Can a school trustee lower my property taxes?

No, school boards in BC do not set or collect property taxes. The province sets the school tax rate for each district each year, and the district is funded by a provincial per-student grant. A trustee has no taxing power at all, so raising or lowering your taxes just isn't something the job can do, whatever a candidate promises at the door.

Can a trustee get my child into a specific school or program?

Not individually. In SD43, catchments, program access, and enrolment are administered by district staff under board policy. A trustee can push for the policy or capacity that affects access broadly, but cannot guarantee a seat.

Can a trustee build a new school for a growing neighbourhood?

Not on their own. Capital projects require provincial approval and funding. A trustee can make a site a board priority and advocate hard to the province, which is often the real fight in a fast-growing area like Port Moody.

Can a trustee fire a principal or teacher?

That's not a trustee's call. A BC school board employs and directs one person, the superintendent, who is responsible for staffing and operations. Hiring and firing sit with the superintendent, not with any individual trustee.

Can a trustee change what is taught in class?

That's out of a board's hands. Curriculum is set by BC's Ministry of Education and Child Care and applies province-wide. A board sets local policy and priorities within that curriculum.

How much power does one trustee really have?

On their own, very little. SD43's nine-member board decides by majority vote and acts as a body. One trustee's job is to represent their community and build support among colleagues for the direction they want.

What Does a School Trustee Actually Do?

What trustees govern

A trustee is one of nine elected members of the SD43 board of education. The BC School Trustees Association describes trustees as "ordinary citizens elected by other citizens to represent the interest of the entire public in the education process," with "one primary mandate: improving learning for all students."

The powers make a short list. BCSTA puts it this way: trustees "set plans, policies and the annual budget," "hire the superintendent," and report back to their communities on how students are doing. Day to day it comes down to four things:

Budget allocation. How the operating grant is split across schools, programs, and administration. The amount that arrives is the province's call, covered on where the money comes from.
Strategic direction. The multi-year vision and the policies that guide the district, currently Directions 2030.
The superintendent. The board hires exactly one employee and holds that person accountable for running the district day to day.
Advocacy. Pressing the province for money and for new schools, the part of the job voters see most.

What trustees legally cannot do

It's worth knowing the things a trustee cannot do, especially when someone is making promises at the door.

Set curriculum. The K-12 curriculum is provincial, set by the Ministry of Education and Child Care.
Run a deficit. The School Act requires a balanced budget adopted by June 30, and boards that broke the rule (Vancouver in 2016, Cowichan Valley in 2012) were fired and replaced by an appointed trustee.
Build schools on their own. New schools and major upgrades need provincial approval and provincial money. A trustee can push hard for a site but cannot order a school built.
Make individual staffing calls. Hiring, discipline, and who teaches where are the superintendent's job.
Remove provincial policy. Provincial policy is mandatory across BC, whatever a local board thinks of it.

A trustee can

Decide how the operating budget is allocated
Set the district's strategic direction and policies
Hire and hold accountable the superintendent
Set capital priorities and vote on school sites
Advocate to the province for funding and schools

A trustee cannot

Raise or lower your property taxes
Run a deficit (boards have been fired for it)
Order a school built without provincial funding
Set or change the provincial curriculum
Hire, fire, or assign teachers and principals

How the board works

SD43 has nine trustees elected across the district. The seats go by community. Coquitlam elects four, Port Coquitlam two, Port Moody two, and Anmore and Belcarra share one. A Port Moody voter picks two of the nine people at the table.

The board only acts as a group. No single trustee can direct staff or commit the district to anything. Decisions come by majority vote after debate, and BCSTA notes it is "important that each member of the board support the decision of the group once one is reached". One trustee's influence comes down to persuasion, in public and around the board table, since nobody at that table has personal authority over the schools on their own.