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SD20 Trustee By-Election Meet & Greet April 5

Jennifer Burton & Emily Duggan Community Meet & Greet

Emily Duggan, a candidate for the 2024 School District 20 trustee by-election hosted a meet & greet for all candidates on Friday April 5.

She invited all 3 of her opponents, none of them responded to her invitation. However, on the night of the event, one other candidate did show up ready and willing to participate. Jennifer Burton showed up, and this is what took place.

On Friday April 5, 2024 Emily Duggan & Jennifer Burton, two candidates in the school district 20 by-election introduced themselves and shared their platforms in person.

The other two candidates are Lindsay Kenny, a Mother and Trades Woman from Fruitvale and Birkley Valks a biological woman who lives as a man and insists on being referred to as a father.

Here is part 1 of the event held at the Castlegar & District Community Complex where Burton and Duggan stepped out and engaged with the voters in person.


Here is part 2, community engagement.

After the two women laid out their platforms they opened the floor up to questions from the crowd. It turned out that the crowd had less questions and more concerns. So, the two candidates listened and conversed with the crowd as parents and community members shared their concerns with the current public education system.

This is an engagement all school districts across the province could learn something from.

Shannon Boschy & Emily Duggan Promote Public Conversation

Emily Duggan & Shannon Boschy

We invite you to view the short clips, from the main interview. To see the entire interview, scroll to the bottom.

Emily Duggan K-1 Teacher & Drag Queen Drama in SD20

Duggan Clip – SOGI and Bullying 1

Duggan – Rider Good Candidate

Emily Duggan – The Misuse of Hate and Mathew Shepherd

Full Interview

“Each and everyone one of you, if you’re over 18, and an eligible voter, you need to get out and vote for your school board trustee, even if you’re not a parent and even if you are a parent and your kids are no longer in School.”
– Emily Duggan

Q&A With The Castlegar School Board Candidates

SD20 By-Election Candidates 2024

Four candidates are running in the School District 20 byelection to fill the vacancy for one Castlegar seat.

Voters in SD20 School Trustee Electoral Area 2 (Castlegar, Robson, Raspberry, Deer Park, Renata and Paulson Highway) will go to the polls on April 20.

We asked each of the candidates the following questions and gave them 100 words per question to complete their answers.

The answers appear as they were sent in, they have not been edited or corrected, with the exception that anwers over the 100-word limit were shortened.

Why did you decide to run?

Jennifer Burton: I was approached by a few people who knew I used to run some years ago. They informed me about the upcoming trustee election and expressed interest in nominating me. They also know that I have three children in the CASTLEGAR school district. I frequently communicate with the district staff to ensure my children receive quality education and updated IEPs. I have extensive experience navigating the school system and building connections. I am always willing to assist other parents regarding their children’s education and social issues. I am particularly helpful in conflict resolution and maintaining open and respectful communication.

Emily Duggan: I was approached by numerous community members and asked to run. I have been advocating for families in SD20 for the past two years already so accepting the nomination was an obvious next step for me.

Lindsay Kenney: I am a parent with children enrolled in school District twenty. I care about our children’s education and I want to be involved in creating the best possible education system for our children. I believe our schools should be safe and accessible for all students in the Province of BC.

Birkley Valks: Watching my kids, nieces, and every child in our community from Strong Start to high school made me realize how important it is to have a responsible, functional school system. Every kid deserves a fair, healthy, well rounded education.

Growing up, I watched my mom be an active PAC member. I loved that she made a difference, and I would like to do the same. I would like to protect the integrity of our school system from threats such as book bans and intimidation. I don’t want to see our school systems go the way of American school systems.

What skills or experience do you have that would make you a good trustee?

Burton: I have excellent communication and organizational skills from running a successful business with my partner. I’m comfortable with public speaking and handling financial operations. Being a parent to three neurodiverse children has helped me build strong relationships with teachers and district employees, based on honesty and respect. I’m committed to supporting our parent and student community to provide children with the tools they need to navigate the diverse and challenging world.

