Two familiar faces have been elected to lead the York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB) through budgetary and other challenges over the next year.
Elizabeth Crowe, the trustee for Aurora, King and Whitchurch-Stouffville, is the newly-elected chair.
Maria Marchese, trustee for Vaughan Area 3: Ward 3 (Woodbridge), was elected vice-chair.
“In the next year, we will face budgetary pressures due to the ongoing pandemic, the uncertainty of a provincial election and challenges in the public domain that will question the very existence of Catholic schools,” says Crowe.
Crowe was unanimously elected to the position at YCDSB’s inaugural board meeting on December 1.
“I have no doubt that as a board we will continue to prove that we put the students entrusted into our care foremost in our decision making so our schools continue to be safe, creative, faith-filled learning environments,” she says. Crowe served as chair December 1998 to November 2015 and from December 2017 to November 2018. She has also held the position of vice-chair during her 27 years as a York Catholic trustee.
Marchese, a trustee with YCDSB since 2014, served as chair from November 2019 to December 2020 and vice-chair from November 2018 to December 2019.
“I am ready to work with our new chair and the Board of Trustees to meet the many challenges brought on by the pandemic to ensure that our students continue to reach their fullest potential,” she says.
The YCDSB is made up of 10 elected trustees and two non-voting student trustees. As elected officials, trustees are responsible for developing and approving policies, maintaining standards of excellence, representing their community’s perspective and acting as stewards of Catholic education. The new chair and vice-chair will serve a one-year term.
Photo (l-r): Chair Elizabeth Crowe, Director of Education Domenic Scuglia and Vice Chair Maria Marchese. Photo courtesy of the York Catholic District School Board.
