A life-long resident of Swift Current has stepped up to run for one of the positions as a trustee for the Chinook School Board.
Ron Caswell is hoping to bring an open and diverse perspective while focusing on the individual needs of students and giving a voice to the parents and guardians of students.
Caswell noted that his three children went through the Chinook School Division and he currently has eight grandchildren currently going through Chinook schools.
"I think its fairly obvious that our education system is not running at full potential," he shared. "I think that there's definitely a need for a new view, some new opinions, and some new ideas that will hopefully divide run a little better."
The former power engineer worked at the Swift Current Research and Development Centre for over thirty years. Thirteen of those years as a power engineer before heading back to college and returning to the research station for another seventeen years working in IT support.
Caswell's array of experience also includes working for the provincial government at Cypress Health, working with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, and most recently, with e-health Saskatchewan.
"Classroom complexity is a huge issue right now, you have upwards of thirty students in a classroom," the trustee candidate said. "[For example,] you may have six that are not using English as a first language, you might have four with behavioural issues, and you've got the natural differences between people.
He explained that the trustees will look at the provided budget and use it for the most urgent areas such as hiring additional educational assistants and maintaining school buildings.
"The biggest issue, I feel, is communication between the school board and the Department of Education regarding how much funding is actually needed," added Caswell, highlighting the need for open communication and cooperation.