Beaver Staff
Napanee’s Laurie French is taking her interest in the governance of education to the national level.
At the Canadian School Boards Association (CSBA) congress in Halifax, French was acclaimed as the organization’s new president.
A five-term trustee with the Limestone District School Board, French has been active beyond the board level before, having served as the president of the Ontario Public School Boards Association (OPSBA) from June 2016 to June 2018.
“I’m proud to serve and represent more than 300 Canadian school boards in national discussions related to advocacy and support for public education,” French said in a news release. “As trustees, we have a unique role in serving as a voice of our communities and the only democratically elected officials fully responsible for the present and future success of our most important resource — our children.”
French serves as a director for OPSBA for 10 years before becoming president. As a trustee, she’s also experienced in executive director recruitment and performance appraisals, chairing accommodations reviews, and working with charitable organizations — in education, through the Limestone Learning Foundation, and in the community, through the Community Foundation for Lennox and Addington.
The registered nurse has already filed her paperwork for a run to represent Greater Napanee on the Limestone board for four more years.