Terrace region dominates largest share of NWCC Board of Governor Appointments

Bill Parmar is facing some pretty lonely drives ahead for future  NWCC
Board meetings. With the NDP making a trio of appointments that
put the focus on Terrace, and leave Mr. Parmar as the only Prince Rupert
representative currently appointed to the NWCC Board of Governors

With the latest appointments to the Board of Governors membership for Northwest Community College, the NDP government has put a definite Terrace stamp on the governance of post secondary education in the region.

The three final appointments from the province include Diane McRae, David Try and Jolene Wesley, the trio rounding out all but one of the vacancies that had been in place owing to the change of government of last year and an extended delay in the filling of open positions.

With their appointments, the totals make for 11 representatives from Terrace, one from Hazelton and one from Prince Rupert.   One seat, the First Nations Council Chair currently remains vacant.  The Board of Governors is composed of a combination of elected and appointed members.

When it comes to the wider NWCC service region of the Northwest, communities without any Board representation include Haida Gwaii, Kitimat, Stewart and Houston.

The updated list of those serving on the Board can be found here.

The NWCC Board of Governors meets an average of five times a year, the next and final meeting for the 2017-18 academic year comes up on June 15th in Smithers

With but one representative in Mr. Parmar installed on the Board from the North Coast, making sure that Prince Rupert's interests and needs when it comes to post secondary education are addressed, may require a bit of assistance from other community participants.

Something that the elected Board for SD52, members of Prince Rupert City Council and MLA Jennifer Rice may wish to join in on, so as to keep Prince Rupert on the radar in Terrace.

With such a heavy weight of membership from Terrace and points east, the ever present perception of increased centralization could be one area that those not living in the Terrace area may find some concern in.

As well, with the numbers that this current make up delivers, there is a  potential for North Coast concerns to get lost when it comes to where the NWCC Board puts its focus.

Something that local officials in Prince Rupert will want to be watchful for, as they look to ensure that this community gains a fair share of the education dollars and supports that seem to have gravitated to the central campus in Terrace in recent years.

That topic could be an area of engagement that Prince Rupert City Council may wish to follow up on, offering an invitation to college officials from the NWCC main campus back to Council chambers for an information sharing session.

An appearance at City Hall, or through a City sponsored forum on education in the community, could offer a chance for NWCC officials to outline what plans they may have for the Prince Rupert Campus location, as well as for Prince Rupert Councillors to bring any concerns of the public directly to the college administration.

For more items related to post secondary education in the Northwest see our archive page here.


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