Support from parents and schools is essential for our children’s growth and development, and I aim to contribute to that support system.

Emily Duggan:I have great organizational skills, management skills, public speaking skills, and I am a dedicated farm wife and mother of two, which means I am excellent at multitasking! I have spent the last two years advocating and representing families in school district 20 giving me plenty of experience with the districts policies and allowing me to get to know the employees. All these attributes added together make me a great choice for trustee.

Kenney: I am a trades Woman and member of local 1003 IBEW Electrical Union. I have held an executive board position for my union and attended various training programs including, CLC Political Action Training Conference, CLC Young Workers in Action, and the IBEW Women in Trades Conference. From 2018-2022 I was elected as a municipal Councillor for the Village of Fruitvale. I Volunteer and Direct local nonprofit societies. I am President of Public Access Protection Society, Sponsorship director for the annual Beaver Valley May Days society and I volunteer for Selkirk Mountain Music society.

Valks: In addition to the competency that comes with being a small business owner, I have developed a wide variety of skills from the volunteer work I have done since my youth through today. I’ve been a hospital “candy striper”, Teacher’s Assistant, literacy tutor, and warming shelter helper. I volunteer on Pride committees, at the Capitol Theater, and with the local Harley Owners Group. What they all have in common is that good people skills and listening skills lead to good connections and good results. Being a dad and step-dad as part of a blended family also really helps!

What is the biggest problem you see in our district, and what would you do about it?

Burton: One common issue in our district is the breakdown in communication between teachers and parents. Schools are understaffed, and staff members feel overworked and underpaid. The district struggles to find qualified support staff, and budgeting needs to be assessed to allocate more funding for additional support. I aim to help parents navigate this process and engage with them and students to voice their concerns.

Duggan: Lack of open and honest communication with parents and guardians. I plan to solve this issue by leading by example for the other trustees by engaging with the public. Speaking with parents and guardians openly about their concerns, questions and ideas on their students educational experience. I will never turn my back or walk out on the public, I will always have the time and an open ear to hear what families need and want from the district to best support all students in the public education system. Transparency in public education is key.

Kenney: The biggest problem is ensuring we’re attracting and retaining enough staff to support special education enrollment. I will encourage the board to lobby the Ministry of Education to ensure there is enough funding and support available for our district to attract, hire, and retain workers.

Valks:An emerging problem since the pandemic, we have seen students’ mental health struggle more than ever, and kids with special needs needing more support. The district only receives a finite amount of money from the Province, not usually enough to meet these increasing needs.

Some things I can do is to encourage the public to engage in strategic planning to help make this a greater priority within the district, lobby the Provincial government to increase funding for more students who need more support, and take every opportunity to keep the focus on this issue in the District.

How would you determine budget priorities, keeping in mind that the majority of the district’s budget is tied up with salaries?

Burton: As a trustee, it is our responsibility to ensure that the budget is strategically planned and the allocated funds are aligned with the district’s goals. This will help in achieving the best outcomes for the students and staff. We need to ensure that our schools are sufficiently staffed and that the staff feels adequately compensated. By doing so, we can provide full support to the schools and maintain a well-staffed environment.

We can oversee the development of a strategic plan. So we make sure the allotment of funds is benefiting our students to the highest degree.

Duggan: I would encourage a complete review of the budget focusing on salaries. I feel our administration employees salaries exceed the reasonable amount that they should be earning. Especially when schools are either going without or having to make do. We need to reevaluate and put school needs first over admin salaries.

Kenney: We need to meet the district educational and operational needs. However, one of the biggest priorities include maintenance budgets. Allocating enough reserve to cover cost to replace ageing infrastructure is essential. Without regular maintenance and replacement of essential infrastructure we will not have a safe and reliable school to teach our children in.

