---
title: "Vancouver's new School Board to be sworn in today at 5 pm"
description: "The nine trustees elected on October 17 take office at a ceremony at VSB offices at 1580 W Broadway on November 2 at 5 pm."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/news/vancouver-school-board-sworn-in-today-november-2026"
last_updated: "2026-11-02T23:50:53.035Z"
---

Vancouver's nine newly elected School Board trustees are to be sworn in today at 5 pm, according to an announcement COPE published on November 2. The ceremony is at the Vancouver School Board offices at 1580 W Broadway.

The October 17 election returned a board made up of four COPE trustees, three from OneCity, and two from the Green Party of Vancouver. No ABC Vancouver trustee won a seat.

## Who is on the new board

The four COPE trustees are [Suzie Mah](/candidates/suzie-mah), who held a seat on the previous board, and three members elected for the first time: [Derrick O'Keefe](/candidates/derrick-o-keefe), [Gwen Giesbrecht](/candidates/gwen-giesbrecht), and [Melanie Cheng](/candidates/melanie-cheng).

The three OneCity trustees are [Krista Sigurdson](/candidates/krista-sigurdson), [Steve Cardwell](/candidates/steve-cardwell), and [Rory Brown](/candidates/rory-brown).

The two Green Party of Vancouver trustees are [Alisha Masongsong](/candidates/alisha-masongsong) and [Julie Strilesky](/candidates/julie-strilesky).

## What COPE said

In its announcement, COPE said its trustees would work to end what it described as years of cuts and neglect under the previous board, restore what it called meaningful participation for parents and community groups, and fight for changes it said would benefit students. These are the party's stated goals. The new board has not yet held a meeting or taken any vote.

Suzie Mah was quoted in the announcement saying it had been "an ongoing battle" opposing the previous board's decisions. The announcement cited the long-term lease of Fleming Elementary's basketball courts to a private developer, the closure of Carleton Elementary, and cuts to staff positions as examples of decisions COPE opposed.

Newly elected trustee Melanie Cheng was quoted saying she had led inquiries into what she described as school property subdivisions and had challenged the previous board on several decisions. These are her own account of her record, as given in the party announcement.

## When to follow the board's work

The board takes office today. Its promises, as found across each trustee's campaign materials, are on this site: see the pages linked above for each trustee. The VSB's meeting schedule will be updated at vsb.bc.ca once the new board sets its calendar.

Residents who want to attend tonight's ceremony can go to the VSB offices at 1580 W Broadway at 5 pm today.

## Sitemap

See the full [sitemap](/sitemap.md) for all pages.