OK, Let’s Vote — Val Johnson

School trustee questionnaire — trustee-v1-2026-09-21

SD23 — City of Kelowna

Submitted: October 4, 2026 at 6:12 p.m. Pacific, as shown in the native America/Vancouver record. Reviewed: October 5, 2026.

These answers are published with the candidate’s explicit authorization. They are attributed candidate statements, not independently audited outcomes or recorded votes. Original wording is retained with whitespace normalized. The electoral area above follows the current official district roster. Private contact and technical identifiers are excluded.

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

I was elected in 2022 to the Board of Education. In that time, the learning has been incredible and I feel inspired and excited to return to the Board to support new trustees with their learning. If I'm re-elected, there will be two returning trustees and five new trustees. I think my perspective as current Board Chair will support folks as they start to fully understand the role of a Trustee. The difference between Governance and Operations is important and I'm passionate about the responsibilities that trustees undertake. During my first term I supported a Strategic Plan Refresh informed by many public consultations. I participated in the hiring of a new Superintendent, and I supported our commitment to Truth and Reconciliation through the Equity in Action Agreement for Truth and Reconciliation 2025-2030.

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

My three main priorities align with the district's Strategic Plan 2026-2031 because I believe trustees are responsible for advancing the goals established through community engagement and Board Governance. 1. Supporting Student Success by ensuring students have strong foundational skills, meaningful and inclusive learning opportunities and a sense of belonging. Reviewing measurable progress in student engagement, well-being, and learning outcomes. 2. Strengthening partnerships with families, Indigenous communities, and community organizations. In the first year, I would want to see increased opportunities for engagement and community feedback. This could look like trying to increase attendance at committee and board meetings held in public. 3. Ensuring transparent decision-making, strong governance and responsible management of district resources. Ultimately, I want voters to see a Board that remains focused on its strategic plan, listens to its community, and makes decisions that help every student learn, belong, and thrive.

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?

As a trustee, I assess whether students are learning and thriving by looking at a variety of measures rather than relying on a single data point. This includes reviewing the Annual Enhancing Student Learning Report, School Community Student Learning Plans, graduation and achievement data, and annual Equity in Action reports. It also includes hearing directly from students through District Student Council, receiving updates through Board and District Committees, connecting with Partner Groups such as Central Okanagan Teachers Association, CUPE, and the Central Okanagan Parents Advisory Council, and listening to families and community members. Together, these quantitative and qualitative measures provide a more complete picture of student success and wellbeing. If outcomes are falling short, the Board's role is to ask thoughtful questions, seek evidence, monitor progress, and ensure the Superintendent has a clear plan to address concerns. Trustees are responsible for setting strategic direction, allocating resources, monitoring results, and holding the district accountable for continuous improvement, while respecting the distinction between governance and operations.

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.

When needs exceed resources, trustees have a responsibility to make difficult decisions using evidence, community input, and an understanding of the full financial picture. Before deciding what to protect, change, or defer, I would want to understand the nature of the need, whether it falls within the operating, capital, or special purpose budget, any legal or contractual obligations, the impact on students, and whether there are any alternative ways to achieve the same outcome. Rather than identifying any specifics on what to cut, I believe responsible governance requires reviewing all available information before making decisions. As trustees, our role is to weigh trade-offs carefully, ask thoughtful questions, and ensure limited resources are aligned with the Board's strategic priorities and the needs of students.

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?

Students with disabilities and diverse learning needs are not a single group, so I would be cautious about proposing a one-size-fits-all solution. As a trustee, my role is to ensure the District's policies, strategic priorities, and resources support inclusive learning environments and provide equitable opportunities for all students. I would want to know where barriers exist and ensure that existing resources are directed toward the areas of greatest need. Progress should be measured through a combination of various sources of information including student outcomes, engagement, attendance, graduation rates, and feedback from students and families. Effective governance means monitoring those outcomes, asking questions when gaps exist, and ensuring the District has a clear plan to improve results.

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

As a trustee, my role is to ensure the Board has clear policies and oversight that support safe, caring, and inclusive schools, while respecting that implementation is the responsibility of the Superintendent and district staff. Through our recent policy review, we've worked to better distinguish between governance and operations, and I believe there is more work ahead. I would prioritize ongoing review of policies related to student wellbeing, inclusion, human rights, and safe schools, while ensuring the Board receives meaningful reports on outcomes. Progress should be measured through student belonging and wellbeing data, attendance, safety indicators, feedback from students and families, and the Annual Enhancing Student Learning Report.

