Image: Supplied / Chilliwack school board trustee Heather Maahs has submitted two motions ahead of this week's school board meeting that call for detailed reports on academic, reading and math skills of Chilliwack elementary and middle school students. However, SD33 has apparently denied a motion from Maahs that seeks a comprehensive report on the amount of vandalism in school district washrooms since the implementation of gender-neutral washrooms.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Chilliwack school board

Trustee calls for report on academic performance of Chilliwack students; SD33 excludes motion for vandalism stats

Feb 12, 2024 | 9:48 AM

CHILLIWACK — Chilliwack school trustee Heather Maahs has submitted two motions ahead of this week’s school board meeting that call for detailed reports on academic, reading and math skills of Chilliwack elementary and middle school students.

However, SD33 has apparently excluded a motion from Maahs that seeks a comprehensive report on the amount of vandalism in school district washrooms since the implementation of gender-neutral washrooms.

According to the text of two motions that appear on page 15 of the 39-page board package for Tuesday’s school board meeting, Maahs is asking Superintendent Rohan Arul-pragasam to provide two information reports to the board that provide greater clarity and context around student performance metrics.

The first motion seeks a detailed report on academic, reading and math skills of middle school students since the grade reconfiguration was implemented in Chilliwack School District.

“This should include cohorts from before and after the grade reconfiguration was implemented,” Maahs wrote in her motion. “The Chance Alternate middle school’s student population should be included in this data (as the school was closed at the same time grade reconfiguration took place). Please provide a timeline for when the Board will receive this report.”

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The second motion from Maahs asks Arul-pragasam to provide a detailed report on the academic, reading and math acquisition skills in elementary school students since the closure of what she calls the “pull-out programs at Bernard Elementary and McCammon Elementary.”

“This report will be for all elementary students and should include all cohorts. Please provide a timeline for when the Board will receive this report,” Maahs stated in her second motion.

Maahs says her statements of rationale were removed from the board package, meaning that just the text of her motions appears in the board package and not the reasoning behind the request, so she provided it to Fraser Valley Today for context.

“Several fundamental changes to the delivery of educational services to students have taken place over the years that provide us with a differentiated approach to the acquisition of fundamental reading and math skills for different age groups in our district,” Maahs stated. “It is important for the Board to understand how the changes have affected reading and math skills in our students.”

Maahs says the Chilliwack school board contemplates budget priorities and spending allocations, and believes it is essential that the board be updated on the impact that these decisions and priorities are having on student progress.

“It would be of great benefit to the Board if these reports could be provided before we contemplate budget allocations,” Maahs stated.

A third motion from Maahs asking Arul-pragasam to provide a fulsome report to the board on the cost of vandalism in school washrooms since the implementation of gender neutral washrooms was not included in her trustee motion report. In other words, it does not appear in the board meeting package.

“Please provide any other information on the physical and emotion impact this has had on students and any concerns from parents or caregivers,” Maahs wrote in her motion that was entirely excluded from the board meeting package. “Please provide this report before the end of this school year and provide the Board with this date/time notification.”

Her rationale for this request for vandalism information materialized after hearing from several Chilliwack parents about damage to both middle school and secondary school facilities.

“During a budget committee meeting last year, a report was given concerning the high rate of vandalism taking place in our school washrooms,” Maahs said. “We have heard from numerous parents regarding the instances of vandalism in both middle and high schools. It is my understanding that one school is having to lock washrooms. In order for the Board to be fiscally responsible, the Board needs to understand the costs incurred. Anecdotally, we have been told that there has been toll on students emotionally and physically and some students will not use the school washrooms anymore. An update on how our Superintendent and school principals are addressing this would be very helpful to the Board.”