History

Parents from schools on lower Vancouver Island met on October 18th, 1982 to discuss
the effects of the government restraint program on education. It was from this meeting
that parents from the Sooke District decided to form a group of their own, to be known
as the Sooke Parents Education Advisory Council (SPEAC).

During the first few months the newly elected executive worked extremely hard
to make certain that all local schools had representation and that all teachers,
principals, district office personnel and trustees were aware of the existence
of the organization. In a very short time, SPEAC took a leadership role in
facilitating parental involvement in education in many areas.

SPEAC

· has permanent delegate status at the School District 62 Board of Education meetings;

· is developing a series of pamphlets on volunteering and PAC positions, etc.;

· sponsors educational forums and conferences in conjunction with other parent groups;

· hosts an All Candidates meeting for local school trustee elections;

· hosts Parents’ Advisory Council Presidents meetings;

· has representatives on school district committees where parents are welcome;

· assists parents and PAC groups as needed in locating parent resources and support;

· is a member of the British Columbia Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils (BCCPAC).

In 2004 the provincial Government legislated District Parents’ Advisory Councils.
In January 2006 SD 62 adopted a policy and regulation recognizing the relationship
between and the roles of the school district and SPEAC.
In 2009 SPEAC added an apostophe to the word parents so that the name reflected the
school act. The PACs and DPACs are public school parents’ organizations, possessive and plural.