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

Over the past four years, I have seen the value of working in partnership with local First Nations, Indigenous families, and the Indigenous Education Council. As a trustee, my role is not to develop programs or direct operations, but to ensure the Board's decisions, policies, and strategic priorities support Indigenous student success and advance Truth and Reconciliation. The recently adopted Equity in Action Agreement for Truth and Reconciliation 2025-2030 provides a clear roadmap for that work. I would continue supporting its implementation, monitoring outcomes, listening to Indigenous voices, and ensuring accountability for the commitments we have made as a Board.

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

Students, parents/caregivers, staff, and community members should have multiple ways to influence Board decisions, not just by attending meetings. As a trustee, I believe meaningful engagement includes listening through established partner groups such as the District Student Council, Central Okanagan Parents Advisory Council, Indigenous Education Council, employee groups, public correspondence, and presentations to the Board. It is equally important to reach people who may not typically participate in Board meetings. Over the past four years, the District has used tools such as ThoughtExchange to gather feedback on issues including budget priorities and school naming, allowing a broader range of voices to be heard. I support continuing to use surveys, online engagement tools, community meetings, and other opportunities that make participation accessible to families, students, and staff. No single group should have the loudest voice simply because they are able to attend a meeting. Good governance requires creating multiple pathways for engagement so that students, families, staff, and community members can contribute to decisions that affect them.

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?

School space, maintenance, transportation, and other capital pressures are among the most significant challenges facing growing districts such as Central Okanagan Public Schools. As a trustee, my role is to ensure the Board plans responsibly for current and future needs, advocates effectively on behalf of students and families, and makes the best possible use of the resources available to us. There are important decisions that can be made locally. The Board is responsible for long-range planning, approving capital priorities, setting transportation policies and fees, approving annual budgets, monitoring deferred maintenance needs, and advocating for the allocation of local resources in alignment with our strategic priorities. However, many of the largest challenges require provincial support. Funding for new schools, school additions, major capital projects, and many infrastructure upgrades comes from the Province. Trustees play an important role in advocating for those investments and ensuring government understands the growth pressures and facility needs facing our communities.

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

he oversight of the Superintendent and monitoring of the Strategic Plan are responsibilities of the Board as a whole, not individual trustees. The Board sets the strategic direction for the District, establishes expectations, monitors progress, and evaluates results, while the Superintendent is responsible for the day-to-day administration and operation of the school district. In Central Okanagan Public Schools, the Board's relationship with the Superintendent is guided through established policies, including Policy 2010 - Superintendent of Schools/CEO Role Description and Policy 2020 - Superintendent of Schools/CEO Evaluation. These policies clearly define the Superintendent's responsibilities and the Board's role in monitoring performance and evaluating progress. To monitor the Strategic Plan, I would continue to rely on evidence and reporting provided to the Board, including the Annual Enhancing Student Learning Report, strategic plan updates, district reports, Board committee work, and presentations aligned to strategic priorities. The Board's role is to ask questions, review evidence, monitor outcomes, and hold the organization accountable for results without directing staff or becoming involved in operational decisions.

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

Transparency and accountability are essential to public trust. As a trustee, I believe I have a responsibility to explain my decisions, listen to different perspectives, and engage respectfully with students, families, staff, and community members. At the same time, trustees are expected to follow the Board's Trustee Code of Ethics, which includes acting with integrity, respecting differing viewpoints, supporting Board decisions once they have been made, and maintaining confidentiality when required. Confidential information often involves employees, students, legal matters, or negotiations, and protecting that information is an important part of the trustee role. When I disagree with colleagues, I believe those discussions should happen respectfully and professionally. Healthy debate is an important part of good governance. Once a decision is made by the Board, my responsibility is to respect the collective decision while remaining transparent about the values and information that informed my position. Accountability means being willing to explain decisions, answer questions, and continue listening to the community we serve.

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

Voters should know that I am employed by the YMCA of Southern Interior BC and have spent my career supporting children and families through early learning and child care. If a matter comes before the Board that could create an actual or perceived conflict of interest, I believe it is important to be transparent, declare the conflict, and remove myself from the discussion and decision-making process when appropriate. I have done so as a trustee in the past and would continue to uphold those standards to maintain public trust and confidence in Board decisions.

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.

I think I would simply add that my first term reinforced the importance of thoughtful governance. I believe trustees serve students best when they listen, learn, ask good questions, make evidence-informed decisions, and work collaboratively in the public interest. That is the approach I would continue to bring to a second term.