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Conflicts could be solved earlier

Sometimes bad things happen to good people. That was the case when Jeannine Tucker was dismissed as a Foothills School Division trustee for her operating a concession at Oilfields High School.

Sometimes bad things happen to good people. That was the case when Jeannine Tucker was dismissed as a Foothills School Division trustee for her operating a concession at Oilfields High School. Tucker had operated the canteen throughout her trusteeship, and while there is a perceived conflict of interest, there is no indication that her canteen profited by any board decisions. Unfortunately, the school board had no choice. When presented with evidence that Tucker was in a conflict, trustees had to vote her off. There is no grey area when faced with a legal decision — trustees have a responsibility to weigh their decisions with what is presented to them. What is strange is the conflict wasn’t discovered earlier. It took four years and another election before it was discovered. Had it been discovered earlier, Tucker could have had the option to leave her business or step down. But that wasn’t the case. Instead, there have been legal proceedings, a byelection will need to be held, and residents in the Black Diamond-Turner Valley area, have not had an elected representative from the area for all of 2018. Yes, it’s a conflict, but a conflict that could have been solved earlier.




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