Skip to content

Lakeland Catholic Ward 1 trustee resigns

Less than one year into serving with the Lakeland Catholic School Division (LCSD) board of trustees, Denise Sirois Tercier officially resigned last week.

LAKELAND – Less than one year into serving with the Lakeland Catholic School Division (LCSD) board of trustees, Denise Sirois Tercier officially resigned last week. The Ward 1 trustee for the Bonnyville area was acclaimed last fall for a four-year term during the general municipal election. 

During the public portion of the LCSD’s school board meeting on Sept. 21, Tercier said she was thankful for the opportunity while announcing her reasons through a letter, for stepping down. 

“I had a great experience learning and I understand the incredible opportunity that it is to be a school board trustee and I truly believe in Catholic education, however, I realize that it is simply not for me.” 

The letter further emphasized the importance of Catholic education while thanking her fellow board members who will continue to shape the division's eight schools across the Lakeland region. 

“It’s been wonderful getting to know everyone at Lakeland Catholic and I have so much faith in this board’s ability to make the best decisions for our children and our division. Thank you for the experience that I’ve received this past year,” said Tercier. 

For Tercier’s peers who were sad to see her go, LCSD chair Mary Anne Penner thanked her for her role. 

“We’ve enjoyed meeting you and I’m sorry you won’t be around to share your experiences with us in the future. We definitely wish you all the best in the future.” 

The division's Superintendent Pam Guilbault, recognized Tercier’s years of advocacy supporting Catholic education and being a parent who has continued to support the school division. Tercier's input as a trustee will be missed, Guilbault said. 

“Although you are not sitting at the board table, a strength that you possess and one that we will heavily rely on is your advocacy and the work that you do behind the scenes and within the school, as a parent, and the influence that you have because you are such a strong faith-filled parent,” she said. 

“We want to thank you for that, because we know that  you do have and do contribute so much behind the scenes.” 

The division has not announced whether it will seek a by-election to fill the vacant position.  

School boards in Alberta that have six or more trustees are not required to hold a by-election if they only have only one vacancy and it is within year two, three, or four of the term. The start of the school year signalled the start of year two for trustees. 

LCSD now has six remaining trustees.  

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks