Vote Amy McQuaid

Vote Amy McQuaid Vote Amy McQuaid Vote Amy McQuaid

Vote Amy McQuaid

Vote Amy McQuaid Vote Amy McQuaid Vote Amy McQuaid
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Student Safety & Well-Being

Safe Schools Help Students Thrive

Every student deserves to feel safe at school. When students feel safe, supported, respected, and included, they are better able to focus on learning, build healthy relationships, and participate fully in school life.

Student safety is about more than physical safety. It includes mental and emotional well-being, medical safety, respectful relationships, and a sense of belonging. Families should have confidence that appropriate policies, reporting processes, training, and supports are in place to help keep students safe.


When a Student Doesn't Feel Safe

When a student does not feel safe at school, families deserve to know that their concerns will be heard and taken seriously. Students should have appropriate ways to report concerns, and families should understand how those concerns are addressed.

As your Trustee, I will support clear policies, effective reporting processes, and accountability so that concerns about student safety are not ignored or lost in the system. I will listen to recurring concerns and ask questions when broader issues need the Board's attention.

My experience as a parent and my work founding Safe at School Ontario have reinforced for me that student safety policies need to work in practice—not just on paper.


My Priorities

  • Support safe, inclusive, and respectful learning environments where every student feels valued and secure.
  • Advocate for evidence-informed approaches to student health, safety, and well-being.
  • Support strong medical safety practices for students with medical conditions.
  • Support clear and accessible processes for students and families raising safety concerns.
  • Listen to students, families, and educators to identify concerns and areas for improvement.
  • Promote transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement in student safety policies and practices.

Support for Every Student

Helping Every Student Reach Their Potential

Supporting Every Student

Every student is different. They learn in different ways, have different strengths and interests, and may face different challenges along the way. Our public education system should recognize those differences while maintaining high expectations and ensuring every student has the opportunity to learn, participate, belong, and succeed.

Supporting students does not mean treating every student the same. Some students may need additional academic, social, emotional, or accessibility supports. Others may need enrichment, greater challenge, advanced learning opportunities, or opportunities to learn at a faster pace. Every student deserves to be appropriately challenged, supported, and encouraged to reach their potential.

As your Trustee, I will keep students at the centre of decision-making and support policies and practices that respond to the diverse needs of students across the full range of abilities. That includes students who need additional supports as well as students who are gifted, advanced, or ready for greater academic challenge.

I will listen to students, families, and educators to better understand what is working, where gaps exist, and where improvements are needed.


My Priorities

  • Support inclusive learning environments where every student feels respected, welcomed, and that they belong.
  • Advocate for access to appropriate supports and resources so students can participate fully and succeed in their education.
  • Support meaningful opportunities for gifted and advanced learners, including appropriate enrichment, academic challenge, and opportunities to develop their strengths.
  • Maintain high expectations for every student while recognizing that students learn, progress, and demonstrate success in different ways.
  • Promote student well-being because students learn best when they feel safe, supported, challenged, and connected to their school community.
  • Listen to students, families, and educators to understand what students need and where the education system can improve.
  • Support early identification of both learning needs and opportunities so students can receive the appropriate support, challenge, and encouragement to thrive.
  • nities to develop their strengths.
  • Maintain high expectations for every student while recognizing that students learn, progress, and demonstrate success in different ways.
  • Promote student well-being because students learn best when they feel safe, supported, challenged, and connected to their school community.
  • Listen to students, families, and educators to understand what students need and where the education system can improve.
  • Support early identification of both learning needs and opportunities so students can receive the appropriate support, challenge, and encouragement to thrive.

Learn More

The Math Ain’t Mathing

Supporting every student requires resources that reflect what students actually need. I took a closer look at Ontario’s special education funding formula, the gaps identified here at KPR, and why advocates continue to call for change.

→ Read the full article 


Family Voice and Engagement

Families Are Essential Partners

Strong school communities are built through trust, collaboration, and open communication. Families and caregivers bring valuable lived experience and insight into their children's education, while educators and school staff bring professional expertise. Students also deserve to have their voices heard in ways that are appropriate to their age and circumstances.

Meaningful family engagement is about more than sharing information. It means creating opportunities to listen, ask questions, provide input, and work together respectfully—even when there are different perspectives.

As your Trustee, I will advocate for meaningful partnerships between families, educators, school staff, students, and the broader community. I believe families should understand how decisions are made, have meaningful opportunities to be heard, and know how their feedback is considered.

My experience as a parent and community advocate has reinforced the importance of listening to families and understanding the challenges they face. Strong partnerships help build trust, strengthen schools, and ultimately support better outcomes for students.


My Priorities

  • Strengthen family voice and engagement by supporting meaningful opportunities for parents and caregivers to participate and provide input.
  • Support strong school councils and volunteerism as important connections between families and their schools.
  • Promote respectful, open, and transparent communication between schools, families, and the Board.
  • Build stronger community partnerships with municipalities, community organizations, and other local partners that support children, youth, and families.
  • Foster welcoming and inclusive school communities where every student and family feels respected, valued, and heard.


Learn More

Building Strong School Communities Through Partnership

Read how partnerships between families, educators, volunteers, municipalities, and community organizations can help create stronger schools and better outcomes for students.

→ Read the full article

Accountable Governance

Building Trust Through Good Governance

Strong public education depends on trust. That trust is built when families know their voices are heard, decisions are made transparently, and trustees take their responsibility for oversight seriously.

As your Trustee, I will bring my experience in municipal and regional government, child and youth advocacy, and community leadership to the board table. I will listen to families, ask thoughtful questions, seek the information needed to make informed decisions, and work collaboratively to ensure the Board remains focused on the best interests of students.

My experience advocating for my own child and founding Safe at School Ontario has also taught me an important lesson: good policies need to work in practice, not just on paper. Trustees have a responsibility to ask whether policies are achieving their intended outcomes and whether students and families are experiencing the support those policies are meant to provide.


My Priorities

  • Promote transparency and accountability in board decision-making.
  • Listen to families and communities, particularly when concerns are recurring or systemic.
  • Ask the right questions and seek the information needed to make responsible decisions.
  • Support evidence-informed decisions that consider student needs, outcomes, resources, and community input.
  • Monitor whether policies are working in practice, and support improvements when they are not.
  • Communicate openly so families understand how decisions are made and how to have their voices heard.
  • Keep students at the centre of every decision while respecting the Board's responsibility for sound governance and oversight.

Copyright © 2026 Vote Amy McQuaid  - All Rights Reserved.


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