Dockree and Nora Frances Henderson’s Elizabeth Wong have been sworn in as Student Trustees for the 2016-17 academic year.
Student Trustees participate in the deliberations and decision-making around the Board table, while bringing forward student perspectives and gaining valuable learning experiences.
This year, 11 eligible applications came forward. Members of senior staff, the Board of Trustees and Trustee Services interviewed candidates in April. Student Senate elected Tory and Elizabeth from a shortlist of four candidates.
Here, the new Student Trustees answer a few of our questions:
What was your first reaction when you heard you were elected as student trustee?
TD: My initial reaction when I found out that I had been elected as Student Trustee was pure shock. I was very excited and grateful that I had been selected for this position. Although, for the first few minutes I was in pure disbelief. This is such an incredible opportunity and I am very excited to be advocating for the students of HWDSB throughout the 2016-2017 school year.
EW: My reaction when I first heard I was elected as a student trustee was just pure excitement! I remember giving Tory a huge hug as we heard our names being called. I couldn’t wipe that huge grin off my face. I was also so happy because this role allows me to further the student voice in HWDSB. This is so important to me because after going through high school transitions, I personally saw the importance of student voice. All in all, I’m just so excited and honoured to being serving as a Student Trustee for the 2016-2017 school year.
What excites you about the upcoming school year?
TD: In the upcoming school year, I am the most excited to be advocating on behalf of the students of HWDSB. I am excited to work to ensure that all of the voices within the student population are being heard and that all students have a positive and enriching experience throughout their time at HWDSB.
EW: There are so many things that excite me about the upcoming school year! I am extremely excited to be sitting on the Board of Trustees and being able to reiterate the student voice on motions, decisions and any problems brought to Board meetings. It’s amazing that students are given the opportunity to sit on the Board and I am so honoured that I am able to be one of the few students who have been elected to be a representative. I am also really excited to co-chair Student Senate because I have been a Senator for over two years now and it’s amazing that I can take on a different role in Student Senate. I’m just excited to really embrace the role and seize any opportunities where I can represent the student voice of HWDSB.
What would you like to accomplish as student trustee?
TD: As Student Trustee, I would like to continue to improve upon the Board’s actions on mental health. Although, as of yet I do not have a clear agenda. I think that it is important that I keep an open mind and communicate with students in order to understand their issues. My priority is to discover what issues are affecting the student population and strive to resolve them.
EW: There are so many things I’d like to accomplish as a Student Trustee but the most important thing I’d like to accomplish is ensuring that the student voice is heard at the Board table. Student Trustees hold many responsibilities but I see representing the student voice as the most important. My co (Student Trustee Tory Dockree) and I are also both passionate about ensuring that the students of HWDSB have positive mental health and well-being. I also want to ensure that more students are informed about the role of Student Trustee so we have more students applying for this role and the absolute best people are elected next year. One of my hopes for next year is that we will be able to do some school visits to show students that as your Student Trustees we are here to be your mouthpiece at the Board table when it comes to decisions that directly affect students.
Tell us a bit about you – what should people know about you.
TD: I am currently in Grade 11 at Westdale Secondary School and I am a French Immersion and International Baccalaureate student. I play soccer and enjoy the interactions with my teammates. I am also interested in Canadian and American politics.
EW: To start this answer off I would just like to say that this question really stumped me! I have never really thought about what people should know about me. I guess I’ll start off with some simple basic facts! I am a Grade 11 student at Nora Frances Henderson and I was in the last Grade 9 class of Barton secondary. I love the sciences but I’m not the biggest fan of art! I have been on Student Senate for two years which has been one of the most amazing experiences of my high school career! I am also extremely passionate when it comes to student voice and I am so excited to be Student Trustee next year!
Updated on Tuesday, May 10, 2016.