Valks:The whole Board works in collaboration with the district staff, district stakeholders (teachers’ union, staff union, principals, DPAC) and public feedback, using the Strategic Plan as a guide. As a Trustee I would strive to work together with all of these interest groups to make sure spending is done responsibly and as equitably as possible for all of the groups. It is important for the public to know that Trustees do not have individual power to implement specific things. I urge everyone voting this month to read the Strategic Plan on the SD20 website.

How many school board meetings have you attended prior to the election announcement?

Burton: A few. I am able to get the minutes by email and keep up with the topics that are being discussed and ruled upon. Keeping me up to date when I am not able to attend in person.

Duggan: One. I attended a board meeting last school year where the trustees got up and walked out on parents while a member of the community was asking a question. Turning their backs on the public and disrespecting every person who took the time to attend. I have not returned to a meeting because I do not feel that kind of disrespect is acceptable from the very people paid to represent the community. I do however check the meeting minuets online and converse regularly with parents and guardians of the district.

Kenney: None. However, I review the agenda and meeting minutes regularly. I am up to date on the current preliminary budget and strategic plans for this Year. I am prepared to collaborate with the board to review this year’s budget and strategic plans. I support the strategic plan for a safe and caring working/learning environment.

Valks:I have attended all school board meetings since last Fall, and am working on reading all the meeting minutes from the meetings I missed in the past year.

~~

Shared from https://www.castlegarnews.com/local-news/qa-with-the-castlegar-school-board-candidates-7337181

2SLGBTQIA+ Voices Heard: Questionnaire for SD20 By-Election Candidates

By-election Candidate Survey - 1

Students and parents of 2SLGBTQIA+ students in School District 20 (SD20) have a voice in the upcoming by-election! An important step towards ensuring that voice is heard is a questionnaire developed specifically for the candidates. We’re sharing the results of the questionnaire on this page.

By-election Candidate Survey - 1

The by-election, taking place Saturday, April 20, 2024, will fill the trustee position for Electoral Area 2 (City of Castlegar & part of Electoral Area J of RDCK). The questionnaire itself is the result of direct community input, focusing on issues that matter most to voters concerned with creating a safe and inclusive space for 2SLGBTQIA+ students.

This questionnaire was sent to the four candidates in this by-election. We received responses from three candidates by the deadline of March 30th.

Ensuring a safe and inclusive space for 2SLGBTQIA+ students in schools is paramount, and strong representation of their voices is key to achieving this. This questionnaire is a crucial step in that direction. It’s important to emphasize that the initiative to provide representation for 2SLGBTQIA+ students is not about excluding parents from the conversation; it’s about creating a space where all voices are heard and valued. In fact, fostering a supportive environment for 2SLGBTQIA+ students goes hand-in-hand with creating a positive learning environment for all. By prioritizing open dialogue and collaboration between parents, educators, and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, we can build a school system where every student feels empowered to reach their full potential. This questionnaire is a powerful tool to ensure that the voices of those most directly impacted – 2SLGBTQIA+ students and their families – are informing the decisions that shape their educational experience.


View Emily Duggan’s Response Here

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April 1, 2024: The content on this page has been shared from https://advocacy-canada.lgbt/2024/03/31/2slgbtqia-voices-heard-questionnaire-for-sd20-by-election-candidates/

SD20 By-Election Meet & Greet Your Candidates

SD20 Candidate Meet & Greet

Come meet your candidates! Friday April 5, 2024 @ 5:30pm

SD20 Candidate Meet & Greet

In the name of inclusion, Emily has invited all candidates to a community meet & greet at the Castlegar & District Community Complex in the Selkirk Room.

  • Jennifer Burton
  • Emily Duggan
  • Lindsay Kenny
  • Birkley Valks

  • Hear their platforms
  • Ask them questions
  • Enjoy community engagement
  • Enjoy in person connection

Castlegar & District Community Complex
2101 6 Ave., Castlegar, BC


Authorized by Emily Duggan,
250-938-8190

Meet Emily Duggan #SD20, Trustee Candidate, 2024 By-Election

Emily Duggan Anything Can Be Accomplished

On Tuesday March 19, 2024 Emily Duggan attempted to facilitate a debate for all candidates of the school district 20 by-election.

