School board trustee will not seek re-election due to ‘shifting priorities’

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A trustee with the local school district has announced he will not seek re-election in 2026.

Thomas Whitton has been a trustee in Area 5 with School District 60 (SD60) since 2022, and announced his decision not to return in a Facebook post on Tuesday, July 29th.

While he will see the term through to its 2026 conclusion, he spoke to Energeticcity.ca about his experience in SD60, which he called “fulfilling.”

“I will continue to work for the next year to better the experience [for] my kids and kids around SD60…when it comes to their school life, which can be a large portion of their time throughout the year,” Whitton said. 

Whitton says between family commitments; entrepreneurial work; and obligations as information and technology manager and cultural heritage and language manager at Doig River First Nation, his “priorities are shifting.”  

While he said he recognizes the positions’ importance, he says he cannot ask for the public’s support while being unable to give “110 per cent” of his energy and focus to the work.

“As an active parent myself, I wanted to make sure [a parent’s] voice was around the boardroom table,” said Whitton. 

“I think that’s what I’m going to spend the next year doing, [continuing] to represent parents, inform parents and hope that more parents step up [in the board.]”

While he described his goal of getting parents to be more active in discussions as “aspirational,” Whitton acknowledged the importance of getting topics such as student safety and non-traditional education to the forefront.

“We should always be talking to our children,” said Whitton. “Already had a few messages from parents who may be interested in running across the area. 

“We should always be making sure they are there. I do believe that the parents need to continue to step up. I will continue to keep an eye open for opportunities to support the community, but [it] will be in a different capacity.”

The next election for school board trustees will be in 2026.