​For the first time ever, the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board is pleased to welcome two incoming Student Trustees for the 2020/2021 school year.

Please join ALCDSB in welcoming Ella Hsu of Regiopolis-Notre Dame Catholic High School (Kingston) and Mikaela Dewey of St. Theresa Catholic Secondary School (Belleville).

This is the first year that ALCDSB has had two Student Trustees to represent the student population at the Board level. In 2019, the Ministry of Education made revisions, mandating that the minimum number of student trustees on Ontario school boards be two. 

Both Ella and Mikaela will be sworn in at the Board Meeting on October 27, 2020.

“The Board of Trustees looks forward to welcoming Ella and Mikaela in October," said Terry Shea, Chair of the Board. “The voice of students provides valuable insight to important conversations at the Board and Committee meetings."

The Student Trustee makes a significant contribution to the school board, representing all elementary and secondary students in the system. The Student Trustees attend monthly Committee and Board Meetings and other commitments throughout the school year. The Student Trustee will also be part of the Ontario Student Trustees' Association, which is the voice of students across Ontario.

At Regiopolis-Notre Dame Catholic High School, Ella Hsu is a Grade 12 student and strives to familiarize herself with students from various backgrounds and interests. She does this by actively participating in many sports and clubs, such as robotics, band and the eco-team.

“As a student trustee, I will regularly communicate with the Student Senate, informing the Board of issues important to and affecting students of the Board," Hsu said in her application letter for the position of student trustee. “I will strive not to communicate my own ideas, but to gather and condense the ideas and wishes of the Board's students and communicate them to the Board of Trustees."

At St. Theresa Catholic Secondary School, Mikaela Dewey is a Grade 12 student who is passionate about her faith, while remaining committed to academics, sports, clubs, student council, volunteer work at a local retirement residence and her part time job at the School Uniform Shop.

“[The position of] student trustee is a way for me to support all students who are finding their voice and to ensure that all individuals are represented equally," Dewey said in her application letter for the position of student trustee.