The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Public school trustee candidates eyeing seats in Oakville continued from p.14 the Halton communities will be a challenge, but is one that I'm up for," said Hope. Jones is seeking to become Ward 3 trustee because "I am tired of talking about what is wrong with our schools and I want to take action and fix the things I think need to be changed," he said, noting the biggest problem facing Oakville is getting youths involved in the community. "Oakville needs a representative who is aware of cyber-bullying and the ever-changing social media landscape; how to connect, interact and understand the fast-paced and quickly changing youth demographic," said Jones. Ward 4 Incumbent Kathryn Bateman Olmstead is facing competition from Mobeen Ali, Joanna Oliver and Rajan Sandhu. Having served as Ward 4 trustee for eight years, Bateman Olmstead said the biggest issue is maintaining "robust educational programs" for students without compromising school communities or overcrowding existing schools. "I have served and been involved with children and youth all of my life. I want to be part of the education evolution. I have an incredible passion to do what is right for families and to represent the diverse opinions," said Bateman Olmstead, formerly of Glen Abbey. If elected, Ali would focus on student and teacher safety through enhanced planning, excellence and quality in education through application of new techniques and innovation, and decreasing class sizes while working to increase the number of specialized programs in HDSB schools, among other initiatives. "I am motivated to serve my community and improve the schools and education for all our children and their wonderful teachers," said Ali. Oliver said the school boundary and program accommodation "puzzle" needs to be solved, with a return to focusing on the quality and content of the children's education. "Our ward has gone through two stressful school boundary reviews in the last five years that continue to divide the community and we still have no sustainable and equitable solution," said Oliver. "I will raise a strong parent voice and bring a knowledge-based community perspective to the role of trustee for Ward 4." Sandhu said he feels there is a communication and accessibility issue between the board and parents, teachers and students. He said constituents have expressed frustration over the board not listening and advocating for certain issues. "I believe it is the duty of a trustee to ensure that open lines of communication exist. I have started to remedy this communication issue by taking a grassroots approach and going door-todoor to speak directly with residents." Wards 5/6 Incumbent Kelly Amos is uncontested in Wards 5/6. Amos has been a trustee for more than 10 years and currently chairs the HDSB. The Wards 5/6 trustee said the biggest challenge facing Oakville, especially her wards, is continued growth and the need for more schools to support the new students in the area. "The HDSB long-term accommodation plan has potentially up to six new schools in northeast Oakville and the challenge will be to convince the province of the need to fund the building of these schools," said Amos. She noted the first school for the area has been funded and may open in time for the 2015/16 school year. 15 | Thursday, October 23, 2014 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Fall into Fashion & save up to off our regular prices on selected merchandise! FALL CASUAL COORDINATES Select stores. Individually priced. 33% off our reg. price LEATHER LOOK GROUP Assorted quality faux leather look. Individually priced. 40% off our reg. price BONDED PLAID FLEECE 150cm wide. Our Reg. $20 m 50% off our reg. price MASSIVE Selection of FLEECE SOLIDS & PRINTS McCall's 150cm wide, 100% polyester. Various qualities. Our Reg. $12-$20 m Now $4-$9 m 6884 McCall's 7000 50% Costume Fabrics from $3 m Sale in effect October 6-31, 2014, on selected in-stock merchandise. Look for the red sale tags. MISSISSAUGA: 3015 WINSTON CHURCHILL BLVD. (N.W. side @ Dundas) 905-828-9966 BURLINGTON: 3515 FAIRVIEW ST. 905-639-2516 Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! www.fabricland.ca flyers. coupons. deals. savings tips. R0012942537 Get coupon at www.save.ca/oxicleandish *Coupons subject to availability.