Unfortunately Jennifer Burton, Lindsay Kenny and Birkley Valks declined the invite. Leaving Emily to attend on her own. Emily answered questions from the community for just over an hour.

Grab a seat and get to know a little bit about where Emily Duggan stands on big issues that are affecting our public education system.

Drag King Storytimer vs Parental Rights Advocate in Battle For Vacant BC School Trustee Seat

A battle of the activists is unfolding in Castlegar, BC as parental rights activist Emily Duggan takes on Birkley Valks, a drag king storytimer who may have a criminal past in the SD20 school trustee byelection.

Castlegar, British Columbia has become a controversial battleground as two out of four candidates running in the Kootenay-Columbia School District 20 trustee byelection have a history of opposing views in matters like gender ideology being taught to kids through public institutions.

Birkley Valks (aka Ryder Goode) is a Drag King storytimer with a previous charge. “They” are running in SD20’s school trustee byelection to serve children in Castlegar BC.

More to come on this story at https://t.co/Jcnpt9jkfP pic.twitter.com/ecqZGFDHXM— Drea Humphrey – Prepping and Politics (@DreaHumphrey) March 19, 2024

Birkley Valks, a.k.a. “Ryder Goode”, a drag king storytime performer who can be seen online exposing a fake penis while wearing a “Jesus loves porn” t-shirt and Emily Duggan, the founder of Moms Against the Norm, a group that advocates against western Canada’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI 123) program, are battling for the position of school board trustee.

In an exclusive interview with Rebel News, Duggan explains her journey from advocating for parental inclusion in shaping educational policies to being nominated to run in the school trustee race.

Birkley on the other hand declined to join running mate Duggan in the interview, perhaps because I posed questions to the drag king about whether or not they would be willing to provide more information about what they were arrested and apparently charged for in 2007 according to BC court documents below.

It appears BC’s @SD20kc Drag King Story timer school trustee candidate may have a criminal record

I doubt the libraries that hire Birkley Valks who goes by “Ryder Goode” looked into it but I reached out to Birkley to do so.

I was blocked
More to come at https://t.co/Gi9Wj4L06E pic.twitter.com/VAUaGw6A3J— Drea Humphrey – Prepping and Politics (@DreaHumphrey) March 19, 2024

Click on the full video report to hear more from candidate Emily Duggan, who unlike Birkley, has nothing to hide and has even invited Birkley and Castlegar constituents to a friendly trustee debate and meet and greet happening tonight, TUESDAY, MARCH 19 at the Castlegar & District Community Complex.

Shared from https://www.rebelnews.com/drag_king_storytimer_vs_parental_rights_advocate_in_battle_for_vacant_bc_school_trustee_seat

Racism & Exclusion Exposed at BC Elementary School Pizza Party

Emily Duggan Interviews with Odessa March 15 2024

Odessa Orlewicz:

As promised here is my interview with one of the moms who exposed the racism & exclusion of certain blood lines during an elementary children’s pizza party at a BC school. She is part ind!gen0us/part non- indigenous. A brother was allowed the pizza but his half sister was not.

Odessa Orlewicz:

No Pizza For Kids That Are The Wrong Race & Zuckerberg Admits To The Nueral Interface

“No Pizza For You If You Are The Wrong Race & Zuckerberg Admits To The Neural Interface”

You don’t want to miss this one. An exclusive pizza party for the indigenous at an elementary school in BC gave one small child a piece of pizza, but his young sister from the same family who attended was told she can’t have one because she didn’t have the right bloodline. The parents of this school want media on this to help expose the jaw dropping racism at school that even our smallest children are enduring.

