OK, Let's Vote — Linda Van Alphen
School trustee questionnaire — trustee-v1-2026-09-21
SD67 — Area 2 (Summerland)
Submitted September 22, 2026, 09:45 Pacific; reviewed September 24, 2026.

Published with the candidate's explicit authorization. Answers below are the candidate's own statements, not independently verified outcomes or recorded votes. Original wording retained except normalized whitespace and the marked privacy redaction. Private contact and technical identifiers excluded.

1. What experience and perspective would you bring to the school board?

I have been a School Board Trustee for over 24 years and believe that I have an in depth knowledge of our education system here in the SD67 Okanagan Skaha district.

2. What are your three main priorities for the district, and what progress would you want voters to see in your first year?

In our area, we have gone through several unusual events over this past trustee term. (1) we were just coming out of Covid restrictions when this past term commenced (2) The Board agreed to reconfigure our entire education system and return to a K-6 (7) - 7 (8) to 12 system due to low enrollment. This year is the first full year of total reconfiguration. (3) our area suffered a unprecedented wild fire with many losing their homes entirely or for days, weeks & months at a time. I believe that we need to provide additional supports to families and to our staff to create stable and safe places. All of our service agencies and the schools are working towards that goal.

3. How would you assess whether students are learning and thriving, and what would you do at the board level if outcomes are falling short?

Our students are being assessed in real time and by grade level and reported on to the Board and to the Ministry of Education & Child Care. Those assessments are reported to the Board by the Superintendent at regular intervals. At the same time, if there is a short fall remedies are presented and discussed.

4. When needs exceed the available budget, how would you decide what to protect, change or defer? Please explain a trade-off you would be prepared to consider.

Unfortunately, the needs always exceed the available budget. Our Board votes to protect what is working well for most number of students. A trade-off that we have considered in the past was to do away with the "Gifted Program" for a very small number of students and replace it with more targeted classroom teaching.

5. What would you prioritize to improve access to learning and support for students with disabilities or diverse learning needs, and how would you measure progress?

Prioritizing access to learning and support for students with disabilities or diverse learning needs is done primarily in the classroom in coordination with the student's E.A. The district does track the achievements of all of students and specifies this particular group.

6. What board policies or oversight would you prioritize for student safety, belonging and well-being, including responses to bullying and discrimination?

In our district we have a Director of Inclusive Education and have specific policies that prioritize student safety, belonging and well-being, including bullying and discrimination. (eg AP173 -SOGI)

7. How would you work with local First Nations and Indigenous families on Indigenous student success and the district's education responsibilities?

SD67 Okanagan does have a vibrant and engage Indigenous Education Council. I had been appointed to the Council for many terms but the trustee is no longer a voting member but an observer at the table. The success of our Indigenous students has improved a great deal since its inception in early 2000.

8. How would students, parents/caregivers and staff meaningfully influence board decisions, including people who do not usually attend meetings?

All students, parents/caregivers and staff can influence our decisions by writing a letter to the Board of Education. Generally, the Board would have a conversation regarding the letter in public except if its contents were confidential in nature.

9. How would you approach school space, maintenance, transportation or other capital and service pressures in your district? Which choices can the board make, and which need provincial support?

The Board of Education can influence choices which need Capital funding from the Ministry of Education and Child Care. An example would be when we applied for the prefab builds for Child Care facilities.

10. How would you oversee the superintendent and monitor the strategic plan while respecting the boundary between governance and day-to-day school operations?

Our oversite of the Superintendent and their leadership has been specifically within the current term. The Board of Trustees is well aware of the boundary between governance and day-to-day operations.

11. How would you keep decisions transparent and remain accountable to the public, including when you disagree with colleagues or must protect confidential information?

I have been a trustee for a very long time so all of this is second nature to me. If I disagree with colleagues I will state it in a meeting and then drop it. If I am speaking to the subject in the public and it is from the Open Meeting I would state that I had disagreed but the majority of the Board voted the other way. If it is from a closed meeting, I would state that it was from a closed meeting.

12. What interests or affiliations should voters know about, and how would you identify and manage potential conflicts of interest?

Since becoming a Trustee I have dropped all interests or affiliations that voters should know about.

Additional material: Is there anything else voters should know, or a public source supporting your answers? If you already completed the general questionnaire, you may identify an existing answer you want retained instead of repeating it.

It is interesting to me that after many years as an elected Trustee for SD67 Okanagan Skaha that I am still passionate about the public education system. I have had three sons graduate from our area and now have six grandchildren at the schools I represent (and one more coming). I have a vested interested in supporting this amazing public education system in British Columbia.