Former trustee Ruth Ward chosen to fill vacancy at Rainbow School Board

Ruth Ward is the new trustee at the Rainbow District School Board.

The eight other trustees appointed the Val Caron residentfollowing four rounds ofan in-camera secret ballot vote,prior to last night'sschool board meeting.

Twelve candidates applied for the seat, vacant sincetheresignation in December by Tyler Campbell, amidst allegations of conflict of interest.

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Ward has experience in the roleshe served as a trustee on the school board from 2006 to 2010, when she was not re-elected.

That experience was appealing says board chair DoreenDewar.

"She has the attributes to be a trustee.Mind you, [the 12candidates] all did. They all were very well qualified and very interesting to speak to and a lot of dedication to students," she said.

Ward a school board trustee from 2006-2010

Dewar remembers working with Ward previously.

"She was very dedicated to the students, very interested in education in the area. She was always very prepared and came to meetings having read her agendas and the background information," Dewar said.

Ward will takeover the school district that includes LansdownePublic School, LarchwoodPublic School, LevackPublic School and Chelmsford Public School, aswell as Chelmsford Valley District Composite School.

These schools were all affected by the recent accommodation review.

Ward missed the vote by six weeks, but says she understands how difficult that would have been.

"Part of being a trustee is having to look at the board as a whole and what's the best interest of all the students in a board. We all know that fiscal restraints are a part of life of any part of the community," Ward said.

She says she has always been passionate about public education.

Both her daughters attended public schools in Greater Sudbury when they were younger. Now it's her grandson. Ward says he will soon be entering the educationsystem.

"Firm believer in community schools"

"I've always been a firm believer in community schools. My girls both went to Confederation and Valleyview in Val Caron. The schools in my community," Ward said.

She says she was always involved in school or parentcouncils and tried to help out at the schools as much as she could.

"In fact, I had enclosed a letter from 1993 thanking me for my assistance in the school when my daughters were small," she said.

"I've always wanted to maintain that relationship with the schools and just assist, you know, be there and help when you can."

Ward will be sworn in at the board office sometime over the next week.

She will hold the position until the next school board election, which is scheduled for October 2018.

The voting process

According to a statement released by the RDSB, the applicant who received a clear majority of the votes "cast by all members present shall be declared elected."

The last-place name on the list would then be eliminated, and another ballot would be cast.

The successful applicantwould require five votes, the statement said.

• Hear more about the story on CBC's Morning North