Election 2025

Are you passionate about education? Do you want to make a real difference in your community?

Consider running in the School Board Trustee Election on October 20, 2025!

Trustees play a vital and rewarding role in shaping the future of Pembina Hills School Division ensuring our students have access to quality education and opportunities to thrive. The ideal school board includes people from all aspects of life, representative of the communities it serves.

School board trustees have significant responsibilities in the provincial education system, including:

• Planning for the division and setting long-term priorities.
• Evaluating the performance of the superintendent and the overall system.
• Communicating achievements and results to the public and advocating for funding and resources.
• Promoting public education as a cornerstone of a democratic society.

By fulfilling these responsibilities as part of school boards, trustees ensure Alberta’s education system remains inclusive, equitable and high performing.

Why Become a trustee?

School board trustees fulfil a key role in shaping the future of education. Becoming a trustee can be a deeply rewarding experience for individuals driven by a passion for education and a desire to serve and give back to their community.

• Impact on Students: Trustees directly influence the quality of education children receive. They contribute to decisions that shape curriculum, allocate resources and create a positive learning environment, ultimately impacting student success.
• Community Leadership: Trustees are vital community leaders. They represent the interests of students, families and taxpayers, fostering collaboration and ensuring the school system is responsive to community needs.
• Shaping the Future: Education is the foundation of a thriving society. By serving as a trustee, individuals contribute to shaping the future of their community by helping to develop well-rounded, educated citizens.

What does a trustee do?

Trustees are entrusted to govern their division by balancing the diverse needs of students, families and communities. One of the key responsibilities of trustees is to stay in touch with community stakeholders so that they understand and reflect in their decision-making, what all citizens value and want from their local public schools.

Working collaboratively with fellow trustees, they are responsible for:

• Setting Direction: Trustees establish the strategic vision and priorities for their division, ensuring that all students can succeed. This includes approving goals that reflect community input and comply with provincial guidelines.
• Developing Policy: By creating policies, trustees set the framework for how their division operates. These policies guide everything from fiscal oversight and student well-being to annual school calendars.
• Budget Approval and Oversight: Trustees approve the division’s annual budget, ensuring that resources are allocated effectively and responsibly.
• Superintendent Oversight: Working together as the board, they hire and evaluate the superintendent, who is responsible for implementing board decisions and managing day-to-day operations.
• Advocacy and Representation: Trustees advocate for public education at the municipal and provincial levels, representing the interests of their communities.
• Community Engagement: Trustees actively communicate with parents, students and other stakeholders, ensuring everyone’s voices are considered in board decisions.

The board is collectively responsible for governance and all trustees are bound by its decisions. Individual trustees hold no legal authority; decision-making power rests solely with the board. However, the role of a trustee carries leadership and accountability, both to their constituents and the broader community. In this capacity, trustees can serve as role models and set a positive example for others.

How do I become a candidate?

Candidate Information Package

Review the 2025 Candidate Information Package for general candidate information, details on the role of a school trustee, election resources and forms.

Forms

• Form 4: Nomination Paper and Candidate’s Acceptance (fillable PDF) – Candidates must file a nomination paper with a minimum of five (5) signatures of eligible electors who reside in the ward in which the candidate is running.
• Form 5: Candidate Financial Information (fillable PDF) – required if candidates raise or spend money on their campaign.
• Form 29: Notice of Intent (optional form – fillable PDF) – allows prospective candidates, who have not yet completed Form 4, to raise or spend money on their campaign, in accordance with the Local Authorities Election Act.
• Per PHSD Bylaw No 07-2024, all candidates must submit, with their nomination, a Criminal Record Check and Intervention Record Check, dated within six months before the date the nomination is submitted.  Please see the “Record Checks” information on our Careers page.

Prospective candidates must submit Form 4 and Criminal Record Check to be added to the election ballot.  

See the Alberta Municipal Election Forms webpage for all Municipal Election Forms. Note that to access forms on the Alberta Municipal Election Forms website, each document must be downloaded, and then opened from the Downloads folder (i.e., do not click through your browser window).

Nomination Process

Nominations must be filed during the designated nomination period which begins January 1, 2025 and ends on Nomination Day at 12:00 p.m. September 22, 2025 (four weeks before the election).

Candidates are strongly encouraged to review the 2025 Candidate Information Package, election guides and legislation information linked below prior to submitting their nomination.

Alberta School Board Election Guide
Alberta School Boards Association Guide for School Board Trustees
Local Authorities Election Act
Education Act

1. Complete the required nomination forms.
2. Obtain a Criminal Record Check (including Vulnerable Sector Check) and an Intervention Record Check (from Alberta Family and Child Services) dated within six months of the date the nomination is submitted.
3. Submit your nomination in person at the Pembina Hills School Division office, at 5310-49 Street, Barrhead, Alberta between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday until 12:00 p.m. on Nomination Day September 22, 2025.
4. All nominations will be acknowledged, pending formal acceptance and selected candidate information will be posted to this webpage.

2025 Candidate Information Package

Contact Information

For further information, please contact the Division’s Returning Officer, Secretary Treasurer Heather Nanninga at heather.nanninga@pembinahills.ca or 780-674-8504.