And- Google’s “Gemini” A.I was programmed to erase caucasian people from history & searches which resulted in producing images of non caucasian not-seeez, and black p0pes. I show a video of Mark Zuckerberg admitting what we have all been warning about and much more…

All links for this episode are in the description over at Rumble or Librti. Zuck doesn’t like them.

Information shared from https://www.facebook.com/odessa.orlewicz


‘Proud Indigenous woman’ furious about ‘segregation’ of students at BC elementary school

A “proud Canadian Indigenous woman” has spoken out about what she considers “segregation” and “bullying” at a British Columbia elementary school.

Emily Duggan, 37, said she is appalled that Indigenous students were taken to another room in the school and given pizza while they completed the annual Equity Scan survey.

She said her daughter, who is eight and attends the school, came home after the Feb. 21 event and asked her: “Was I not invited because I’m not brown like Grandpa?”

Duggan said she chose not to register her daughter as Indigenous at the school – Brent Kennedy Elementary in Crescent Valley – “because we’re so mixed it seemed to make no sense.”

But the event, she said, has created “turmoil, jealousy and resentment” in the Kootenays community, with children’s friendship groups affected by the apparent “special” treatment given to Indigenous students.

Photo credit: Emily Duggan
Emily Duggan.

One child even said they “don’t like the Indigenous anymore because they got pizza,” Duggan, who is part-Cree and part-Oglala, said. Similar claims have been made on social media in response to the incident.

Duggan also said two siblings – an Indigenous boy and a non-Indigenous girl – were both in the room for the survey, but only the boy was given pizza.

The superintendent of School District 8, which oversees Brent Kennedy, told NowMedia the event was concerned with the Kootenay Lake Aboriginal Education Equity Scan.

“While students completed their individual surveys on the topic of Indigenous experiences at school, they ate pizza provided by their Aboriginal Education teacher,” Trish Smillie said.

The pizza was selected by the Indigenous students at the school, Smillie added, and handed out “to encourage community and fun” among the children while they filled out the survey.

“The pizza was paid for through funding provided by the Ministry of Education and Child Care earmarked for the Aboriginal Education program,” Smillie explained.

Photo credit: RCMP
Brent Kennedy Elementary.

“Brent Kennedy Elementary holds many events and celebrations for students and their families throughout the year. Those events sometimes include pizza or other food.”

But Duggan – who is a trustee candidate in a by-election in neighbouring School District 20, and who has previously been at the centre of controversy because of her strong opposition to sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) in BC schools – said she was not satisfied by the superintendent’s explanation.

After she learned about what had happened, she attempted to arrange what she called an “Inclusive Pizza Party” at the school.

She first spoke with Brent Kennedy’s principal, Jenn Kooznetsoff, who, according to emails seen by NowMedia, agreed the party could go ahead.

Duggan said she then told a nearby Domino’s Pizza branch about her plans and worked out how much it would cost to provide every student at the school two slices of pizza. The price was about $900, she said, and she was willing to pay for it herself.

When she told other parents, she said, some volunteered to help, and even chip in to pay for the food.

But Kooznetsoff later emailed her to cancel the party, adding that she had approved it “prematurely.”

The principal said that, “after further consideration, reflection and discussions,” she had determined that the party could “create division and convey an endorsement of the viewpoint that the Indigenous equity scan day, coupled with a pizza celebration, lacked inclusiveness.”

Photo credit: SD8
Trish Smillie.

She added: “It is essential to clarify that we do not share this perspective.”

Duggan, however, said that was a “weak excuse” and ignores the central concern – that children were separated according to their ethnic identity.

She claims Kooznetsoff has stopped responding to her attempts at further communication.

“It’s 2024,” she said. “We know better now.

“When are we going to stop trying to get even with dead people? I say that as a proud Canadian Indigenous woman.”

She added: “Members of my family are horrified. It’s not what our ancestors would have wanted.”

Shared from https://www.kelownanow.com/watercooler/news/news/Provincial/Proud_Indigenous_woman_furious_about_segregation_of_students_at_BC_elementary_school